Remaining Steadfast

A fitting meditation for our last week in Ordinary Time:  "By standing firm, you will gain life" (Lk 21:19).  Another translation reads, "By your perseverance you will secure your lives."  Joseph Pagola says that the original term can also be translated at "patience", and he says that indeed we need it our times more than ever. With all that is going on in our world, our Church, our families, it seems that no progress has been made since Jesus ascended into heaven.  Our own lives, at times, witness to weakness, failure to grasp and live the essentials of our beliefs, and we can fall into negativity and discouragement, blaming forces "outside" ourselves, for what is going on inside. Jesus never promised that our lives would be smooth and without obstacle; indeed he warned of persecutions by governments, opposition even from family members, and hatred by "all."  Not a pretty picture, but one that history and our own times affirm.  So, it is now that we are called to make a firmer commitment to the hope of life in the world to come. The victory has been won, as we sing at Easter; we need to hang on to this hope despite the ugliness around us.
A striking analogy occurred to me as I reflected on Central Catholic's football win over a three-time super power champion, Everett High School yesterday.  Trailing behind this seasoned team for most of the game, our boys patiently, perseveringly "kept their cool", despite fumbles and mistakes, and with 2:10 left in the game, scored an absolutely remarkable touchdown that put us ahead 20-15, the final score.. A gift, yes, but also the result of playing firm, "standing firm".  They did not give up, and it paid off with the Division North Championship. So too with the living of our faith in the face of what might seem impossible odds: "By standing firm, you will gain life."
Bro. Rene