33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C

Mass Readings for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C

• First Reading – Malachi 3:19-20A: "Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the LORD of hosts."
• Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 98: "The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice."
• Second Reading – 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12: "You know how one must imitate us. For we did not act in a disorderly way among you, nor did we eat food received free from anyone."
• Gospel - Luke 21:5-19: "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."

Themes for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C

The readings for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C make us think about the end of the world. In the first reading we are told that the day of the Lord is coming. The psalm assures us that "The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice." In the second reading Paul asks that we diligently work for the good of all. In the gospel Jesus speaks about the end times and perseverance.

• Perseverance
• The end times
• Being spiritually ready

See the Homilies and Reflections section and the More Thoughts section for further expansion on these readings and some reflection questions for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C.

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Scary Stuff – A Lesson Plan on the Second Coming

We don’t need to be scared. We need to be prepared.

Judgement of the Nations – Discussion and Reflection Questions

This is another lesson plan which is related to the final judgement.

The Shaking of Three Worlds

From Bishop Robert Barron of Word on Fire. "Friends, as we come toward the end of the liturgical year, we begin to look at the apocalyptic writings in the Bible. What’s indeed revealed is the end of the world in one sense—not so much the end of space-time, but the breaking down of all the frames of reference that we use to understand our lives. Because of the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead, something new had happened. Our Gospel for today, taken from the section of Luke called “the little apocalypse,” shows the shaking of three worlds: the world of religion, the world of politics, and the world of nature."

“Today” is the Day

From Scott Hahn. "It is the age between our Lord’s first coming and His last. We live in the new world begun by His life, death, Resurrection, and Ascension, by the sending of His Spirit upon the Church. But we await the day when He will come again in glory." Continue reading.

Endings and Beginnings

Jeff Cavins discusses how this Sunday’s readings allude to many different kinds of endings and beginnings, as we prepare our souls for the end of Ordinary Time and the beginning of Advent.

The Lesser-Known Last Judgment

Death, judgment, heaven, and hell—the four last things—are popular enough topics among Christians discussing the end times; but there’s more to these things than just our own personal end. Fr. Mike Schmitz’s perspective on this reality is both fascinating and humbling.

Not One Stone Upon Another

From Bishop Robert Barron. "Our Gospel for this Sunday opens with Jesus’ disciples admiring the splendor of the Temple, the most beautiful, important, and impressive building they had ever seen. And Jesus, as is his wont, pulls the rug out from under them: 'Not one stone of this temple will be left upon another, but it will all be torn down!'"

What Remains?

Also from Bishop Barron. "All things pass away. Political and religious institutions, the family, bodily health; nothing lasts. Everything dies. So often we seek our fulfillment and salvation in these things. But Christ is telling us not to."