Sister Kate’s “Gospel Question of the Week” (Luke 21: 5-19) …Weekend of 11/16-17/2013 … 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time…No doubt you have had the experience of walking along a busy sidewalk and come upon a “preacher” who is proclaiming that it is time to repent because “the end is near.” This kind of encounter makes most people to ask themself, “Whoa, am I ready?” Today’s Gospel passage maintains that the date of the end of the world is uncertain. The passage tells us that signs will precede the end, and that “Christians will be called upon to testify before kings and governors.” This prediction is kind of startling! Are you ready to stand up for your faith and confess before the world that you truly are a believer in the Lord, Jesus??? The Good News in this passage of the Holy Gospel is that those who persevere in faithfulness (are willing to “testify) to the Lord will save their souls and enter God's eternal kingdom. Thinking about the end-times can be frightening, I suppose, but, for those of us who really are believers, Christ’s Second Coming is something to celebrate because he is going to present all creation (that means YOU and me) to his heavenly Father. This particular passage of the Holy Gospel was written by Luke. The community in which Luke lived when he was writing this Gospel was experiencing much persecution. This passage gives them the message: don't give up because God is always with you (us). Jesus promises His protective power as they persevere in their faith. He promises us the same, even though we’re not facing the lion’s den or stoning for our faith. How our faithfulness is expressed each day varies, but, make no mistake about it, it is the most important thing we do any day! We are challenged to persevere in our faith, in spite of worldly temptations and direct or indirect persecution because of our religious beliefs. Let us pray for the grace to endure patiently any trials that come our way that challenge our faithfulness. Remember Albert Einstein’s words after the Second World War: “As a lover of freedom, when the revolution came in Germany, I looked to the universities to defend it, knowing that they had always boasted of their devotion to the cause of truth; but no, the universities were immediately silenced. Then I looked to the great editors of the newspapers, whose flaming editorials in days gone by had proclaimed their love of freedom; but they, like the universities were silenced in a few short weeks. Only the Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler’s campaign for suppressing truth. I never had any special interest in the Church before, but now I feel a great affection and admiration for it, because the Church alone has had the courage to stand for intellectual truth, and moral freedom. I am forced to confess that what I once despised, now I praise unreservedly.” The Church had the moral courage to resist a dictator, and it saved the lives of so many Jews because it believed in the assurance given by Jesus in today’s Gospel. GOSPEL QUESTION FOR THE WEEK: Are you working at “being faithful” to the Lord…every day?