Memorial of Saint Lucy, Virgin and Martyr

 Lectionary: 186

He said in reply, "Elijah will indeed come and restore all things;
but I tell you that Elijah has already come,
and they did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased.
So also will the Son of Man suffer at their hands."
Then the disciples understood
that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.

Hearing the Lord's teachings about the Day of Judgment raises many important questions. Among them are: 

1. When will that happen?
2. What standards will God use for judgment?;
3. How many will be saved?  

Jesus replies quite well to each answer, but we have a hard time accepting his answers. 

In today's gospel, the disciples remind the Lord that Elijah is supposed to make an appearance before the Messiah returns. With the question, they wonder if there is still time. He replies that Elijah has already returned but was immediately arrested and murdered. And they understand he considers Elijah's mission was satisfied by the appearance and death of John the Baptist. So the question of When? is answered, "Any minute now!" 

The Lord's criteria for judgment are spelled out in several places. Saint Matthew may have the two best replies. First,  is the Sermon on the Mount with its eight beatitudes; and secondly, the parable of the Judgment Day when the Lord's sheep are separated from Satan's goats. Saint Luke's parable of the rich man and Lazarus could not be any clearer. 

And finally, to the question, How many  will be saved?  "Strive to enter through the narrow gate!" 

All three questions might make more sense if God's creatures had any right to ask the question or receive a more direct reply. But they are loaded questions and stand upon certain false assumptions. 

"When will this happen?" If I know when the judgment day is coming I'll prepare accordingly. I might play the fool with immoral thoughts, words, and deeds until I think it's time to get more serious; and then I'll begin immediate penance and atonement. The plan assumes what many troubled alcoholics assume, "I can quit anytime!" 

As If...! 

Not many people turn back to the Lord on their own time. Some die unexpectedly too soon. Most underestimate their investment in evil; and, despite their last minute efforts, fail to change their ways. 

As a former chaplain, I remember the troubled old men and women whose minds had lost their steel-trap reliability. Despite their anxious questions they could not hear my reassuring replies. They were not dead but they seemed lost. Some still wanted to argue minor points of religion but could not understand common sense answers. I prayed for them and offered them the Sacraments, and hoped that the prayers of the Church might suffice where habitual negligence had failed. 

What standards will God use for judgment? I really want some assurance that I am in a good place with God. Please tell me how I am being judged. 

The questioner has not learned to trust the Lord to be their judge; nor have they recognized his absolute right to judge. More importantly, they have not witnessed the passion and death of Jesus by which he won the right to be our judge? The standard of judgment is more than a simple pass-fail; my virtue may be compared to his courage and integrity on Calvary. I don't look very good in that mirror. 

Finally, How many will be saved? I want to decide if that sounds fair. Is God as generous and merciful as He is supposed to be? Or is his mercy limited by some arbitrary standard?

All three questions assume a right to know, and Jesus dismisses them for that reason alone. 

He might reply, "You'd like to know. But who are you?" 

Jesus calls us his sheep; perhaps because sheep are notoriously stupid and need a persistent and very faithful shepherd. He has come to save us from ourselves and all the evil we do to one another. We, his sheep, do well to accept him as our shepherd.