Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Homily)

November 15, 2015 9:00 am  · Father Dan Vanyo

Homilies, Ordinary Time

For the Jews the notion of what happens after death was unclear. There are some passages in the Old Testament that talk about things, give you the impression that there is something for the just, something for the good after this life. But even in Jesus' time there were two groups of scholars the Sadducees that denied the resurrection, denied the angels, denied all those things. Kind of like Atheists today. Nothing happens, nothing is going to happen, that was it.

The Pharisees got this right, though Jesus reminds us how much they didn't get right. They believed in the resurrection, they believed in all those things. But just as in our time, there are people who believe in life after death with God in some way, and others who didn't. Now in Daniel, we have some hints here. Some shall live forever, and we look at this with our New Testament eyes, some will live forever. We can see that as the good living with Jesus for eternity. There's another part, quote, "others shall be in everlasting horror and disgrace." Now that sounds like hell, right? But then there's hope, “But the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever." The wise shall be like the stars forever. A great hope is there.