Homily by Deacon Harry Evans
Jesus is talking about his death and resurrection again today. He is priming his disciples for what’s to come.
He spoke the words recorded in the Gospel: “A little while and you will no longer see me and again a little while later and you will see me.” His disciples are still confused.
Of course, we have the benefit of knowing the whole story… shortly after he said this, he died on the Cross and was buried in the tomb and no one saw him, and then a little while later, he rose from the dead and his disciples saw him again.
The reason we have this Gospel today is that these words can be applied to the second time that Jesus disappeared and his eventual return.
Forty days after Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to his disciples, he ascended into heaven. He disappeared again and His disciples would not see him again. Someday, after a little while (but what exactly is a little while for God?), Jesus will come back and we will see him in His glory.
In the meantime, while we wait for Jesus to reappear, we “will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices.” This is the lot of faithful Christians. The world rejoices, but we Christians weep….Why?
Because the world rejoices in sin. The world rejoices in greed. The world rejoices in lust. The world rejoices in violence. How can a Christian rejoice in sin and greed and lust and violence?
If the Gospel is foreign to the world, and the Gospel is the standard of our lives, then we should seem different to the world. We must not give in to the relativism that permeates modern thought. When Jesus comes again, there will be a real reckoning.
To prepare for his return… loving your neighbor as yourself and God above all else will be the only justification for deliverance from the sorrows of sin and death.
And thus, our weeping will turn to Joy when we see Jesus again.