Why won’t God just tell us when the world will end? As a culture of planners, we would like to know a precise date and time so that we can set our affairs in order. That said, in our Gospel today, Christ offers something much more enigmatic. After promising that heaven and earth will pass away and yet he and his words will remain, as will his elect, he then says that no one but the Father knows the day or the hour, and that we should look for the coming of that day like one looks to the fig tree for signs of summer.

An age-old question: If you found a genie in a lamp in the desert and he granted you one wish (no wishing for more wishes, everyone knows that), what would you choose?

In our Gospel for this Sunday, James and John have undoubtably realized that, by being in the presence of Jesus, they have something better than a thousand genies — God himself. So, naturally they set to wishing.

Mk 9:30-37

Often, being famous doesn’t seem all that it’s cracked up to be.

I speak, of course, from observation and not experience. For example, the rich and famous are frequently plagued by paparazzi or crowds, and security and privacy are perpetual issues. With fame, living a normal life — let alone a purposeful and dedicated life — gets tough.