CT - Catholic Telegraph

Apocalypse and resurrection

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time (B), Daniel 12:1-3.

The Book of Daniel is only used twice in the three-year Sunday cycle of readings, once on this Sunday and once again next Sunday.

Daniel is one of the younger books of the Old Testament. It seems to have been written during the persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes between 167 and 164 B.C. This Hellenistic Greek ruler was trying to force the Jews to conform to the religious practices of the pagans. The Book of Daniel was written to offer encouragement to the Jews in their time of trouble.

The message of comfort is offered to the people through the character of Daniel, a wise Jewish young man whose story is set at the time of the Babylonian exile, some four hundred years previously. In the first six chapters of Daniel, we have several stories about Daniel and his friends. The point of these stories is that God cares for His own and that, with the help of God, Jews can stand up to the mightiest powers on earth.

Then, in chapters 6-12, the text gives us a series of prophetic visions presented as coming from God through Daniel long ago during the time of the Babylonian captivity but primarily intended for the Jews in Palestine in Hellenistic times. At the end of the book, in a kind of appendix, are two more stories that serve to highlight the virtues of Daniel.
This Sunday's reading comes from the second main section of Daniel. Chapters 10 through 12 are one long vision, and chapter 12 (from which our reading is taken) is not only the climax of this vision - it is the peak point of the whole book.

God is telling Daniel about the future deliverance of the people from their tribulations. The chapters immediately prior to chapter 12 recount an ongoing battle in heaven between the heavenly princes Michael and Gabriel on one hand and the demonic powers of earthly kingdoms on the other. Now we hear of the final outcome.

All the members of God's people whose names are written in the list of the predestined will be delivered from their tribulation. Some of the Israelites who have been killed by their enemies will rise from the dead to live in glory forever. Others, presumably the wicked, will rise from the dead into a state of everlasting horror and disgrace. Those who have provided teaching and leadership to others ("the wise") will shine with the brilliance of the stars in the heavens.

There are two aspects of this reading that call for comment. First of all, this section of Daniel is an apocalyptic or eschatological pronouncement. That is, it has to do with final things, with the end of time, with judgment, reward and punishment. This was a kind of writing and teaching that was common during the centuries just before and just after the time of Christ. Jesus sometimes taught in apocalyptic terms as the Gospel for this Sunday (Mark 13:24-32) demonstrates.

The last book of the New Testament, Revelation, is also known as "The Apocalypse" because it is about deliverance from persecution and the end of the world.

The use of apocalyptic or eschatological teaching gives us to understand that the history of the world is not a haphazard series of disconnected events. On the contrary, there is a plan for the world, a plan that includes victory over the enemies of God, a plan that offers security and comfort to God's people, no matter how painful the tribulations in which they presently find themselves.

A second important aspect of this reading is its teaching about resurrection and eternal life. This was a teaching that was not part of God's earliest revelation to His people. It was something that God taught them only later, when the time was ripe for them to understand it. This passage of Daniel seems to be the earliest biblical passage that expresses unambiguously the hope of individual resurrection. But even here, the text does not say that everybody will rise to reward or punishment but only "some," apparently those who merit special attention because of their virtue or their sinfulness. The resurrection of all the dead, good and bad alike, would later become an important element in the teaching of Jesus and a crucial element in the teaching of the church. In fact, resurrection - the resurrection of Christ - is a key factor in all of Christian revelation.

This Old Testament reading introduces the eschatological discourse that we hear from Mark's Gospel on this Sunday. It gives some of the outlines of the cosmic dimension of God's plan for humanity. It assures us that we will come out of our present troubles and that God's ultimate purpose will be achieved at last.

For reflection and discussion

What basic convictions give shape and direction to my life?

Where do I look for comfort in times of trial?