THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - NOVEMBER 16, 2025

THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

The historical city of Rome is defined by two prevailing cultures: the remnants and ruins of the extinct Roman Empire and the glory and beauty of the Catholic Church. What remains of a building like the Colosseum pales in comparison to the grandeur of a place such as St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. But the lost glory of the Empire and the current glory of the Church are not necessarily indicative of their inherent value; one day, we might return to our days of worshiping in the catacombs while the secular powers that be live lavishly in public. Christ warned us often that the true treasure and value of a people is their receptivity to God, particularly in allowing Him to reside among them. For us, that Divine Presence is not in the marble and gold of cathedrals, but in the most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.

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The Colosseum was a massive project built early in the first century by the Flavian dynasty, a group of related emperors who were at the forefront of one of the most significant times in world history. The Colosseum’s actual name is the Flavian Amphitheatre because it was these emperors (Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian) who secured the funds to build such a project, which were provided by Vespasian and Titus’ victory over the Jews, which resulted in the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. Christ prophesied often about the impending destruction of the Temple, even though it occurred forty years after his death. We hear one such example of this warning in this Sunday’s Gospel. Clearly, there was something deeply meaningful about the permitted destruction of God’s holy residing place on earth. The Temple was unquestionably filled with unimaginable riches, which the Romans were able to use to build the grandiose Colosseum, and images of this victory for the Romans can be found on the triumphal arch of Titus which is still located near the Colosseum. How could it be that Christ himself, the Son of God and the recipient of all the glory that was put into the temple, permitted its destruction and its defilement? The Empire did not last long after the Flavians; only a few centuries later, the most powerful empire in history crumbled by poor leadership, hedonism, and selfishness. The city of Rome was slowly taken over by the power of the Popes and the Church, and became synonymous with the mystical body of Christ. A thousand years after the fall of the Roman Empire, the Church began constructing the new St. Peter’s Basilica across the Tiber from the Colosseum. They stripped the beautiful marble that once lined the seating of the amphitheater, and used it to build the floors and walls of the majestic Basilica. What was once paid for by the destruction and sacking of God’s Temple was retaken and reused to adorn His new temple - the Church. It only took 1500 years.