From the Word of the Day
Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, ‘the coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.
(Luke 17: 20-25)
How should we live this Word
To the Pharisees’ desire to know ‘when’, Jesus juxtaposes the need to understand ‘how’ God’s Kingdom comes. He clarifies that it does not come in a way that draws attention. Above all, before the day of the Son of Man comes in His glorious at the end of time, ‘first He must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation’.
We realize that Jesus intends to deflate the false expectations of the Hebrews, especially of those adept at deciphering an apocalyptic-pharisaical environment. They were obsessed with figuring out the times of the final events and were mistakenly projected toward a spectacular manifestation of God’s Kingdom. The ‘itch’ to know ‘when’ has crossed the centuries. Even today, many people run after ‘visions an
d ‘prophesies’
How necessary it is to concentrate our attention on ‘how’ the Reign of God comes. Jesus alerts us that it comes very discretely, in the routine, silently, mildly. What’s more, in its inceptive phase, it is already in our midst. It is in our faithful daily listening to the Word of God that becomes enfleshed in us. It is in our life that continually seeks to rise, passing through the mystery of the Cross. Jesus warns us of this Mystery, allowing us to perceive how suffering and dying are not haphazard incidents, but rather the mysterious opportunity that God offers us for our redemption.
Today as I pause for silent contemplation, I will seek to penetrate more deeply the meaning of ‘how’ God’s Kingdom comes within me and around me. I will invoke the Holy Spirit so that I may be made attentive and vigilant as I wait for the Lord each day.
Lord, I do not ask when You will come but I ask You to help me to wait for Your coming as I live my daily life with hope.
The voice of Sr. Elizabeth of the Trinity, Carmelite and Mystic
I feel that the Master draws near. He speaks to me only of eternity, of love, in tones that are ever graver, ever more serious. I want to live every minute intensely!

Here is another of those Gospel arrows that we may find disconcerting. Why? Hasn’t Jesus just said that the ‘children of darkness’ are more adept in doing evil than the ‘children of the light’ in doing good? Is He diminishing the value of using all of one’s qualities, capacities, alacrity, creativity, gifts received from God? ![db_37-Resurrection_of_our_Lord[1] db_37-Resurrection_of_our_Lord[1]](http://livingscripture.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/db_37-resurrection_of_our_lord1.jpg?w=244&h=300)




