DAILY MEDITATION: “When you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near”

Liturgical day: Friday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel text (Lk 21,29-33): Jesus told his disciples a parable. “Consider the fig tree and all the other trees. When their buds burst open, you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near; in the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near. Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away."

“When you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near”

Deacon Fr. Evaldo PINA FILHO
(Brasilia, Brazil)

Today, Jesus invites us to read the signs of our times and era, and to acknowledge in them the closeness of the Kingdom of God. He invites us "Look at the fig tree and all the trees" (Lk 21, 29) paying attention to what is happening with them: when you look at them, you “know that summer is now near” (Lk 21, 30). The fig trees start to blossom. The buds burst open. It is not only the anticipation of the flowers and fruits that springs up, it is also the prognosis of summer, when all trees "begin to show fruit".

According to Benedict XVI “The Word of God makes us change our concept of realism” Indeed, “the realist is the one who recognizes in the Word of God the foundation of all things.” This Living Word, that shows us the summer as a sign of imminence and exuberance of all things luminous, is the very Light: “When you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near” (Lk 21, 31). In this sense, “Now the word is not simply audible; not only does it have a voice, now the word has a face, one which we can see: that of Jesus of Nazareth” (Benedict XVI).

The communication between Jesus and the Father was perfect; and everything He received from the Father, He gave to us by communicating with us in the same perfect way. Thus, the nearness of the Kingdom of God, that articulates God’s free initiative to come and encounter us, must impel us to recognize that proximity of the Kingdom, so that we can also communicate with the Father in a perfect way by means of the Word of the Lord —Verbum Domini—, by appreciating the signs of the Kingdom of God that is so close, as a fulfillment of the Father’s promises in Jesus Christ.

Source: evangeli.net