Remain Faithful Till Death

A Reflection on today's Readings
Revelation 14:14-19, Psalm 96:10, 11-12, 13, Luke 21:5-11
Over these past few weeks, we have been hearing about the end times.  Today, we hear about a sickle cutting the vine, and Jesus speaking about events that will precede the last days.  We could concern ourselves with trying to predict when that will be.  We could even find ourselves asking the same questions that were asked of Jesus, "When will this be?" or "What sign will occur?"
The heart of the matter, though, is in the Alleluia verse, "Remain faithful till death, and I will give you the crown of life."  Futile wars, fought by our friends and family, in far away places, can occur.  Mass distrust of public officials can rattle our land.  Floods can knock down our houses.  A famine of the truth can cause the population to be feeding off of lies.  The plague of terrorism can cause fear in the hearts of our countrymen.  All this will pass away, just like the stones of magnificent temple fell down.  Despite all of this, our primary therein lies our crown of life.