Our first reading today is one of the most remarkable stories in all of Hebrew literature. It tells of a mother who is forced to watch her seven sons die a brutal death, all in a single day.
They are executed at the command of a tyrant, martyred because they refused to eat pork. We hear only a brief portion of this powerful story in today’s reading, but the full account is filled with drama and courage.
It takes place around 175 B.C. in the Kingdom of Syria. The king had decreed that all his subjects must become one people: one in custom, one in law, and one in religion. The Jews were told they could no longer follow the Law of Moses. Anyone who did would be put to death.
And so, a Jewish mother and her seven sons were commanded to eat pork, forbidden by their faith. They refused – and the king ordered their execution in slow, agonizing ways. Each one suffered terribly, yet each stood firm in faith, while their mother watched with unshaken courage.
The first son declared that he would rather die than break God’s law. He said, “You can kill us, but the King of the Universe will raise us up again.” The second added, “God will raise me up, but you, O king, will not rise to life.”
Through this nightmare, their mother strengthens them, saying, “The God who shaped you will give life and breath back to you.” The story closes simply: “Last of all, the mother died after her sons.”
What does this incredible act of faith have to do with today’s Gospel? It can be summed up in one word: Resurrection. This story offers one of the earliest glimpses in Scripture of faith in life beyond death – of hope in resurrection.
Now, let’s look at the Gospel: Jesus is approached by a group of Sadducees who ask Him a trick question. The Sadducees were a Jewish sect that denied life after death. Their question was not sincere. They wanted to trap Him. But Jesus sees through their intent and corrects them for two reasons: they misunderstand both the power of God and the meaning of their own Scriptures.
He reminds them that when God revealed Himself to Moses in the burning bush, He said, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had been dead for centuries. Yet, God used the present tense. “I am.” Not “I was.” Because He is the God of the living. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were alive in His presence when He spoke to Moses.
The Sadducees refused to believe their own Scriptures – and they refused to believe in Jesus, who stood before them as the very truth they claimed to seek. We see another instance of this later, when Pilate asks Jesus, “What is the truth?” The truth stood right there in front of him; the One who said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. If you believe in Me, you will never die.”
Sadly, we encounter so much death in our earthly lives. Not just when our loved ones pass away. But when our plans do not work out as we had hoped. When friendships fade or marriages fall apart. Our faith in the resurrection is tested again and again, and joy can be hard to find.
Yet if we believe in Christ, we must also believe that death is not the end – it is just the beginning. Heaven lies beyond our imagination; there are no postcards or photographs from paradise. But we must always remember the comforting words of St. Paul:
“Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it entered the human heart what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
