by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Nov 29, 2022 | Evangelium
Wednesday 30 th november 2022
St. Andrew
the Apostle
He was born in Bethsaida, in Galilee, and worked as a fisherman. He became one of the first to follow Jesus and introduced his brother, Simon Peter, to him. He became patron saint of Scotland because according to legend some of his bones were brought and buried at the place where the town of St Andrew’s now stands.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Mt 4: 18-19
Beside the Sea of Galilee, the Lord saw two brothers, Peter and Andrew, and he said to them: Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.
Collect
We humbly implore your majesty, O Lord, that, just as the blessed Apostle, Andrew, was, for your Church, a preacher and pastor, so he may be for us a constant intercessor before you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Romans 10 : 9-18
If your lips confess that Jesus is Lord, and if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, then you will be saved. By believing from the heart you are made righteous; by confessing with your lips you are saved. When Scripture says: those who believe in him will have no cause for shame, it makes no distinction between Jew and Greek: all belong to the same Lord, who is rich enough however many ask his help, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. But they will not ask his help unless they believe in him, and they will not believe in him unless they have heard of him, and they will not hear of him unless they get a preacher, and they will never have a preacher unless one is sent, but as Scripture says: The footsteps of those who bring Good News are a welcome sound. Not everyone, of course, listens to the Good News. As Isaiah says: Lord, how many believed what we proclaimed? So faith comes from what is preached, and what is preached comes from the word of Christ. Let me put the question: is it possible that they did not hear? Indeed they did; in the words of the psalm, their voice has gone out through all the earth, and their message to the ends of the world.
Psalm Ps 18 : 2-5
R/ Their word goes forth through all the earth.
- The heavens proclaim the glory of God and the firmament shows forth the work of his hands. Day unto day takes up the story and night unto night makes known the message.
- No speech, no word, no voice is heard yet their span goes forth through all the earth, their words to the utmost bounds of the world.
Gospel Acclamation : Mt 4:19
Alleluia, alleluia! Follow me, says the Lord, and I will make you into fishers of men. Alleluia!
Gospel : Matthew 4:18-22
As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee he saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew; they were making a cast in the lake with their net, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.’ And they left their nets at once and followed him. Going on from there he saw another pair of brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John; they were in their boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. At once; leaving the boat and their father, they followed him.
Prayer over the Offerings
Grant us, almighty God, that through these offerings, which we bring on the feast day of Saint Andrew, we may please you by what we have brought and be given life by what you have accepted. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Cf. Jn 1: 41-42
Andrew told his brother Simon: We have found the Messiah, the Christ, and he brought him to Jesus.
Prayer after Communion
May communion in your Sacrament strengthen us, O Lord, so that by the example of the blessed Apostle, Andrew, we, who carry in our body the Death of Christ, may merit to live with him in glory. Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Meditation
St. Andrew is called from being a fisherman to be a fisher of men. His response is prompt and immediate; he leaves his boat and nets and follows the Lord. Discipleship is a ‘sequela Christi’ – a following of Christ. Discipleship entails radicalism – a turning away from all that hinders one from entirely committing oneself to the services of the kingdom. Each of us is called to be a disciple of Christ. The only barrier to our response is attachment to material things. All of us are called upon to play our part in this missionary apostolate, whether as those who are sent or as those who support those who are sent.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Nov 27, 2022 | Evangelium
Monday 28 th november 2022
St. Catherine Laboure
St. Catherine Laboure, a virgin, was born on May 2, 1806. At an early age she entered the community of the Daughters of Charity in France. Three times in 1830 the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Catherine Laboure, who then was a twenty-four year old novice. She died in 1876.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Jer 31: 10; Is 35: 4
Hear the word of the Lord, O nations; declare it to the distant lands: Behold, our Saviour will come; you need no longer fear.
Collect
Keep us alert, we pray, O Lord our God, as we await the advent of Christ your Son, so that, when he comes and knocks, he may find us watchful in prayer and exultant in his praise. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Isaiah 4:2-6
That day, the branch of the Lord shall be beauty and glory, and the fruit of the earth shall be the pride and adornment of Israel’s survivors. Those who are left of Zion and remain of Jerusalem shall be called holy and those left in Jerusalem, noted down for survival. When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughter of Zion and cleansed Jerusalem of the blood shed in her with the blast of judgement and the blast of destruction, the Lord will come and rest on the whole stretch of Mount Zion and on those who are gathered there, a cloud by day, and smoke, and by night the brightness of a flaring fire. For, over all, the glory of the Lord will be a canopy and a tent to give shade by day from the heat, refuge and shelter from the storm and the rain.
Psalm 121(122):1-2,4-5,6-9
R/ I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’
- I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’ And now our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem.
- It is there that the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord. For Israel’s law it is, there to praise the Lord’s name. There were set the thrones of judgement of the house of David.
- For the peace of Jerusalem pray: ‘Peace be to your homes! May peace reign in your walls, in your palaces, peace!’
- For love of my brethren and friends I say: ‘Peace upon you!’ For love of the house of the Lord I will ask for your good.
Gospel Acclamation : cf.Ps79:4
Alleluia, alleluia! God of hosts, bring us back: let your face shine on us and we shall be saved. Alleluia!
Gospel : Matthew 8:5-11
When Jesus went into Capernaum a centurion came up and pleaded with him. ‘Sir,’ he said ‘my servant is lying at home paralysed, and in great pain.’ ‘I will come myself and cure him’ said Jesus. The centurion replied, ‘Sir, I am not worthy to have you under my roof; just give the word and my servant will be cured. For I am under authority myself, and have soldiers under me; and I say to one man: Go, and he goes; to another: Come here, and he comes; to my servant: Do this, and he does it.’ When Jesus heard this he was astonished and said to those following him, ‘I tell you solemnly, nowhere in Israel have I found faith like this. And I tell you that many will come from east and west to take their places with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob at the feast in the kingdom of heaven.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Accept, we pray, O Lord, these offerings we make, gathered from among your gifts to us, and may what you grant us to celebrate devoutly here below gain for us the prize of eternal redemption. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Cf. Ps 105: 4-5; Is 38: 3
Come, O Lord, visit us in peace, that we may rejoice before you with a blameless heart.
Prayer after Communion
May these mysteries, O Lord, in which we have participated, profit us, we pray, for even now, as we walk amid passing things, you teach us by them to love the things of heaven and hold fast to what endures. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
The vision of prophet Isaiah seems quite unreal; yet, it is a vision which is fulfilled in the person of the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah speaks of peace and reconciliation amongst nations. He uses powerful and beautiful imagery to depict it: “They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks.” The quest for world peace and reconciliation remains illusory even with the foundation of such world bodies as the United Nations and the Commonwealth. World peace becomes possible only when nations subject themselves to the teachings of God’s laws and walk in his paths. Jesus in the Gospel text extols the faith of the centurion, a non-Jew, from the pagan territory of Capernaum. It is faith in God that brings us lasting peace of mind and body.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Nov 26, 2022 | Evangelium
Sunday 27 th november 2022
1st Sunday of Advent ,
Psalter I
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 24: 1-3
To you, I lift up my soul, O my God. In you, I have trusted; let me not be put to shame. Nor let my enemies exult over me; and let none who hope in you be put to shame.
Collect
Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ with righteous deeds at his coming, so that, gathered at his right hand, they may be worthy to possess the heavenly kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Isaiah 2:1-5
The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, concerning Judah and Jerusalem. In the days to come shall tower above the mountains and be lifted higher than the hills. All the nations will stream to it, peoples without number will come to it; and they will say: ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the Temple of the God of Jacob that he may teach us his ways so that we may walk in his paths; since the Law will go out from Zion, and the oracle of the Lord from Jerusalem.’ He will wield authority over the nations and adjudicate between many peoples; these will hammer their swords into ploughshares, their spears into sickles. Nation will not lift sword against nation, there will be no more training for war. O House of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.
Psalm 121(122):1-2,4-5,6-9
R/ I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’
- I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’ And now our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem.
- It is there that the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord. For Israel’s law it is, there to praise the Lord’s name. There were set the thrones of judgement of the house of David.
- For the peace of Jerusalem pray: ‘Peace be to your homes! May peace reign in your walls, in your palaces, peace!’ For love of my brethren and friends I say: ‘Peace upon you!’ For love of the house of the Lord I will ask for your good.
Second reading : Romans 13:11-14
You know ‘the time’ has come: you must wake up now: our salvation is even nearer than it was when we were converted. The night is almost over, it will be daylight soon – let us give up all the things we prefer to do under cover of the dark; let us arm ourselves and appear in the light. Let us live decently as people do in the daytime: no drunken orgies, no promiscuity or licentiousness, and no wrangling or jealousy. Let your armour be the Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel Acclamation : Ps84:8
Alleluia, alleluia! Let us see, O Lord, your mercy and give us your saving help. Alleluia!
Gospel : Matthew 24:37-44
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘As it was in Noah’s day, so will it be when the Son of Man comes. For in those days before the Flood people were eating, drinking, taking wives, taking husbands, right up to the day Noah went into the ark, and they suspected nothing till the Flood came and swept all away. It will be like this when the Son of Man comes. Then of two men in the fields one is taken, one left; of two women at the millstone grinding, one is taken, one left. ‘So stay awake, because you do not know the day when your master is coming. You may be quite sure of this, that if the householder had known at what time of the night the burglar would come, he would have stayed awake and would not have allowed anyone to break through the wall of his house. Therefore, you too must stand ready because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Accept, we pray, O Lord, these offerings we make, gathered from among your gifts to us, and may what you grant us to celebrate devoutly here below gain for us the prize of eternal redemption. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Ps 84: 13
The Lord will bestow his bounty, and our earth shall yield its increase.
Prayer after Communion
May these mysteries, O Lord, in which we have participated, profit us, we pray, for even now, as we walk amid passing things, you teach us by them to love the things of heaven and hold fast to what endures. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
The English word “Advent” is a derivation from the Latin “adventus” which means “coming”. It is also a translation of the Greek Parousia, normally used in reference to the second coming of Christ. It is for us Christians a season of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus at Christmas. The season of Advent serves us as a reminder of the original waiting of the Jews for the birth of their Messiah, as well as the Christian celebration of Jesus’ first coming and awaiting of his return. In between these two comings is also the encounter with the risen Jesus in the Word, in thet sacraments and in one another. The prophet Isaiah and the evangelist Matthew are our main guides through this period. They call us to a life of watchfulness.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Nov 25, 2022 | Evangelium
Saturday 26 th november 2022
St. Leonard
of Porto Maurizio
(1676 – 1751)
Leonard was born in Porto Maurizio in 1676. He joined the Franciscan order and for forty-seven years preached, wrote letters and sermons, and travelled the whole length of Italy. The popularity of the Stations of the Cross is much due to the impetus he gave to the devotion. He died in Rome in 1751.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 84: 9
The Lord speaks of peace to his people and his holy ones and to those who turn to him.
Collect
Stir up the will of your faithful, we pray, O Lord, that, striving more eagerly to bring your divine work to fruitful completion, they may receive in greater measure the healing remedies your kindness bestows. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Apocalypse 22:1-7
The angel showed me, John, the river of life, rising from the throne of God and of the Lamb and flowing crystal-clear down the middle of the city street. On either side of the river were the trees of life, which bear twelve crops of fruit in a year, one in each month, and the leaves of which are the cure for the pagans. The ban will be lifted. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in its place in the city; his servants will worship him, they will see him face to face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. It will never be night again and they will not need lamplight or sunlight, because the Lord God will be shining on them. They will reign for ever and ever. The angel said to me, ‘All that you have written is sure and will come true: the Lord God who gives the spirit to the prophets has sent his angel to reveal to his servants what is soon to take place. Very soon now, I shall be with you again.’ Happy are those who treasure the prophetic message of this book.
Psalm 94:1-7
R/ Marana tha! Come, Lord Jesus!
- Come, ring out our joy to the Lord; hail the rock who saves us. Let us come before him, giving thanks, with songs let us hail the Lord.
- A mighty God is the Lord, a great king above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his. To him belongs the sea, for he made it and the dry land shaped by his hands.
- Come in; let us bow and bend low; let us kneel before the God who made us: for he is our God and we the people who belong to his pasture, the flock that is led by his hand.
Gospel Acclamation : Mt24:42,44
Alleluia, alleluia! Stay awake and stand ready, because you do not know the hour when the Son of Man is coming. Alleluia!
Gospel : Luke 21:34-36
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life, and that day will be sprung on you suddenly, like a trap. For it will come down on every living man on the face of the earth. Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen, and to stand with confidence before the Son of Man.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Accept, O Lord, the sacred offerings which at your bidding we dedicate to your name and, in order that through these gifts we may become worthy of your love, grant us unfailing obedience to your commands. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Ps 116: 1, 2
O praise the Lord, all you nations, for his merciful love towards us is great.
Prayer after Communion
We pray, almighty God, that those to whom you give the joy of participating in divine mysteries may never be parted from you. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
On this last day of the church’s year, the Lord recaps for his disciples the central message of the past two weeks: ‘Stay awake and be always ready, for you do not know when that day will come.’ John, the visioner, also concludes his visions with a recap. Just as an angel attested to the veracity of John’s visions when he began, an angel now attests to their authenticity when they are concluded. The basic message is that these are trying times and only the vigilant and the steadfast will join the Lamb in his victory lap. May God grant that we be among these!
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Nov 24, 2022 | Evangelium
Friday 25 th november 2022
St. Catherine
of Alexandria
(d. 305)
St. Catherine was very outspoken at the time of the persecutions of Christians. She even protested openly to the emperor Maxentius who had her arrested, tortured on the wheel and decapitated in 305. St Catherine’s courage is a great challenge to all African Christians in their struggle for justice and peace.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 84: 9
The Lord speaks of peace to his people and his holy ones and to those who turn to him.
Collect
Stir up the will of your faithful, we pray, O Lord, that, striving more eagerly to bring your divine work to fruitful completion, they may receive in greater measure the healing remedies your kindness bestows. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Apocalypse 20:1-4,11-21:2
I, John, saw an angel come down from heaven with the key of the Abyss in his hand and an enormous chain. He overpowered the dragon, that primeval serpent which is the devil and Satan, and chained him up for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and shut the entrance and sealed it over him, to make sure he would not deceive the nations again until the thousand years had passed. At the end of that time he must be released, but only for a short while. Then I saw some thrones, and I saw those who are given the power to be judges take their seats on them. I saw the souls of all who had been beheaded for having witnessed for Jesus and for having preached God’s word, and those who refused to worship the beast or his statue and would not have the brand-mark on their foreheads or hands; they came to life, and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. Then I saw a great white throne and the One who was sitting on it. In his presence, earth and sky vanished, leaving no trace. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing in front of his throne, while the book of life was opened, and other books opened which were the record of what they had done in their lives, by which the dead were judged. The sea gave up all the dead who were in it; Death and Hades were emptied of the dead that were in them; and every one was judged according to the way in which he had lived. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the burning lake. This burning lake is the second death; and anybody whose name could not be found written in the book of life was thrown into the burning lake. Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; the first heaven and the first earth had disappeared now, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the holy city, and the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, as beautiful as a bride all dressed for her husband.
Psalm 83(84):3-6,8
R/ Here God lives among men.
- My soul is longing and yearning, is yearning for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my soul ring out their joy to God, the living God.
- The sparrow herself finds a home and the swallow a nest for her brood; she lays her young by your altars, Lord of hosts, my king and my God.
- They are happy, who dwell in your house, for ever singing your praise. They are happy, whose strength is in you: they walk with ever-growing strength.
Gospel Acclamation: Lk21:28
Alleluia, alleluia! Stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand. Alleluia!
Gospel : Luke 21:29-33
Jesus told his disciples a parable: ‘Think of the fig tree and indeed every tree. As soon as you see them bud, you know that summer is now near. So with you when you see these things happening: know that the kingdom of God is near. I tell you solemnly, before this generation has passed away all will have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Accept, O Lord, the sacred offerings which at your bidding we dedicate to your name and, in order that through these gifts we may become worthy of your love, grant us unfailing obedience to your commands. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Ps 116: 1, 2
O praise the Lord, all you nations, for his merciful love towards us is great.
Prayer after Communion
We pray, almighty God, that those to whom you give the joy of participating in divine mysteries may never be parted from you. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
The Kingdom of God is not a reality that is entirely futuristic; earlier on in this same gospel of Luke (17:21), Jesus says that “the kingdom of God is among you.” This kingdom is already beginning to flower in the hearts of those who accept and live the gospel of Jesus. With the incarnation, the life of God has been opened up to man; when we listen to Jesus we listen to God, and when we walk with him we are already walking the path of the Kingdom of God. The incarnation was not a reduction of God, but rather an enhancement of man. Thus in Jesus, God brings his kingdom closer to us, and while still on earth true Christians have a foretaste of the joy of the world to come.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Nov 23, 2022 | Evangelium
Thursday 24 th november 2022
Ss Andrew Dũng-Lac and
his Companions, Martyrs
Andrew Dung Lac was born in Vietnam in 1785. He became a Catholic priest. He was beheaded on December 21, 1839 in Hanoi, Vietnam, for the offense of being a priest. Many martyrs died at the hands of religious persecutors following Andrew’s death. We remember them all today.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Gal 6: 14; cf. 1 Cor 1: 18
May we never boast, except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the word of the Cross is the power of God to us who have been saved.
Collect
O God, source and origin of all fatherhood, who kept the Martyrs Saint Andrew Dũng-Lac and his companions faithful to the Cross of your Son, even to the shedding of their blood, grant, through their intercession, that, spreading your love among our brothers and sisters, we may be your children both in name and in truth. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Apocalypse18:1-2, 21-23, 19:1-3,9
I, John, saw an angel come down from heaven, with great authority given to him; the earth was lit up with his glory. At the top of his voice he shouted, ‘Babylon has fallen, Babylon the Great has fallen, and has become the haunt of devils and a lodging for every foul spirit and dirty, loathsome bird. Then a powerful angel picked up a boulder like a great millstone, and as he hurled it into the sea, he said, ‘That is how the great city of Babylon is going to be hurled down, never to be seen again. Never again in you, Babylon, will be heard the song of harpists and minstrels, the music of flute and trumpet; never again will craftsmen of every skill be found or the sound of the mill be heard; never again will shine the light of the lamp, never again will be heard the voices of bridegroom and bride. Your traders were the princes of the earth, all the nations were under your spell. After this I seemed to hear the great sound of a huge crowd in heaven, singing, ‘Alleluia! Victory and glory and power to our God! He judges fairly, he punishes justly, and he has condemned the famous prostitute who corrupted the earth with her fornication; he has avenged his servants that she killed.’ They sang again, ‘Alleluia! The smoke of her will go up for ever and ever.’ The angel said, ‘Write this: Happy are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb’, and he added, ‘All the things you have written are true messages from God.’
Psalm 99:2-5
R/ Happy are those who are invited to the wedding-feast of the Lamb.
- Serve the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing for joy.
- Know that he, the Lord, is God. He made us, we belong to him, we are his people, the sheep of his flock.
- Go within his gates, giving thanks. Enter his courts with songs of praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name.
- Indeed, how good is the Lord, eternal his merciful love. He is faithful from age to age.
Gospel Acclamation : Mt24:42,44
Alleluia, alleluia! Stay awake and stand ready, because you do not know the hour when the Son of Man is coming. Alleluia!
Gospel : Luke 21:20-28
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you must realise that she will soon be laid desolate. Then those in Judaea must escape to the mountains, those inside the city must leave it, and those in country districts must not take refuge in it. For this is the time of vengeance when all that Scripture says must be fulfilled. Alas for those with child, or with babies at the breast, when those days come! They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive to every pagan country; and Jerusalem will be trampled down by the pagans until the age of the pagans is completely over. ‘There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamour of the ocean and its waves; men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Receive, O holy Father, the offerings we bring as we venerate the passion of the holy Martyrs, so that amid the trials of this life we may always be found faithful and may offer ourselves to you as an acceptable sacrifice. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Mt 5: 10
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Prayer after Communion
Renewed by the one Bread as we commemorate the holy Martyrs, we humbly beseech you, O Lord, that, abiding as one in your love, we may merit by endurance an eternal prize. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
In the midst of all the gloom and doom, while Babylon (Rome) lies prostrate, while the citizens of Rome are denied the simple pleasures of everyday life, the citizens of heaven are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb. What may qualify us to receive this all-important invitation to the Lamb’s wedding feast? We have to avoid living the kind of life that brought Rome and Jerusalem to their knees: a life of arrogance and licentiousness. The two readings draw our attention to the danger of hinging our satisfaction on temporal accomplishments. The incomprehensible fall of both Babylon and Jerusalem have modern echoes in the economic and social crisis of the most developed nations of our time, an indication to the fact that man can never be his own salvation.
