September 29, Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, archangels
Daily Readings: Daniel 7:9–10, 13–14; Revelations 12:7–12ab; John 1:47–51
Many wonder about the existence of evil in the world if God is omnipotent and almighty. Why does He let us suffer? Why does He allow kind people to get into trouble? Why do wrongdoers find it easy to the law?
These questions have no definite answers. After all, we would never fully understand God and His reasoning. But if there is one thing we can be certain of, it is that God is completely and eternally good. Evil does not come from Him. When He created the world, He deemed it to be good. However, it is not yet complete, and the many tribulations we experience on earth are God’s way of bringing it to perfection. According to Saint Thomas Aquinas,: “God allows evil only to make something better result from it.”
We may be navigating through a lot of bad things in life right now, but we must trust that good will always have the last word. Today’s readings focus on the end times, particularly Armageddon, the final battle between good and evil. Satan may have ruled the world, but Archangel Michael is destined to strike him down, never to corrupt the world again.
In the Gospel, we see Jesus meeting Nathaniel (Bartholomew) for the first time. The Lord reveals to him what he would “see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." (John 1:51) After the Ascension, it was the apostles who went out into the world to spread the Good News. They endured persecution and humiliation. They shed their blood in the name of the Lord. But after going through these challenges on earth, they gained the glory of heaven with all the angels and saints.
It was Jesus who first proved that good will always triumph, no matter what. Darkness had its laugh for a while when He died on the cross. But when He broke out of the gates of the afterlife, He conquered death forever, freed us from the slavery of sin, and gave us the gift of eternal life. Whatever you are going through, hold on to your faith and do not lose hope.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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