We live in the presence of Jesus, Christ the King of the Universe and the Great Judge - his love helps us not turn our backs on one another. - 34th Sunday in Ordinary Time, November 21st, 2021 - Homily from the Poustinia

 Thank you Lord for the little children... their cries and babbling are not a distraction, but they actually help us allow the cries of our own hearts to come out... fears, pains, grief, joy, surprise, anxiety.... MP3 

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“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

Brothers and sisters in Jesus, have you noticed how our Good God makes Himself hidden and silent? As Creator of the Universe, the Most Holy Trinity has no need to give humanity any further proof of its existence than what is already before our eyes. The wonders of nature and of all living species and the magnificence and extraordinary abundance of the stars render their eloquent testimonies to the existence and grandeur of the Good God.

These testimonies come to us from the visible world, but beyond the visible world, there are the innumerable quantity of angels in the Presence of God in his eternity and whom He sends to the Earth with messages, like Archangel Gabriel appearing to Mary to announce God asking her to become the Mother of his only Son; which we are preparing to celebrate at Christmas.

“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

When the governor Pontius Pilate interrogated Jesus, he did not realize that he was in the presence of Jesus as the Great King of the Universe, the Son of God. What he did not know is that Jesus is the true Judge and that at that very moment it was Jesus who was interrogating him. Would Pilate open himself to the truth manifest in Jesus standing before him? Well, my brothers and sisters, Jesus is also our Judge, because He is the Great Judge of all humanity, and here we are standing in his Presence.

“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

At this very moment as I speak to you and as you listen to me, brothers and sisters, we are being interrogated ourselves before Jesus, the Great Judge; for He is the only Son of God, the Truth in Person, because He receives from the eternal Father divine Life and He lives this eternal life in the communion of the Holy Spirit. God the Trinity contains all Truth in Himself.

“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

We who are at this very moment living on planet Earth, we are surrounded by all sorts of truths proposed by human beings but which are not the truth at all. They all demand and grasp constantly after our attention, and they do it either to sell us something or to convince us of something. Whom shall we believe? In whom shall we place all our trust? That is the question of the hour, and it is undoubtedly the greatest question of our lives. There you see one of the reasons why Pope Francis has transferred the annual World Youth Days from Palm and Passion Sunday to this solemnity of Christ the King just before Advent.

“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

From the dawn of humanity, we inherit from those who preceded us a certain rejection of the Good God. God created us in communion with Him, but with the liberty to choose. We abuse of our liberty by rejecting the Good God, by turning our back on one another, and by destroying the natural environment which is our common home. We observe that humanity is still acting out its adolescence in the face of God and of life, and He, as perfect parent, He respects our choices but never gives up on the hope of winning us back by his merciful love.

How exactly do we experience this interrogation before Jesus, the Great Judge of all of humanity? We live through our interrogation in all the diverse moments of everyday life as we are faced with our neighbour, either in our family, or outside the home at work or at school, at the market, with friends, and in our refusal to take good care of the environment.

“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

At Christmas we will see who are those who turned their back on Joseph and Mary so pregnant with Jesus, and who welcomed them. The same goes for us. Whom did we welcome this week, and to whom did we turn our back? What did we do for the environment?

Today, whom will I welcome? To whom will I turn my back? This week, whom will I welcome? Against whom will I turn my back? What will I do for the environment?

“Blessed are You, Lord Jesus Christ, Great King, the Prince of the kings of the Earth!”

What personal offering of myself, represented by the bread and wine, will I now place on the Altar with Jesus? I confess and offer to the eternal Father all those against whom I have turned my back; that He may bless them and forgive me. I also offer to the eternal Father all those whom I managed to welcome since the last time I presented myself before the Altar of the Lord; for I acknowledge that it was only by the grace of God that I managed to welcome them.

Here is my prayer in my poverty: « O my Jesus, I trust in You! »

It is happy for us that the Good God greatly desires to forgive us our sins and to restore us to life, for He is God: the Father, and + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us take a few moments to contemplate the Presence of God in our spirit.

 Here's something that can help us keep silence within ourselves... where we meet the Most Holy Trinity... by allowing to echo within us the Name of Jesus... Jesus... Jesus... Jesus...

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© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC