Word to the Wise
Saturday, September 2, 2017 - Saturday in the 21th Week in Ordinary Time
[1 Thess 4:9-11 and Matt 25:14-30]SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2017 SATURDAY IN THE TWENTY-FIRST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME [1 Thessalonians 4:9-11 and Matthew 25:14-30] "Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since your faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy." [Matthew] The gospel scripture today follows on the parable of the Wise Virgins. In the second parable, a "master" gives three servants each a sum of money "to each according to his ability." Two of the servants double the amount and return it. The third simply returns what he was given without any increase because of his fear of the master. The first two servants are rewarded - see the quote above - and the third is punished. The parable is certainly not about capitalism! It IS about living in such a way that we make good use of the blessings that God has given to us. How do we know that we are doing that? The third parable (which gets displaced this year because of Labor Day), the scene of the final judgment, gives us a list of what we should be doing with the "talents" that God has given to us. [Matt. 25:31-45]. What God has given to us is not meant to be hoarded but shared and used help others. The parable notes that the master was gone a long time, which alerts us to the uncertainty of the final time in which we are held accountable. The three parables of chapter 25 of the Gospel According to Matthew - the Wise Virgins, the Talents, and the Sheep and Goats of the final judgment - are meant to challenge us to remember that our lives belong to God. We are stewards of God's gifts. Wise use of those gifts with a view to a final accounting is part of our faith. The reward is found in the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant...Come, share your master's joy." AMEN
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