The rulers sneered at Jesus and said,
“He saved others, let him save himself
if he is the chosen one, the Christ of God.”
Even the soldiers jeered at him.
As they approached to offer him wine they called out,
“If you are King of the Jews, save yourself.”
Above him there was an inscription that read,
“This is the King of the Jews.”

Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying,
“Are you not the Christ?
Save yourself and us.”
The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply,
“Have you no fear of God,
for you are subject to the same condemnation?
And indeed, we have been condemned justly,
for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes,
but this man has done nothing criminal.”
Then he said,
“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
He replied to him,
“Amen, I say to you,
today you will be with me in Paradise.” Luke 23:35-43In the Catholic Church, the end of the Jubilee Year of Mercy is upon us. We are starting to move into the season of Advent, which marks the beginning of a new year in the Church. A time when we start to get closer to the birth of our Lord Jesus. It is a time to reflect on the year before, and look to the new phase to come.

Oh, just like the fall, the time for reflection is upon us. As the cold air starts taking over from the hot tropical breezes (sorry if you don’t live in Florida, cause that is what is happening), we start to contemplate on the year that has past. What a ride it has been, not only for the world, but in my little space on Earth as well. I do not think, when I set out to begin 2016 that things would fall into place the way they did. All the good, all the bad, they all interwove themselves into one explosive emotional ball of greatness.

So, today, in the Gospel, we look at the end of what would be Jesus’ physical ministry on Earth. Just as with everything, there is always an end. In this case, the end was only the beginning. I think that is how we should approach the end of this season. We should look forward to the taking things to a new level. Finding new joys, new things in life, and making things better, much better than they were before. So, here is to the end of one season, and the glorious rising of another.