Tobit 1:4 "Now when I was in my own country, in the land of Israel, while I was still a young man, the whole tribe of Naphtali my forefather deserted the house of Jerusalem. This was the place which had been chosen from among all the tribes of Israel, where all the tribes should sacrifice and where the temple of the dwelling of the Most High was consecrated and established for all generations for ever."

Jerusalem was to Tobit what the Church, the New Jerusalem, is to us. The Church is the place where all peoples are to come for sacrifice; it is where the Most High can be found on earth in His Divinity, His Body, and His Blood, and where He gives those to us as food for the journey; it has been established for all generations forever. Yet my generation has largely deserted the Church, and the generation coming up behind me even more so. We are like the tribes of Israel in Tobit's time, we have abandoned the place chosen (established, in fact) by God for the world to come to Him.

If we, as Catholics, have largely abandoned the Church, how will we help bring in the rest of the world, which is what must eventually happen? All that we can do is continue faithful worship, just as Tobit did - "But I alone went often to Jerusalem for the feasts". (Tobit 1:6). We know that God has promised that His Church will prevail. We do not know how or when that will happen, but we do know that, just like us, the Church must be crucified in some way before rising.

If the Church is in a long stretch of her Passion now, and being abandoned by her children, the faithful can stay close. We can be like the women and St. John who stood beneath Christ's Cross. And we can intercede for all who are not there with us, and for the Church herself to be cleansed and raised up. It will happen, although we might (I think will) have to go into exile first, just as Tobit was carried away captive to Nineveh (Tobit 1:10).

Tobit remained faithful even in exile, and even when everything looked to be going wrong. We are called to do the same. Our faithfulness will help others return when they are ready, and will help the Church rise when she is cleansed. We will thus see the Church, both the people and the institution, through her crucifixion.