In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Let us remember that we are in the presence of a holy God.
Come and witness the Lord’s judgment over the nations.
Take one minute of silence now, praying for God’s blessing on you, your family, fraternity, and all Exodus Men.
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits, who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who is seated upon many waters.
# A Reading from the Book of Revelation
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who is seated upon many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and with the wine of whose fornication the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”
And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns.
The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication; and on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of earth’s abominations.”
And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.
When I saw her I marveled greatly.
But the angel said to me, “Why marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her.
The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to perdition; and the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will marvel to behold the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.
This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven hills on which the woman is seated; they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while.
# Reflection
The Book of Revelation helped ancient Christians to interpret the persecution they received at the hands of the Roman Empire.
Rome was like a harlot that seduced the nations into her peace and prosperity, though only by linking its religious ideology and economic dominance.
Rome, sitting on its seven hills, seduced the nations by portraying Caesar as a demi-god who could bring political stability to earth and create greater prosperity than had ever been seen.
The problem is that then the empire itself became an idol that placed itself before all other realities.
The grounding of this revelation in the past does not mean that it no longer speaks to us.
It continues to unlock history, the deception of applying political and economical solutions to the much deeper problems of the human heart.
Anything that usurps God’s central place in our lives must be overthrown.
Babylon will not stand before the judgments of God.
Sin will be overthrown, and its corruption of the world will be exposed for what it is.
Are we the inheritors of Babylon?
In the West, our society has led the nations astray in many ways, including rampant consumerism and perverse entertainment.
We can look in the mirror and see many of the errors condemned in ancient Rome alive in our own culture.
We have replaced God with the idol of our own selfish desires.
This is even more true on the level of our society, which has demonically sought to recreate humanity in its own image, according to its whims.
We have to guard against this as well, resisting the temptation to go along with the culture.
On the other hand, we also see in the many totalitarian and Communist regimes a more violent attempt to overthrow God and exterminate religious faith from society.
In the early twentieth century, people spoke of the unholy triangle of Russia, Spain, and Mexico due to brutal Communist campaigns to destroy churches and murder Christians.
This same persecution continues today in Communist countries.
These regimes can truly be described as drunk on the blood of the saints.
When we look at the two extremes of the morally corrupt West and the violent movement of Communism, it may provide some context for the continuing relevance of the revelation of God’s judgment.
His saints continue to be persecuted throughout the world.
Christians still experience extreme challenges in living the faith.
It seems like demons are in charge, and this is not too far from the truth.
We need to continue to guard against both the manifest and subtle ways that evil attacks our faith.
If we are truly exiles, we can resist the allure of Babylon and remain fixed on the city to come.
Today, ask for the grace to resist the allure of Babylon—of the worldly culture.
Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who is seated upon many waters.
Let us pray.
Lord, you alone are holy. Through your grace, overturn all idols in our life so that we may worship you in spirit and truth. Amen.
Saint Michael the archangel, pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
