Tag Archives: signs of the times

Heads of States at the United Nations

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On the Van Wyck Expressway from Kennedy Airport warnings are flashing that leaders from all over the world are coming to the United Nations. The Letter to Timothy we’re reading this week tells us to pray for them:

“First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers,
petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone,
for kings and for all in authority,
that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life
in all devotion and dignity.”

The reading from the Book of Esra (Esra 1,1-6) reminds us how important authorities are in fulfilling God’s plan. Cyrus, the King of Persia (Modern Iran), moved by God, issues a decree letting the Jews return to Jerusalem after about 70 years so they can rebuild their city and its temple. It’s not about a human homecoming; their return furthered on the plan of God.

Our reading makes the point that God moves the heart of King Cyrus. God is not only the creator of the world but its real ruler. He’s king, the one with power to change directions as he wills, and he can even change powerful kings like Cyrus.

Reading the Old Testament helps us remember that God acts in the real world of human affairs and creation itself. God’s action is mysterious, beyond our thoughts and ways. God’s kingdom will come, but not according to the calculations of pundits or prognosticators, or “the wise and clever.” We may believe mistakingly that it’s all politics and human motives and natural causes, but “God is king,” the Old Testament proclaims.

To know God’s activity we have to look into “the signs of the times.” Cyrus told the Jews they could return to their homeland and rebuild, but they had to take him up on his offer. Some did, who saw it as a sign from God – “everyone, that is, whom God had inspired to do so.” Some didn’t, for a number of reason: they liked where they were, they feared being deceived, they lost faith. But faithful Jews took the journey back.

The Vatican II document on the Church in the Modern World offers a powerful invitation to respond hopefully and generously today to “the signs of the times.” Our times are not without them. A new Eucharistic prayer prays for the grace to accept that invitation:

“Grant that all the faithful of the church, looking into the signs of the times by the light of the faith, may constantly devote themselves to the service of the gospel.”

“Keep us attentive to the needs of all that, sharing their grief and pain, their joy and hope, we may faithfully bring them the good news of salvation and go forward with them along the way of your kingdom.”

Let’s pray for  peace in Syria,  Certainly “signs of the times” are out there. May we be inspired by God to look for them.

Sandy 2012

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Natural disasters like Sandy, the hurricane that struck the east coast of the United States, Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba and other nations of the Carribean provoke the question: Where is God in all of this? “It’s a wake-up call,” a woman ahead of me at the polling booth on election day said.

Jesus said the same thing when he spoke of a falling tower that killed 18 people in Siloam. (Luke 13,4-5)  Natural disasters are part of the “signs of the times” that call us to repent.

They keep us real about life. The storm surge from Hurricane Sandy came in from the ocean and hit my sister’s house in Lake Como, NJ, around 9:30 PM, Monday evening, October 29th, 2012. Power had gone off around 5PM. I heard what I thought was a clap of thunder, but actually it was part of the foundation of the house under the bedroom where I was sleeping falling down before the surge of water. Looking out the back window I could see waves of waters breaking against the house and I could hear driving winds shaking the trees.

In the front of the house facing the street I could see the surge of water breaking over my sister’s car parked in the driveway. The waters came up to the first step on the porch of her house and then stopped. In the dark I couldn’t see anything beyond what was lit by a small flashlight.

The next day the waters subsided and you could see fish from Lake Como jumping in the streams of water on the street. Outside my bedroom window I saw a heron diving for fish in the waters in our backyard.

Most of the people on 21st Street stayed through the storm; a number of them had generators. They were out on the streets the next day cleaning up and assessing the damage which along the Jersey Shore must be in the millions of dollars. They were thankful to be alive. My sister abandoned the house.

There was kindness that day. Dave from down the street came with two cups of coffee. Richie from across the street pushed my sister’s car from the watery driveway to a higher part of the street. Bill and Joe tried to get her car started but to no avail. Susan and Bob came to drive her to a friend’s house and me to the rectory.

There were offers of food, shelter, showers. Cell phones were charged, water was provided. So much was lost, but it also brought a sense of reality: “Naked I came into this world, and naked I shall return.”

Also, I could hear a favorite saying of my mother: “We got this far.”

Here’s a video of that storm: