Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time 2025 Franciscan Gospel Reflection

Franciscan Friar Fr. Paul Gallagher reflects on the Gospel readings for the Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time. Who are the people in your life who seem to authentically speak the mind and will of God at this point in our world, and to you personally?

The content is edited by Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity Sister Anne Marie Lom and Joe Thiel. The excerpts from the Sunday readings are prepared by Joe Thiel. To read or download the complete pdf with excerpts for your prayer, please click here: Franciscan Gospel Reflection November 16 2025. Excerpts are from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. Photos: Emmanuel Dyan, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons; Globetrotter19, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Luke 21:5-19

While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, Jesus said, “All that you see here–the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.”

Then they asked him, “Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?” He answered, “See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

“Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name. It will lead to your giving testimony. Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, for I myself shall give you wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute. You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives.

Background:

Luke is the author of both the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. Luke’s community would be familiar with both. Many of the things Jesus spoke of in the Gospel came to be fulfilled in the lifetimes of Christians in this community, and are described in the Acts of the Apostles.

The construction of the temple referred to in the Gospel began in 16 BC and it was still under construction at the time of Jesus. When the whole complex was completed in 64 AD it was considered the most beautiful building in the Roman empire. Its destruction in 70 AD by the Romans was devastating for the Jewish people. Luke was writing his Gospel between the years 80 and 90 AD, and therefore was aware of the temple’s destruction.

The role of the prophet was to reveal the mind and the intention of God. True prophets were able to speak accurately God’s intention. False prophets were those did not accurately voice the mind of God. At times, what false prophets said was the mind of God was more appealing, because it was more hopeful, but it was not in accord with the unfolding of reality.  And at times true prophets were not received well because they prophesied unpleasant events. Whether a person should be regarded as a true or false prophet could only be determined by the unfolding of history.

In the Gospel, Luke presents Jesus as a true prophet. Jesus is portrayed as revealing the future destruction of the temple which has already taken place by the time Luke is writing.  There were also false prophets, those who believed they knew the mind of God but their insights turned out to be false. It was difficult to know which were the false and which were the true prophets until the foretold events actually did or did not come to pass. This reality influences how Luke presents Jesus to his readers. In this text, Luke, like other Gospel writes (Mark 14:58 and John 2:19), portrays Jesus as knowing that the temple and indeed the city of Jerusalem would be destroyed.

Most of the text is not about the fall of Jerusalem or the destruction of the Temple. Rather, it is about the signs that will lead up to these things. They are “signs” because they are not about the events themselves, but about some deeper hidden reality. Because they are signs, people will need someone to interpret their meaning. In the text, Jesus says that some who will come and say, “I am the one who can interpret these events for you” are mistaken. Jesus does not want the people to be misled. The signs themselves include the political and natural world. The disturbances in these arenas will lead to personal turmoil. Jesus’ followers will endure suffering at the hands of the government, neighbors, and even family. While all will suffer during this period; Luke’s community will suffer because they are Jesus’ followers, and Jesus urges them to persevere.

Reflection Questions:

1. Who are the people in your life who seem to authentically speak the mind and will of God at this point in our world, and to you personally?
2. What do you believe enables them to authentically speak of God’s desire?
3. Are there also present today people who you believe do not speak the mind of God?
4. Have there been events in your personal history that have affected your ability to live with a sense of hope and trust in the goodness of God?
5. Have there been times in your life when your trust and hope in God were a great source of strength?
6. Jesus exhorts in the Gospel not to be terrified. Are there people, news sources, and websites that seem to fuel hope and trust in God’s presence? Are there also places that fuel your fears?
7. When have you personally appreciated a word of warning from another?
8. Jesus gives two exhortations in today’s text: Do not be deceived! Do not be terrified! Do either of these speak to you and your life situation today? How would you like to respond to God’s exhortations to you?
9. This text concludes with “By your perseverance you will secure your lives.” Do you see in your daily life signs of your perseverance? Can you talk with God about your desire to persevere, or the grace you need to persevere?