Gospel Reflection for The 11th day of December in the year of Our Lord, 2025
Thursday of the Second Week of Advent
Matthew 11:11-15
11 Amen I say to you, there hath not risen among them that are born of women a greater than John the Baptist: yet he that is the lesser in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent bear it away. 13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John: 14 And if you will receive it, he is Elias that is to come. 15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
This is another verse that is often misunderstood. Some have used it to justify religious violence. Others think that it supports the belief in reincarnation, but that is not true. Again, that is false. The Douay Rheims explains:
[12] “Suffereth violence”: It is not to be obtained but by main force, by using violence upon ourselves, by mortification and penance, and resisting our perverse inclinations.
[14] “He is Elias”: Not in person, but in spirit. St. Luke 1. 17.
Recently, I was discussing the subject of suffering with several Protestants who argued that it was not necessary for salvation. They maintain that Jesus paid all and we are saved regardless of penance. I sited several passages in the Bible where Jesus says we must suffer, taking up our cross and even Saint Paul saying that his suffering was completing the sacrifice of Christ and that he was working out his salvation in fear and trembling. I used Old Testament and New Testament verses. But, I may have only convinced one that there is any merit to suffering, penance and alms. That is shame. Modern Protestantism is so focused on the Prosperity Doctrine and the “good news” of the Gospel that they want to deny so much of what the Bible actually says and the many thousands of books written over the history of Christianity on the subject. It is a feel good faith, that is very shallow, and certainly not the faith of the saints we have been discussing the last two days!
God calls us to suffer. He certainly called Saint John to live an extremely difficult life and then to be killed for his witness. What does the spirit of Elias mean though? It means he was the last prophet in the style of the Old Testament Prophets through whom God spoke and warned his people to repent. He announced the Christ. And, he was killed. The very fact that God could have saved him, but did not.... just as he could have healed Lazarus, etc., shows that the necessity of suffering is part of God’s will.
Whether my Protestant friends like it or not, we will either suffer as penance for our sins here or in purgatory. Jesus described Purgatory as a debtor’s prison where we must pay every penny before we may be released. Elsewhere it is likened to a cleansing fire because nothing impure can enter Heaven. We may also suffer for the sins of others and for our nation, even all of humanity if we choose. Many saints have chosen to do just that. For a Christian, the more we can embrace suffering the more we unite ourselves to the suffering of our Lord. Being a Christian is not easy... to believe otherwise is an insult to the very martyrs described in the Book of Revelations, an insult to God and His saints.
Judson Carroll is the author of several books, including his newest, A Daily Catholic Devotional, Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings January - June, 2026 It is Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FWJMD7CL
and
Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith. It is also Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNK
His podcast is The Uncensored Catholic https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-uncensored-catholic