Justice is real, and justice will triumph, but justice unfolds in God’s time and according to God’s eternal plan. These are lessons – both comforting and challenging – from today’s readings. In the first reading, the prophet Nahum gives thanks for the downfall of Assyria and its capital Nineveh around 600 BC. Their empire, centered in what is now Iraq, had oppressed and violated surrounding nations for centuries; they had destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel, with its ten tribes of Jacob, and nearly destroyed the kingdom of Judah and Jerusalem, until God miraculously intervened. It is fitting, then, that the prophet Nahum sees Assyria’s destruction as an instance of God’s righteous judgment and an act of favor to His people. And yet, we know from history that the Assyrian conquerors would be replaced by the Babylonian conquerors, who would be replaced by the Persians, who would be replaced by the Greeks, who would be replaced by the Romans. And each of these powers would, to varying degrees, oppress or seek to destroy the Jewish nation and even the people of God. And so, the fall of Assyria was a true and powerful sign of God’s righteousness, but only a foreshadowing of the ultimate peace and justice that the people of God still wait for in hope.
And what is true on the level of history and nations, Jesus proclaims, must apply also to our individual lives. As Christians, as His disciples, we must be ready to endure the daily crosses that come with living in a fallen, unjust world. Ultimate vindication, Jesus promises, comes only in eternity, when the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father’s glory, and then he will repay each according to his conduct. Still, in Jesus’ Resurrection, we already see the promise and the guarantee that life and justice do indeed prevail. And what’s more, even in our own lives, He offers us glimpses of the power and goodness that finally will set things right: Amen, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom. And yet, if we try to force God’s justice in this world according to our will, our plan, our time, the results can be disastrous: What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?
Perhaps we have seen this in our individual lives, as in our impatience, we sometimes seek to trade in our crosses for immediate, false fixes that leave us only more broken and lost. And we definitely see this reality in the pages of history, as various attempts at man-made utopias have created far more injustice and destruction of life than the societies they sought to correct.
To live according to this vision set forth by our Scriptures – to be committed to justice without forcing it, to take up our crosses but to do so with hope of restoration – this is certainly not easy. May we find wisdom and strength through the perfect models of Jesus and our Blessed Mother. May we support one another in our daily commitments with our daily prayers and daily encouragement.