As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” Mark 13:1-2

In another time and place, I worked with children who had behavioral issues. My job placed me in a private school to work one-on-one with a boy. I was taking a break in the courtyard when a ten year-old girl came up to me with a ball and asked me if I would play catch with her. She was usually shy and quiet and fairly new to the school too. There were tons of children and teachers around but she chose me. I was not a complete stranger. We were renting an apartment from her grandparents. I had seen her several times at their place. I had spoken to her mother on several occasions. I knew a little bit more about her than she realized. She and her sister were adopted. They came from an extremely abusive home. This little girl suffered the most in order to spare her little sister the torment. Consequently, the younger girl came out of the situation more intact than her older sibling.

We played catch for a while and then she wanted to talk. She asked about my work with the homeless children ( I had just completed my time as a lay missionary then) and she shared about things she liked to do. It was a pleasant encounter for me. I knew that she had been a source of pain and suffering for her new family. She had been defiant with her adopted mother and at times she even retaliated with physical violence. It is hard to imagine that this sweet girl was capable of this. She wasn’t pretending to be someone else with me. She was who she was. The problem was that at home, she lost a role that she cherished. This role gave her an opportunity to live out her true identity, despite the cruel circumstances. Now that things have changed for the better she felt lost and useless. She wanted to redeem her role as the protective loving sister. It was a good and selfless role she performed for her sister but that role was no longer necessary. Unfortunately, this little girl did not know how to be a loving sister without the horrible situation. She is an adult now. I hope she has found a way to be who she is despite the changes. She is a good person and has much to offer. I am glad that for a brief moment she shared her gift with me. It will always be with me.

The above gospel reading starts with devastating news. The temple was going to be destroyed. These words must have scandalized and disturbed the disciples. The temple was the center of their identity as a people. It reminded them of their vocation in the world. It was also the symbol of unity. The Jewish people were living in different parts of the Roman world and there were cultural and language barriers between them. Despite their differences, the temple provided a venue where they could be one people again. Besides, the disciples believed that Jesus was the Messiah and they assumed that the temple was going to play a major role in His ministry. Now they are hearing that God would not save the Temple from destruction. The foundation of their identity was to be shaken.

The temple was a symbol of everything good and holy for the people of Israel. Being a protective sister was a symbol of goodness and love for this little girl who only experienced hatred since she was an infant. All of us have something which serves as a symbol of the potential goodness giving us a sense of purpose in life. For me, it is my ministry in the streets. It is the place in this world where I am able to sense God’s presence in a real way. It is my sacramental space. Unfortunately, like anything in this world, one day it will be taken away from me. I do not need to be a prophet to realize this. If anything, this pandemic reminded us how easily this could happen. In fact, during the initial period of the quarantine, a lot of people wondered if this was the end. It wasn’t end. Maybe it was like a prolonged season of Advent imposed upon the world; a time when we prayerfully reflect on the last things.

During this time, I asked myself what remains of me if everything which has helped me define who I am were to be stripped from me. Most likely, it was the question that was going through the minds of the disciples when Jesus predicted the destruction of the temple.

Our children and teens face a tragic dilemma. They live in a precarious situation but at the same time, their identity is derived from this circumstance. The adults who end up in the streets due to some misfortune are not the same as our children. They once had a home and a family. Our children and teens grew up in this environment. Their ethics are constructed in this environment. They know how to be a good person in the streets. Their religious experience occurred in the context of the streets. They understood what it means to love and care for someone here. It is the place where they know what it means to love and be loved. For us, being homeless is our worst nightmare. For our children and teens, all they understand of what is good and lovely comes from their experience in the streets. They have no other reference than their homeless situation. It is a place where they found a group to belong to and if they stop being homeless, then they lose everything which is precious to them. They can’t imagine life without being homeless.

What becomes of us when our whole world falls apart? The worst thing we can do is to try to hold on these symbols that connected us to something good. In this case, these good things can become our idols and they may obstruct us from discovering the One who remains forever with us despite what happens. St Paul gives us the best answer in the New Testament. He knew firsthand what it meant to lose everything which defined him as a person. His reflections on the subject left us with these beautiful words which are comforting and relevant in all times.

“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39

I can not guarantee myself that one day when I have to stop doing what I find to be meaningful and wonderful that life will be better. I cannot promise the children and teens that when they eventually leave the streets, they are going to be accepted into society or their suffering will be diminished. Most likely life will become harder for them. The only thing we know is that nothing constructed by our hands lasts forever. The disciples believed that the temple was based on God’s design and even then, it did not endure the test of time. Therefore, we need to place our hopes in the only thing remaining when our world falls apart. I believe life is a journey of construction and deconstruction. Each time we rebuild our lives we take a step closer in discovering the One who is always there. Each phase helps us to build our identity in the One who is able to raise us again and again. It is not something which we can teach the children and teens. It has to be lived.