The first thing to be observed is the condemnation of Jerusalem throughout the time of the pagans.

 The first thing to be observed is the condemnation of Jerusalem throughout the time of the pagans. In it, we can already glimpse a much greater judgment, the universal judgment, as a prefiguration of the end: “They will be killed by the sword and taken captive to all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the infidels…”. The fact is that, in fact, all the nations will also be judged, all the peoples will face the final decisive moment: “There will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars. On the earth, the nations will be in anguish, for fear of the roaring of the sea and the waves.” The current times are marked by the grotesque advance of the waters of the sea, by the loss of control of nature, the disappearance of water in many places, by wars, by constant and uncontrolled violence, by the abuse of power, exploitation, corruption, robberies, and murders. Furthermore, the human person is being devalued, his or her dignity being constantly violated: the death of innocent people, the self-interested exploitation of youth, the abandonment of the elderly, the falsification of men and women, of the family and of the goal of salvation. Iniquity begins to reign on the throne of hearts. God is being dethroned by a humanity that is thirsty for novelties in all areas of its life and completely empty, and yet involved in a notorious materialism and terrible submission to bloody ideologies.

2. The day of judgment will come, and Jesus Christ will certainly be the absolute criterion for it. For those who chose Him, salvation; for those who rejected Him, condemnation. The coming of the Son of Man will be a source of hope and liberation for those who live according to Jesus Christ, for all who are not contaminated by the errors of the Jews. Choices will determine the success or failure of the history of each people and each person. Those who have chosen Life, Truth, and the Way given to humanity by the Father will have the final judgment as the most important salvific encounter, which will be filled with extreme joy.

3. The end of time is identified with the coming of Jesus, a liberating presence. It is the moment of encounter between Christians and the Savior. Christians do not think of the end as misfortune, despair, or destruction. On the contrary, for them, the end will be marked by the highest beginning of a full life in communion with God. Generally, when faced with the death of a loved one, those who do not have faith despair; it seems that the end of the world has already arrived, life loses its meaning; for the Christian, at this moment, he feels the pain of separation, weeps for the loved one, but with confidence and hope, faith and love, he faces the moment of pain with determination, because he knows that the Lord is Life and that the life of all belongs to Him and will reign with Him forever; He will not allow His own to be expelled from His presence.

4. The Christian is the true sign and place of transformation; I am not referring to those who have only been baptized, but to those who, in fact, beyond baptism, allow themselves to be led by the Spirit of God, aware of their participation in the Body of Christ and their identity as children of God. They face the world with confidence, faith, love and perseverance; they always find a reason to overcome all challenges, they always find true means to continue revealing to the world the beauty of belonging totally to the Lord; they do not lose heart in the face of the greatest sufferings, despite feeling them, they abandon themselves to the guidance of the Spirit of God, they cry, but they remain standing, they think about running away, but they do not do so because there is no other Word of eternal Life besides Jesus, nor any other love so great and so fascinating, nothing comparable to the One who made them His own. The Christian is light, salt, a sign of hope and the certainty that the world will still be transformed by love.

A big and affectionate hug.