Word to the Wise
Saturday, August 31, 2024 - Saturday in the 21th Week in Ordinary Time
[1 Cor 1:26-31 and Matt 25:14-30]"A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, twop to a third, one - to each according to his ability...etc. [Matthew]
The parable of the Talents is familiar to us. It doesn't really matter that "talent" in the parable refers to a measure of money. It could be anything of value that God has given us. The end of the parable makes it clear that God expects us to use the "talents" we have been given to yield results. To bury the talents we have been given because we are afraid of something happening to them and incurring the wrath of the Master is to incur the very wrath we are afraid of!!! The common thread in this parable is "fear."
What kind of relationship with God did the fearful servant have? What kind of relationship did the two other servants have? The latter two showed initiative and a willingness to take a risk to further the aims of the Master. The third servant was paralyzed by his fear and "buried" the one talent he received. There is a difference between acting to please and acting so as not to displease. We can become so fearful and caught up in the "avoid evil" that we fail to "do good!" Mistakes in living Christian life, whether sinful or not, are part of being a human person. If we live in fear of making a mistake, the blessings we have received never see the light of day. This is true of our faith as well. If we hide it for fear that we might make a mistake in sharing it, the ordinary work of evangelization comes to a halt. What are we afraid of? AMEN