Grace and peace to you from the Mystery in whom we live and move, and have our being. The Destruction of the Temple Foretold.
“For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.”
Mark 13:1-8
As Jesus came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”
When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?” Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.”
I’m not in the mood!
Forgive me but I’m just not in the mood! I’m not in the mood to talk about the theological significance the buildings held or why Jesus sat at the Mount of Olives or the disciple’s gazing at the majesty of the building or the actual size of stones and how difficult it must have been to carry one.
I’m not in the frame of mind to discern if Jesus is talking about the time we’re living in now or if the apocalypse we’ve all been waiting for if it’s indeed finally happening.
I’m not in the mood to look up the inches, feet and yards for cubits.
In the “brilliance” of the Vatican II, it must have seemed like a good idea to put this one portion of scripture on this particular day of the 2024 lectionary calendar. It makes me wonder if Jesus was a part of the panel or if he was watching it being built stone upon stone.
Rumor of Wars
I’m not in the mood to eavesdrop on a private conversation between Peter, James, John and Andrew. There must be a reason it was private! Jesus may have also said, “The people in future America will freak out on the whole rumor of wars thing. They will have social media where wars cannot actually be rumors. So never mind about the rumors of wars part.” Perhaps it was a private conversation because people and cultures may misuse and misinterpret the conversation.
I’m not in the mood to go deep on the expectations the Jewish people had concerning their status as the chosen people of God. How their perceived place in the world they deserved to occupy, would never come about by human hands, and therefore expected God’s intervention.
Second Coming of Christ
I’m not in the mood to discuss what was meant by the Second Coming of Christ and how it fits into the optimism of people believing God would do an intervention with the world, and how it would be ushered in by the terrible “Day of the Lord.”
Forgive me for not being in the mood, but I’m only interested in this: Jesus met them where they were and perhaps meets me where I am. He met them in their commendable undying optimism, but also their bleak pessimism that this world is so utterly bad, that it will need to all fall to the ground and be rebuilt, like in biblical proportion.
Isn’t this the same Jesus who said,
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
And he didn’t say it in private!
These are the things that are interesting me right now. The part where the disciples, like children, say, “Hey Jesus, look at that cool building!” Jesus responds, “Yeah cool! It’s all going to all come down like Egyptian dominoes.” Can you imagine a dad saying that to their children upon their in-person glance of the Disney castle?!
The destruction of the temple foretold
I’m sorry, but that’s some funny shit. I have a feeling Jesus wasn’t in the mood either. He wasn’t in the mood to congratulate the rebuilding of Herod’s Jerusalem temple and casino as one of the wonders of the world.
The only thing I’m in the mood for are the cry of the lyrics, “Jesus draw me close. Closer Lord to you. Let the world around me fade away.”
So, forgive me if I’m only in the mood to sit privately with the compassion of Christ, bitch and moan for a time, and then see the wonder that is to be built. The one Jesus called the Temple of the Holy Spirit. It is built invisible, immeasurable, and unconquerable. Deep inside the kingdom of heaven – where God alone is ruler – and I have entrance, and access. My Holy of holies. You have one, too.
“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Amen
Wednesday Respite is a 30-min contemplative service of scripture, prayer, music and a Spirited Touchpoint by Henry Rojas, spiritual director at Spirit in the Desert.
Touchpoint is a reflection on where God’s story touches our life story. It is a short homily based on a biblical story of people in the Old and New Testaments and their relationship with God. Our spiritual ancestors’ experience of God’s grace connects with our lives in the present and our relationship with the Divine. Previous Touchpoints are available as PDFs or on SoundCloud.
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