The Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C Analysis

The three reading for the Sunday are the book chapter 3 of the book of Malachi starting from verse 19 to 20A as the first reading and the chapter 3 of the Luke 21: second Thessalonians from verse 7 to 12 as the second reading. The Gospel reading for the chosen Sunday is chapter 21 from verse 5 to 19. Also, the readings include a Psalms chapter 98 from verse 5 to 9. The three Bible readings for the Sunday presents three significant themes including perseverance, judgment and end times. The readings are related to addressing the three subjects. The Lord talks of a day that is coming but no specific day is quoted. The Lords wards the Israelites against the sins of cheating, religious impiety and getting married to pagans. The author of the book applies three-part structure whereby affirmation about the Lord is given, followed by the possible objection that sinners may take and then provides answers to the objection.

The book presents a theme of end times, perseverance in the name of the Lord and the judgment at the coming day of the Lord. 2nd Thessalonians 3: 7 – 12 The reading is about the letter of St. St. Paul takes the initiative of quoting himself as an example and encourages the Thessalonians to continue with the customary work as they await the second coming of Jesus Christ. The main point of focus is to avoid dependence on others when some fail to work. It is evident that the reading rotates on the theme of the Lord’s judgment and the end times. Luke 21: 5 – 19 In the Gospel reading, Jesus talks to his disciples about the destruction of the temple and the signs of the end times.

The author passes the message of Christians to practice praise to the Lord through the use of instruments such as the harp and trumpets. The Psalms describes the justice that Christians need to expect from the Lord as he comes to back for the righteous5. The author also metaphorically indicates how the world will react upon the coming back of the Lord by stating how the non-living such as mountains and rivers will react upon the return of the Lord. The Sunday Psalms is equivalent of other Psalm, and it merely describes how and why Christians should be giving praise to the Lord and wait for his second coming. The Psalm indicate the Christians have the mandate of singing praises as a way of preparing the way for the Lord to come to present judgment on the earth.

The contents of the first reading can be viewed to be a complement of what the second reading and the Psalm presents. For instance, the Gospel of Luke describes the events when Jesus was in the temple at Jerusalem. The period is almost near the end of Jesus’ public life, and He is involved in teaching the disciples and people around about how to conduct themselves during the end times. Even though people viewing the temple as the most impressive building, Jesus makes a comment that presents a similar message to what is presented in the first reading. It is evident that the two readings talk about the judgment and end times. The matters addressed by Jesus concerning the false prophets is happening in the world, and also Christians are facing persecution for proclaiming the name of Jesus.

All the readings are addressing similar themes even though with different content in different context. For instance, the first reading is a message being addressed to the Israelites; the second reading is St. Paul’s message to the Thessalonians while the Gospel of Luke is a message from Jesus to His disciples. Scholars argue that despite the stories being different, they are complementary to each other and addresses similar themes. It is evident that the Sunday readings for Catholics have shared theme starting from the three readings and the Psalm. The progression and the relationship between the readings play an essential role in enhancing the understandability of the Bible teachings. It also helps the Catholic Christians to relate different scenarios in the Bible with happenings in the current world.