November 20, 2025 Thursday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Daily Readings: 1 Maccabees 2:15-29; Luke 19:41- 44
The first reading gives a moving picture of Mattathias who defends his faith and religious traditions ably supported by his sons and brothers even under tremendous pressure and threat. Those who enforce apostasy come to a place called Modein. They assemble Mattathias, his sons and his brothers and demand that they be the first ones to offer sacrifice to set an example and be honoured as friends of the king. They are also assured of silver, gold and many gifts in return. Noble man Mattathias refuses to toe their line as he, his sons and brothers do not desert the law and the ordinances. It is a gross disobedience. When a fellow-Jew comes forward to offer sacrifice, Mattathias burns with zeal and anger. He murders the man on the altar together with one officer. He revolts openly and welcomes all who wish to seek righteousness and justice and flee to the wilderness to live there. Thus Mattathias leaves behind a legacy of leadership. Rejection of compromising spirit and commitment to the Law are burning challenging examples to the modern generation.
Jesus continues to be in Jerusalem. He broods over the lost opportunities offered to the people of Israel and their leaders like the servant who kept the mina in his napkin and buried it in the ground. That causes Jesus deep anguish and he weeps over the city over the repeated failures of her non-relenting and uncooperative citizens. He prophesies impending destruction. Amazingly all the predictions of Jesus were fulfilled in 70 AD when Titus son of Vespasian destroyed the city leaving no stone upon another. Jesus himself cites the reason, “…you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God” (Luke 19:44). The inhabitants of Jerusalem have been spiritually blind and hard of heart not to see, hear and respond to the cry of Jesus. Their indifference brought down their downfall.
Call to Action: We need not brood over our repeated failures provided we become aware of our spiritual blindness and make efforts to restore our sight.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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