[00:00:05] Hello, my name is Sally Moriarty-Flask. Welcome to: From His Word to Our Hearts, my weekly Bible Study podcast. Together we will explore the readings to be proclaimed at the Catholic Mass on Sunday, November 16, 2025, the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time.
This week's episode is entitled: The Time of Our Testimony, and these readings remind us that no matter how many frightening things happen in the world, we can never allow them to stop us from honestly witnessing to the truth of our faith. So, how do we prepare ourselves to do that?
As we journey through the readings this week, consider the following:
Looking at all the unrest, dissension, and negativity in our world right now, it may seem as if the end times are drawing near, but that is something no human can predict. No one but the Father knows the day or the hour when the end will come. Jesus assures us, though, that this is a time to bear testimony to our faith, and that he will give us the wisdom to do just that. But will we listen?
[00:01:41] Let's begin in prayer:
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Heavenly Father, we praise you and we thank you for the gift of Sacred Scripture through which we receive the wisdom and strength to live as your faithful people. Help us allow that wisdom to penetrate deeply into our hearts so that nothing can lead us away from you. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
[00:02:16] Now that we've opened our hearts in prayer, let's listen to what God is telling us in the Scriptures.
Our Gospel this week is from Luke 21: 5-19.
“[S]ome spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, [Jesus] said, ‘As for these things which you see, the days will come when there shall not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.’ And they asked him, ‘Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign when this is about to take place?’ And he said, ‘Take heed that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name, saying, “I am he!” and. “The time is at hand!” Do not go after them. And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified; for this must first take place, but the end will not be at once.’ Then he said to them, ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven. But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name's sake. This will be a time for you to bear testimony. Settle it therefore in your minds, not to meditate beforehand how to answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends, and some of you they will put to death; you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives.’”
[00:04:47] By not hearing our normal Lukan Gospels for the past couple of weeks, it may seem that we are walking into the middle of a conversation already in progress… and in a way, we are… because as we approach the end of the Liturgical Year, the readings intentionally focus our attention on the end times.
[00:05:13] Even if we had heard the assigned Gospel for the past couple of weeks, we would have seen the steady development of a common theme, but not a continuous narrative of events. Instead, as we return to Luke this week, we find that the Travel Narrative has ended, Jesus is in Jerusalem, and - in this passage - he is teaching in the Temple, where people are admiring the beauty of its decorations.
[00:05:51] And keep in mind, this is Herod's temple… a temple that has been undergoing expansion and improvement for decades, funded in part by the heavy taxes Herod has imposed on the Jewish people.
[00:06:09] So let's join Luke's narrative…
[00:06:12] “[S]ome spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, [Jesus] said, ‘As for these things which you see, the days will come when there shall not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.’”
[00:06:32] These words had to be quite disturbing to Jesus' listeners. And yes, Jesus is warning of the destruction of the temple, but he is not the first to do so. In the 8th century BC, the prophet Micah warned that Jerusalem would become a heap of ruins. And we know from historical accounts that the temple was completely destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.
“And they asked him, ‘Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign when this is about to take place?’”
[00:07:11] Jesus is speaking to his disciples, but they are - by no means - separated or isolated from the crowds. In fact, at the end of the previous chapter, we are told that Jesus was speaking to his disciples where all the people could hear. And notice how Jesus is addressed here - as teacher rather than Lord. Those who ask this question are seeking reassurance that the destruction of the temple will be in the far distant future because, after all, no one wants to confront the idea that the world in which they live - and all the people and things in it - will come to an end.
[00:08:01] That's a frightening prospect for anyone… and these disciples, these followers of Jesus, are no different. Jesus offers an unexpected answer, however, using Apocalyptic (or eschatological) language.
[00:08:18] “[Jesus] said, ‘Take heed that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name, saying, “I am he!” and, “The time is at hand!” Do not go after them.
There have always been false prophets and false messiahs… they were present in the time before Jesus, they were present in Jesus’ time, and they're still around today. But there is always, ALWAYS something in the message of every false prophet that is unauthentic and therefore gives them away.
[00:08:56] One way we know that any prediction is false is when the end times are said to be coming on a particular date - because in Matthew 24, Jesus said that “no one knows the day or the hour, not the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Jesus is telling his disciples - and us - that we can't listen to those false teachers… we can't follow their lead because they aren't authentic, and they will inevitably lead us astray.
[00:09:37] And we can also tell that prophets, messiahs, or teachers are false when any or all of their message doesn't align with what Jesus teaches in the Gospel. It really is just that simple!
[00:09:59] “And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified; for this must first take place, but the end will not be at once.”
[00:10:12] Conflict, division, hatred, and war are – unfortunately - all too common throughout the history of the world.
[00:10:23] Just and lasting peace can only be established and sustained by calm, ethical, steadfast leaders who are absolutely committed to the good of all people - not just the people of this or that group or this or that nation - but all people.
[00:10:49] And Jesus says here, “the end will not be at once,” meaning that there will be no one unequivocal sign that will indicate that the end is near.
“Then he said to them, ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.’”
[00:11:25] Again, just like conflict, division, hatred, and war, catastrophic natural disasters are always happening. And with climate change and a growing distrust of legitimate science, leaders are ignoring the warning signs and things are only going to get worse.
[00:11:51] “But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name's sake.”
[00:12:09] And that did happen, right? Christians were persecuted and many were killed in the early centuries of the Church.
[00:12:18] And religious persecution is, unfortunately, still going on… and it's not just Christians that are being impacted. Jews, Muslims, Kurdish Yazidis, and Baha'is, among others, are actively being persecuted in our world today. Jesus goes on…
[00:12:41] “There will be a time for you to bear testimony.”
The Greek word used there is martyrian - which means to witness or give testimony. It is the basis for the word martyr. And if Jesus is saying to his followers THEN that they are facing a time when they will need to bear testimony, how much more do those words apply to us today as well?
[00:13:13] “Settle it therefore in your minds, not to meditate beforehand how to answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries we'll be able to withstand or contradict.”
[00:13:31] And Jesus means HIS truth, the truth of the Gospel, the truth we hear in Sacred Scripture, because that is the only truth that is needed. Not the truth of the Left, not the truth of the Right, but the truth of Sacred Scripture! Meaning that we need to speak and live the Gospel at all times.
[00:14:00] “You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends, and some of you they will put to death; you will be hated by all for my name's sake.”
Jesus predicts here that those things will take place, and they did - in fact – happen… and are still happening.
“But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives.”
[00:14:35] This is the very lesson that Jesus had been working so hard to impart as he made his final journey to Jerusalem… to his disciples, to the crowds that followed him, and to the Jewish religious authorities that challenged him along the way. And we've heard that over and over again throughout the past few weeks.
[00:15:03] Be prepared… be faithful… carry our crosses… enter through the narrow gate… bear testimony… and we will be rewarded - not necessarily in this life - but in God's kingdom. So, how do we prepare for that?
[00:15:28] Not by turning to one extreme or another, not by listening to one false teacher or another, not by relying on one political party or another.
[00:15:43] The only way we can do that is by relying on the truth in Sacred Scripture, by living and speaking according to Jesus’ teachings, rather than being led astray by the divisive voices of this world.
[00:16:03] That takes us to our First Reading, which is from Malachi 4: 1-2a.
[00:16:12] In the NAB that citation is: 3: 19-20a.
“Behold the day comes, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day comes that shall burn them up, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. But for you who fear my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings.”
You may have noticed that I listed two different citations for this passage - that's because, as I said, one applies to the RSV translation and one to the NAB translation.
[00:17:04] The text for Malachi actually comes down to us from two different traditions.
[00:17:11] The RSV translation bases its text on the Vulgate, a Latin translation done by Saint Jerome in the 4th century, where Malachi is divided into four chapters (and the RSV is the translation I use for this Bible study). The NAB (which is the basis of the Catholic Lectionary) uses the text of the Hebrew Bible and the Greek Septuagint, where Malachi is divided into just three chapters. This book begins with the words: “The oracle of the word of the LORD to Israel by Malachi”- and, unfortunately, that is all the information we are given regarding the identity of the author.
[00:18:07] Since the Greek version of the Old Testament (the Septuagint) translates that name as “The messenger” or “My messenger” some scholars are of the opinion that the book should be considered anonymous. If that were the case, however, this would be the only book - in all of the Old Testament - to have no specific name attached to it.
[00:18:33] We can't say that about all of Scripture, since the Letter to the Hebrews has no specific author's name associated with it in the New Testament, but we can say that about the Old Testament. And because no other book in the Old Testament is anonymous, the traditional view is that Malachi is the name of the prophet who delivered the oracles recorded in this book.
[00:19:02] As I said, there is no personal information provided in the text, nor is there any indication of when it was written. Most scholars agree that it was probably written after the Babylonian exile, but before the reforms of Ezra and Nehemiah, meaning that the date of its composition would be around 500 to 450 BC.
[00:19:27] Based on the internal content of the book, we can deduce that Malachi was a good man who courageously spoke out against the religious ills of his time… which were considerable. The Davidic monarchy was gone, the temple had been restored but the priesthood was corrupt, worship was careless and insincere, and the Southern Kingdom of Judah was under Gentile occupation and rule. Malachi's message is intended as a wake-up call to convince the people that it was necessary to restore proper observance of the Covenant. And of course, that message is consistent through most of the Old Testament prophets.
[00:20:25] Malachi is one of the twelve Minor Prophets – again, Minor meaning a shorter book, not less important – and, in fact, it stands as the last prophetic book of the Old Testament era.
[00:20:42] So, let's listen to what Malachi has to say…
[00:22:47] “Behold, the day comes, burning like an oven,”
[00:20:51] When Malachi says the day, he means the Day of Judgment… what in Joel and Amos is referred to as the Day of the Lord.
[00:21:02] Interestingly enough, images associated with the Day of the Lord are often of darkness, gloom, and pestilence.
[00:21:11] In this instance, the image that Malachi uses is one of cleansing fire.
“when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble;”
The word stubble refers to the short, stiff stalks left behind in the field after the grain harvest - such remnants of served no significant purpose and were usually burned in order to clear the field for future planting.
“the day that comes shall burn them up, says the LORD of hosts,”
Meaning that those who are arrogant, those who do evil, those who lead others astray (which should sound familiar from our Gospel), they will be destroyed by the flames of God's purifying fire.
“so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.”
[00:22:20] Not only will the Day of Judgment eliminate the visible evil - which is like the worthless stubble that can be seen burning after the harvest - but it will also destroy even the root and the branches so that nothing will be left to promote or sustain evil in the future.
[00:22:45] And wouldn't it be nice if that were actually the case? Unfortunately, evil is frighteningly persistent.
[00:22:57] “But for you who fear my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings.”
Those who fear God's name are just and righteous - and their actions will be rewarded when the Messiah comes… that is essentially what that last line is promising.
[00:23:22] It's evident that we encounter two very different depictions of fire in this passage. One that is destructive and seeks to eliminate evil, and another that is restorative, healing and warming the just… reminding us that judgment will come for all of us.
[00:23:49] So when it does, will we be counted among the wicked or the just? Or to put this in terms of our Gospel, if this is our time to give testimony, what testimony will we give?
[00:24:07] Will it be a testimony that is faithful to Jesus and the Scriptures? Or one that promotes the divisive and self-serving messages of this world?
[00:24:25] That brings us to our Responsorial Psalm, which is Psalm 98, and the refrain is:
“The LORD comes to judge the world with righteousness.”
[00:24:35] And here are the verses:
[00:24:38] “Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody! With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!”
“Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who dwell in it! Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing for joy.”
“For the Lord comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.”
This Psalm is a Liturgical Celebration of God's kingship and the salvation he provides his people.
[00:25:19] In the first stanza, all people are invited to praise God joyfully with song and with stringed instruments (that's what a lyre is) and with trumpets and horns, make a joyful noise to the Lord. When the Psalmist says horn - he means a shofar (which is an instrument made out of a ram's horn).
[00:25:45] In the second stanza, the invitation is expanded to include the entire world, not just people, but the earth itself is invited to praise God.
[00:25:59] The third and final stanza declares that God is the divine judge who will dispense justice over all creation and rule fairly and equitably over all peoples.
Like our reading from Malachi, this Psalm reminds us that God will come to judge every person with justice. And Jesus himself told us in the Gospel that we are given wisdom and truth in the Scriptures, so that we can - in turn - bear testimony to our faith in God.
[00:26:38] So, when God's just judgment does come for us, on what testimony will we be judged?
[00:26:48] That takes us to our Second Reading, which is from 2 Thessalonians 3: 7-12.
[00:26:58] “[Brothers and sisters:] [Y]ou yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with you, we did not eat any one's bread without paying, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not burden any of you. It was not because we have not that right, but to give you in our conduct an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: If any one will not work, let him not eat. For we hear that some of you are walking in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in quietness and to earn their own living.”
[00:28:06] We should have heard three passages from 2 Thessalonians this fall, but the Feasts we celebrated over the past two weeks ensured that we missed the first two of those passages.
[00:28:20] So, we end up only hearing this one passage, which talks about the value and importance of work.
[00:28:30] And while the majority of Scripture scholars agree that the author of 2 Thessalonians is Paul, there are those who contend that it was actually written by one of Paul's followers.
[00:28:44] Now, the author identifies himself as Paul in the beginning of this letter; at the end of the letter, the author attests that he, Paul, the wrote the letter in his own hand; and Christian Tradition has always accepted that Paul was the legitimate author… nevertheless, there are some who dispute that authorship. Again, I raise this issue just so that you are aware of it, but I think it just proves that theologians like to argue about things.
[00:29:21] So, let's listen to what Paul has to say about work…
[00:29:27] “[Brothers and sisters:] [Y]ou yourselves know how you ought to imitate us;”
[00:29:35] The notion of imitation is a common theme in Paul's writings, where not only Paul, but also his companions, are set forth as models of behavior worthy of being imitated or followed. And Paul did - intentionally - set out to always present a good example. He was rarely idle and truly lived out the type of servant leadership exemplified by Jesus himself.
[00:30:09] And when Paul preached in places where people had never encountered the incarnate Jesus - which were, truth be told, most of the places he preached - Paul himself then became an example to be imitated. Paul goes on…
“we were not idle when we were with you, we did not eat any one's bread without paying, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not burden any of you.”
[00:30:45] Work gets a bad rap in our modern world, and - all too often - we think of it as a necessary evil, a means to an end, useful only as something to generate income or keep us from being bored.
[00:31:03] But work possesses its own inherent dignity. In fact, Pope Saint John Paul II wrote that work has always been a part of God's plan and that God assigned work to Adam BEFORE the fall.
[00:31:22] So many times, we forget that simple fact!
[00:31:26] We read, in Genesis 2, that God put Adam in the Garden of Eden with specific instructions to till and keep it - to care for it.
[00:31:42] It wasn't until after the fall that work became troublesome and difficult, and we hear that in Genesis 3. And even now, even today, productive, peaceful, authentic work participates in and contributes to the goodness of God's creation and his provident care for it… through our efforts, through the efforts of those God created to care for his creation.
[00:32:21] “It was not because we have not that right,”
[00:32:24] Paul is saying that he and his companions had the right to be paid, they deserved to be remunerated for their work of preaching, but they chose to support themselves so they would not place an undue burden on those to whom they were preaching.
“but to give you in our conduct an example to imitate.”
[00:32:51] There's that idea of imitation. Paul always felt that it was better to provide the example of hard work to others by supporting himself as he preached the good news of Jesus, than to accept payment for his work of ministry. Paul was a tentmaker by trade, which was how he supported himself and his ministry of preaching on his many Missionary Journeys.
[00:33:24] “For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: If any one will not work, let him not eat.”
[00:33:34] Meaning that everyone must contribute to the good of all - in whatever way they are able to contribute.
[00:33:44] If members of the Christian community could afford to donate money, then they should donate money; if members of the community could not afford to donate money, they should, instead, donate their time and effort. But everyone has the responsibility to contribute SOMETHING.
[00:34:08] It's no different in the modern Church… now we call it Stewardship, but it means the same thing. Every person receives good things from God and is therefore responsible for giving back a portion of what they have received to support the work of the Church.
But conversely, Paul says, when people refuse to work, then they shouldn't benefit from the work of others. And Paul doesn't mean those who are unable to work for whatever reason… he means those who are fully capable of working but simply REFUSE to do so. Paul isn't saying that we shouldn't assist those who are physically or mentally ill, those who are disabled, unhoused, or unemployed, those who are immigrants or refugees, or those who simply just need help to start again.
[00:35:11] We absolutely should help anyone in those situations - that is both our duty and our responsibility as Christians.
[00:35:22] But then, in case Paul's listeners are uncertain exactly who he's talking about, Paul gives some very specific examples that help clarify the situation. Paul says…
[00:35:37] “For we hear that some of you are walking in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work.”
Now, we have to be very careful here and understand this statement in context… and I know I've said this a lot recently, but context is always crucial!
And this particular context perhaps even more so, because many in the Thessalonian community believed that Jesus’ return was so imminent that they actually quit their jobs… they simply stopped working and sat around gossiping and waiting for Jesus to return, becoming a financial burden on the rest of the community. Paul is saying THAT is unacceptable!
[00:36:35] “Now such persons”
Paul means those who quit their jobs and simply refused to work!
[00:36:43] “such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in quietness and to earn their own living.”
[00:36:57] Paul uses those words to scold those who refuse to work! He's saying that no one should remain idle - that everyone has some contribution to make… so get to it!
[00:37:16] Think back to what Pope Saint John Paul II said… that work has always been a part of God's plan. Work not only expresses the dignity of men man, but it actually increases it.
[00:37:35] Every person should work to support themselves in whatever way they can, certainly, but even more so… work should always bring some benefit.
[00:37:48] It should make the world a better place… it should better the environment… it should contribute to the growth of knowledge… it should advance music, art, science, technology, ethics, or morality.
Christian work, in particular, is to spread the Gospel - by word and action. To share the good news of Jesus’ life, Death, and Resurrection, as well as his preaching and teaching in everything we say and do.
[00:38:30] And Saint Paul reminds us that every Christian has the duty and the responsibility to work in whatever manner we can - from volunteering to climbing the corporate ladder - to make the best of every situation in which we find ourselves.
[00:38:51] So, in spite of all the frightening things that are becoming way too common in our world… the negativity, the violence, the wars, the hatred, the division, in spite of all of that, each of us still has to figure out how to get up every day and how to take care of ourselves and our families… how to just put one foot in front of the other and keep going.
[00:39:20] Sometimes it's not easy. But Jesus never promised easy!
[00:39:26] He promised uncertainty… but he also promised wisdom and truth.
[00:39:33] He told us that we would have crosses to carry… but he promised to give us the strength, the love, and the grace to do so.
[00:39:46] And most importantly, he promised the Holy Spirit to help and guide us along the way.
[00:39:55] Jesus assures us that THIS is a time to bear testimony to our Christian faith. It is up to us to follow him and speak HIS truth.
[00:40:12] Not the so-called truth of any one human being… not the so-called truth of any political party or movement… the unequivocal, objective TRUTH OF THE GOSPEL - and to speak that truth in love.
[00:40:34] If you would like to reach out to me with questions or comments, send me an email at
[email protected]
Thank you for spending this time with me and until next we meet, may God shower his blessings upon you like a soft and gentle rain, and may he hold you - safe and secure - in the palm of his hand.
From His Word to Our Hearts is produced by SFS Audio Solutions.
The content of the show was assembled by me, Sally Moriarty-Flask… and I apologize for the roughness of my voice this week - I am fighting an upper respiratory infection.
Our music was composed by Jimmy Flask and is used with the permission of the composer. All rights reserved.
Information regarding references used in preparing the exegesis for this podcast is available upon request.
Thank you for listening and God bless.
