20201115 USING OUR TALENTS FOR THE BUILDING OF HIS KINGDOM
15 November, 2020, Sunday, 33rd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading |
Proverbs 31:10-13,19-20,30-31 © |
A perfect wife - who can find her?
A perfect wife – who can find her?
She is far beyond the price of pearls.
Her husband’s heart has confidence in her,
from her he will derive no little profit.
Advantage and not hurt she brings him
all the days of her life.
She is always busy with wool and with flax,
she does her work with eager hands.
She sets her hands to the distaff,
her fingers grasp the spindle.
She holds out her hand to the poor,
she opens her arms to the needy.
Charm is deceitful, and beauty empty;
the woman who is wise is the one to praise.
Give her a share in what her hands have worked for,
and let her works tell her praises at the city gates.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 127(128):1-5 © |
O blessed are those who fear the Lord.
O blessed are those who fear the Lord
and walk in his ways!
By the labour of your hands you shall eat.
You will be happy and prosper.
O blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
in the heart of your house;
your children like shoots of the olive,
around your table.
O blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Indeed thus shall be blessed
the man who fears the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion
all the days of your life!
O blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Second reading |
1 Thessalonians 5:1-6 © |
God will bring with him those who have died in Jesus
You will not be expecting us to write anything to you, brothers, about ‘times and seasons’, since you know very well that the Day of the Lord is going to come like a thief in the night. It is when people are saying, ‘How quiet and peaceful it is’ that the worst suddenly happens, as suddenly as labour pains come on a pregnant woman; and there will be no way for anybody to evade it.
But it is not as if you live in the dark, my brothers, for that Day to overtake you like a thief. No, you are all sons of light and sons of the day: we do not belong to the night or to darkness, so we should not go on sleeping, as everyone else does, but stay wide awake and sober.
Gospel Acclamation | Rv2:10 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Even if you have to die, says the Lord,
keep faithful, and I will give you
the crown of life.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn15:4,5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Make your home in me, as I make mine in you.
Whoever remains in me bears fruit in plenty.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 25:14-30 © |
You have been faithful in small things: come and join in your master's happiness
Jesus spoke this parable to his disciples: ‘The kingdom of Heaven is like a man on his way abroad who summoned his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third one; each in proportion to his ability. Then he set out.
‘The man who had received the five talents promptly went and traded with them and made five more. The man who had received two made two more in the same way. But the man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
‘Now a long time after, the master of those servants came back and went through his accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents came forward bringing five more. “Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with five talents; here are five more that I have made.”
‘His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.”
‘Next the man with the two talents came forward. “Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with two talents; here are two more that I have made.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.”
‘Last came forward the man who had the one talent. “Sir,” said he “I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back.” But his master answered him, “You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have recovered my capital with interest. So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the five talents. For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away. As for this good-for-nothing servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”’
USING OUR TALENTS FOR THE BUILDING OF HIS KINGDOM
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [PROV 31:10-13,19-20,30-31; 1 TH 5:1-6; MT 25:14-30 ]
The scripture readings are to be read in the context of the second coming of Christ. St Paul exhorted the Christians in Thessalonica to be prepared for the Day of the Lord since it “is going to come like a thief in the night.” It will come when we are least prepared thinking, “How quiet and peaceful it is.” Then “the worst suddenly happens, as suddenly as labour pains come on a pregnant woman; and there will be no way for anybody to evade it.” Indeed, the Day of the Lord need not necessarily be the Day of the Final Judgment but it could come anytime when the Lord calls us back to Him. This is why St Paul wrote, “it is not as if you live in the dark, my brothers, for that Day to overtake you like a thief.”
In the gospel, the Parable of the Talents reminds us of our responsibility to prepare for Christ’s second coming by living a responsible life, using our talents and resources for the service of God, the spread of the gospel and the good of our fellowmen. Primarily, the Parable of the Talents refer not just to the natural gifts the Lord has given to us but the spiritual gifts that Christ has left behind when He ascended to His Father. This is indicated by the master who has gone abroad and came back only after a long time. In other words, it refers to the time after the Ascension of our Lord when the Lord poured down on us the gifts of the Holy Spirit to continue the work of proclaiming His kingdom. Jesus said, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) Until then, we all await His second coming when all will be called to give an account of ourselves and the gifts we have received for the work of establishing the kingdom of God.
What are these gifts that we have been blessed with? Over and above our natural gifts, such as health, intelligence, creativity, knowledge, skills, eloquence, communication, financial and material resources, the Lord, more importantly, has blessed us with spiritual and supernatural gifts to help us to elevate our natural gifts to a higher level. Through the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God, the Eucharist and the Sacraments, the guidance of the Church, and the support of the Christian community, we have more than enough resources to build the kingdom of God wherever we are, according to the means given to us. We have a responsibility to evangelize and proclaim the Good News to all nations. Unfortunately, many of us are complacent and not proactive in making full use of what the Lord has given to us.
In the first place, many of us are averse to taking risks in life. We look for security and stability. We do not want pressure in life. This is why some people are not willing to take on new responsibilities and challenges. They are afraid to make mistakes. They are afraid of failure. They want to play safe in everything they do. Such people end up living a mediocre life. As the proverb says, no risk no gain. This is especially true in the stock market. Those of us who are afraid to invest our money in equities, will just keep them in safe financial instruments like savings, fixed deposits or safe bonds. Of course, they cannot expect to earn much from their investments as these are low risks.
The proclamation of the gospel involves risks. If our Lord did not take the risk of going up to Jerusalem and dying for us, there would be no resurrection and no redemption of us all. If the early missionaries did not take the risk of proclaiming the gospel, there will be no Church. If the foreign missionaries from the 15th to the 19th century did not take risks and come to the Far East, Africa and America, there would be no Christianity or the gospel. If our friends or loved ones did not have the courage to share with us their faith in Christ, we would never have known Him or be converted. So proclaiming the gospel entails risks.
Unfortunately, some of us are just like the third servant in the parable who was given one talent. We are not ready to take risks. Instead of following the example of the first two servants by investing the money or trading it, this “man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.” He did not make use of what the master gave him. Instead he did not do anything with it but just hid it. When called upon to give an account of what he did with the talent, the servant replied, “Sir, I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back.”
What was the master’s reply? “You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have recovered my capital with interest.” He was called a wicked and lazy servant simply because he was not grateful for the trust and the talent the master had given to him. Secondly, knowing that the master was an exacting man, not because he was harsh and demanding, but he wanted everyone to excel in life, he chose to be lazy and indifferent. He was lying through his teeth. It was not even fear of losing the talent his master had given him, but he was plain lazy and ungrateful.
Indeed, like all the other servants, the master entrusted them with differing amounts of talents “each in proportion to his ability.” The master knew his servants’ capacity and ability. He knew that the third servant should be able to bring back at least one talent. This is true with God with respect to the talents we have and the position He has called us to in life. God will never command us to what is impossible for us. He qualifies those whom He has chosen. If God calls us for a task, it means that He will supply us with the strength. As St Paul says, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Phil 4:13) So there is no question of anyone being overwhelmed by his responsibilities in life. If ever, it is because we try to bite off more than we can chew. Because of pride and ambition, we kill ourselves. It is not about doing God’s will but ours. If it is God’s will, we will be able to do it.
When we cooperate with the grace of God, we will be doubly blessed. Only when we maximize the use of our talents and take risks for the service of God’s kingdom, developing our prayer and spiritual life, making time for spiritual formation of our faith, being involved in reaching out to those who do not know Christ, counselling and sharing our faith with them or helping the poor, will our talents grow and multiply. For this is what the Lord underscored. The more we give them away, the more we use them and expend them for the good of others, the more we have in return. The master said, “So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the five talents. For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away. As for this good-for-nothing servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”
Today, the first reading gives us the example of the perfect woman and wife in the book of Proverbs. The perfect woman has nothing to do external beauty but the beauty of the heart. The Bible holds the woman as the model of one who is faithful to the gifts that the Lord has blessed her with. “She is far beyond the price of pearls.” It is significant that the bible does not reduce the greatness of a woman to simply that of a domestic helper, but in that she is resourceful, diligent, hardworking, full of initiative, takes good care of the household and beyond; as the book of Proverbs says, she is also a seamstress, a merchant, and one who cares for the poor. Indeed, women are blessed with many gifts. In the final analysis, Proverbs says, “Charm is deceitful, and beauty empty; the woman who is wise is the one to praise. Give her a share in what her hands have worked for, and let her works tell her praises at the city gates.” Indeed, it is when we cooperate with God’s grace and use our talents for the building of God’s kingdom that we are blessed.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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