Ready for the parousia of Jesus

 Homily: 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle A

Brothers and sisters, as we approach the end of Ordinary Time and the beginning of Advent, we begin to receive messages about Jesus’ second coming.  We know that Jesus’ second coming will mark the “end of time” when there will be a final judgement of both the living and the dead and every human soul will either be welcomed into heaven or left to languish in hell.  Each year the Church reminds us of this as we approach the end of Ordinary Time in order to remind us to stay vigilant and watchful for Jesus’ coming.  It is as if she is saying, “Just as this liturgical year will come to an end, so will our lives and the world as we know it come to an end. Therefore, be prepared!”  Let’s take a closer look at these readings, therefore, to see how today we are being called to be prepared.

Although it may not be apparent from the reading, there is one important practice of ancient cultures that we will have to understand before we can make sense of these readings for us.  This practice is something called the “Parousia”.  “Parousia” is an ancient Greek word for the triumphant entrance of a king into the city in which he will ascend to his throne and rule over the land.  In ancient cultures, when it was announced that the king was approaching, the people would all rise up and go out to meet him along the way.  Then they would accompany the king as he enters the city, singing songs of honor and praise the whole way.  The city, of course, would be properly adorned to receive the king and all the people would put on their best garments to go out to meet him.

This is the image of Jesus entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.  His disciples in Jerusalem went out to meet him on the hillside outside of the city walls and then processed into Jerusalem with him, singing songs of honor and praise: “Hosana to the Son of David! Hosana in the highest!”  This was a Parousia: the coming of Jesus Christ the King into Jerusalem to ascend to his throne. ///

On the surface it may not seem like it, but the reading from the letter to the Thessalonians describes the final Parousia of Jesus.  Let’s look at the reading again.  It says, “For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.”  The sound of the trumpets and the voice of the archangel announce the coming of the King and he will begin his descent into the city.  Then those who are his faithful subjects—both those who have already died and those who are still alive—will go up to him in the clouds to meet him and accompany him in his procession into the city.

Now, what Saint Paul does not say, but rather leaves ambiguous, is what will happen at that point.  In the letter he simply says, “Thus we shall always be with the Lord.”  What many Scripture scholars believe is that this procession will return to earth, but it won’t be the same earth.  Rather it will be the earth renewed by the second coming, the image of which the Apostle John saw and which is recorded for us in the book of Revelation.  There it says: 

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.

I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them [as their God].

He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, [for] the old order has passed away.”

The one who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”

Putting these two readings together, we can see that what Saint Paul is describing is the Parousia of Jesus at the end of time.  He does this, as the reading says, to remind us of the hope that we have in Jesus: that even if we die before Jesus’ coming, we who have remained faithful to him will be raised up so as to enter “the new Jerusalem” with him.

Ah, how good it is that the reading from the book of Revelation points to how “the new Jerusalem” was “prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”  This image points us to the parable Jesus uses in our Gospel reading and helps us to make more sense of its lesson.

In the culture of the ancient near east, weddings were celebrated differently than they are today.  Then, weddings were mostly arranged (though this doesn’t mean that they were cold, business affairs; rather, they were highly personal involving both the bride and groom’s whole families).  The bride was usually an adolescent who, once the arrangement was made, didn’t immediately leave to enter her to-be-husband’s house (although, being “betrothed”, she was considered to be wed to her husband already).  After some time and after all of the final preparations were made, the groom would then leave his house to go to the house of his bride to officially take her as his wife and bring her into his home.

On this day, the bride’s family would make special preparations to receive the groom and to celebrate the joyous occasion.  The bride would have attendants who were young, unmarried women (“virgins” in biblical speak).  These would stand outside the gates of the house to await the coming of the groom and then to accompany him (and his attendants) into the house singing songs of joy.  This was a “mini-Parousia”, of sorts: the coming of the groom being like the coming of a most highly-anticipated and honored guest.

Customarily, the groom would arrive in late afternoon or dusk and so the attendants would bring lamps to light the way into the house.  There was no way to know when the groom would arrive, however, so the young attendants would have to be prepared to wait.  Those who were “wise” (other translations call them “farsighted”) would bring extra oil for their lamps to keep them burning if the wait was longer than expected.  Those who were “foolish” (other translations call them “those who don’t take care”) wouldn’t.  As we see in the parable, when the “Parousia” happens, there’s no time to get more supplies.  One simply has to be ready.

In this parable, Jesus is giving his disciples an image of his second coming and he is warning them to prepare now so that they don’t find themselves on the wrong side of judgment when he comes.  Although this seems like a threat, it is actually a loving warning.  Jesus wants all of his followers to enter with him into the eternal wedding feast!  Thus, he warns them and encourages them because he wants them to be eternally happy!  This is not a maleficent God who delights in our suffering, but a loving Father who wants every good thing for his children!  Let me just say this: If all you think of when you think of God is the threat of eternal suffering, then you don’t really know God and I encourage you to spend time considering this passage and all of the goodness that God wants us to receive.

Brothers and sisters, the second coming of Jesus, or our own going to the Lord, may come very unexpectedly.  Thus, we need to remain vigilant so that we do not get caught unprepared.  But there are so many things in this world to distract us, right?  The economy, wars throughout the world, the election, and the anxieties of our daily lives all fight to distract us from staying prepared for the day when Jesus comes.  I can only imagine how anxious our young people are about their future.  “Will I be able to finish school?  Will there be a job for me?  Will I be safe?”  I assure you, young people, we adults share these anxieties with you.  

How, then, do we remain prepared?  In other words, what are the keys to holding the imminent coming of Jesus in our minds while living our lives as disciples of Jesus amidst the anxiety of our daily lives?  Well, there are ten-thousand things we could do, but I’m going to focus on two that apply to all of us: the Eucharist and daily prayer.

Okay, I couldn’t ask this question ten years ago, but today it’s way more common: How many of you all have ever Facetimed with someone (or any other video chat through your devices)?  Why do we do it?  We do it to stay connected with loved ones who are far away from us, to remind us of how much we love and care for each other, so that we never stop anticipating the next opportunity we will have to meet each other in person and embrace one another in joy.  Maybe you’ve never thought of it that way, but I bet all of you can nod your head in agreement that this is the feeling underneath your Facetime conversations.

Okay, and let me apologize in advance for this crude analogy, but our weekly celebration of the Eucharist and our daily turning to God in prayer are ways that we “Facetime” with God, and thus keep alive our anticipation of, and our looking forward to, his triumphant return.  In the Eucharist, we have an intense, full-bodied experience of Facetime with God.  We not only encounter him in the Blessed Sacrament (and most fully there), but also in the person of the priest, in the gathered body of believers, and in the work of prayer that is the liturgy itself.  In fact, the entrance procession is meant to be a “mini-Parousia” of sorts, with the priest (who represents Christ, the bridegroom, because he stands in persona Christi) led into the house by the attendants (the servers and other ministers, some of them carrying lamps) to begin the great wedding banquet (the re-presentation of the Last Supper/Sacrifice on Calvary) while all gathered sing a song of praise.  (You’ve never thought of it that way, have you?  Now you will.  You’re welcome!)  This “Facetime” experience is meant to fill our lamps with the oil of gladness and hope so that we can remain vigilant and ready for the Lord when he returns in the fullness of his glory.  It also reminds us that we are not alone in our waiting; but rather that we are united with a full body of believers who are looking for and longing for the same thing.

Our daily prayer is the way that we “Facetime” more personally with God.  This time throughout the week is just as important, because it reminds us of God’s personal love for us: a love so deep and so faithful that it would drive him to make his triumphal return even if you or I were the only one he was coming to see!  This daily “Facetiming” strengthens our hope for his coming throughout the week, especially during any trying times when we feel isolated and alone.  Each of us, of course, can choose any of the many other ways to remain vigilant (the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy come immediately to mind), but taking part in the weekly celebration of the Eucharist and spending time in prayer each day are the two ways that are indispensable for all of us.

My brothers and sisters, armed with this great hope, let us now turn more fully to offer ourselves in this Eucharist–this great “thanksgiving” offering to God–and so be filled with God’s grace–his divine life, freely given to us; so that we might go forth, joyful and vigilant for his coming, giving witness to our hope in our words and actions, daily ready to greet him with praise and honor when he comes.

Given at Saint Boniface Parish: Lafayette, IN – November 7th, 2026

Given at St. Mary Parish: Muncie, IN - November 8th, 2026