God shall give them light, and they shall reign forever and ever.  Are you one of those people who can’t help but peek at the end of a book long before you actually get there?   You know, the type who wants to know whether or not the good guys are going to win out? You might call John’s vision in Revelation the happy ending to our story.   It shows that the good guys—Jesus and his followers—really do win in the end.   It’s no coincidence that...

No one who believes in him will be put to shame. What makes you ashamed?   Past sin?   Maybe you don’t like the way you look in a mirror.   Or you compare your finances to someone else who is better off than you.   Typically, shame comes about because we think we have failed to live up to expectations—often a set of impossible expectations. Let’s apply this to St. Andrew, whose feast we celebrate last week.   He was the first to follow Jesus. ...

Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.  Doesn’t it feel wonderful to receive a wedding invitation?   The couple wants you to share in their big day!   So you put the date on your calendar.   You start thinking about what you will wear.   You make travel arrangements and begin to look for an appropriate gift.   As the event gets closer, you might even begin counting down the days. In Scripture (Revelation...

On the sea of glass were standing those who had won the victory. When we read this passage, we might think “winning the victory” means dying as a martyr.   But could it be referring to some other type of victory?   If we look at the life of St. Catherine Labouré (1806–1876), whose feast was last week, the answer would seem to be yes.   She is remembered as the saint who started the devotion to the Miraculous Medal in response to a vision of the...

Do not be terrified.  Time and time again, predictions of the world’s end have captured public attention, just as they do now.   Even Jesus had to deal with this kind of speculation.   When will the world end?   How will we know it’s happening? Far from offering hints and clues to the answer, Jesus gave people a simple word of advice:   “Do not be terrified” (Luke 21:9).   It wasn’t just questions about the Second Coming that drew this...

These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. You’ve probably heard someone say,  “I’m not sure I want to go to heaven.   It sounds pretty boring.”   You may have even had this thought yourself.   Some of the images in Scripture’s reading  (Revelation 14:4) might reinforce that view.   It might be wonderful to hear harps playing and hymns being sung for a while, but it’s probably not something you’d want to hear twenty-four hours a...