20231119 WORKING DILIGENTLY FOR ETERNAL HAPPINESS
19 November 2023, Sunday, 33rd Week in Ordinary Time
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.”’
WORKING DILIGENTLY FOR ETERNAL HAPPINESS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [PROV 31:10-13,19-20, 30-31; 1 TH 5:1-6; MT 25:14-30]
There is an anecdote that speaks volume for our world today. Satan gathered his angels for a conference to find the best strategy to destroy the human race. The first suggested that they tell the world that there is no sin. Another said, “we must tell the world there is no God.” The third proposed that they must tell the world that there is no life after death. But it was the last suggestion that crowned them all, namely, to tell the world that there is no hurry.
Truly, these four strategies are being used by Satan to deceive humanity into self-destruction and self-annihilation. If only we open our eyes, we can see clearly what is happening in the world. In a world of moral relativism, conscience is numbed because our minds make us believe that there is no right or wrong; that everything is but a matter of preference. This has led humanity into living a licentious lifestyle. There is so much cheating, lying, slandering and falsehood even among the powerful, politicians and sadly, even religious people. From deceiving the world into believing that everything is a matter of personal preference or to be seen in contextual perspective and an evolving culture, Satan deceives us into thinking that we are so intelligent as to ebeable to accomplish anything, as if we are gods. Hence, today, secularism and humanism are promoted as the new religions that intelligent people subscribe to and that religions are for those who lack intelligence and reason.
As a consequence, the modern generation, especially our young people, become YOLOs and FOMOs, living only for this world. They are fearful of death because they have been conditioned into believing there is no life after death. Hence, the only urgency they have is to enjoy life as much as they can because once dead, everything is finished. At the same time, there is no accountability for what we do in this life. Whether we do good or evil has no implications for us in the next life since after death we disappear into thin air. So why bother to sacrifice ourselves for the next generation when we have only one life to live? Why bother to keep anything for others? At any rate, whatever good we do will also be undone.
But for those of us who still have some conscience, or consciousness of the existence of God and final accountability before God, the devil uses his last weapon, which is to tell us that there is no urgency to repent or to put our lives in order. We still have time to live a sinful and irresponsible life, living selfishly like the worldly people even though we know an immoral lifestyle will hurt people, ourselves and God. We say to ourselves that we will repent when we are older or when we have had enough of the sinful pleasures of this world. But we are not in a hurry. We will repent on our death bed.
Today, the scripture readings invite those of us who are still receptive to the Word of God, to come to terms with the Day of the Lord. The fact of death and resurrection cannot be denied. Earlier on, in the same letter, St Paul explained that Christians who have died will be the first to rise up, followed by those who are still alive. However, “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.”
And there is no excuse to say that we are not prepared. St Paul wrote, “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.” That is why we must live in the light so that no matter when that Day comes, whether it is the Day of the Lord or our last day on earth, we are already living with Christ. No one knows when that last moment would be and hence it is critical that we do not meet the Lord unprepared. If we have lived in darkness and without Christ, we will not be able to meet Him when everything comes to light at death.
To prepare ourselves for the last day requires us to live responsibly here and now. We have the example of the perfect wife from the Book of Proverbs. “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.” She is not only always at work but always putting herself at the service of the family and the poor. This is what we are called to do, to be responsible to the tasks allotted to us and our position in life, regardless whether we are a homemaker, a professional, a worker, a politician or a religious.
Being responsible in life is simply to be accountable for the gifts the Lord has given to us. This is what the Parable of the Talents wants to underscore. God is benevolent. He gives to each one of us according to His Divine plan for us. God has given us different talents and different amounts as well. “To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third one; each in proportion to his ability.” It does not matter what position we hold in life, or what we do, or the job we hold. All are expected to be diligent and faithful to their talents and whatever tasks they are assigned to in life. We are expected to show initiative, take risks and show progress.
For those who prove worthy of God’s trust, they would be rewarded with greater responsibilities in the care of God’s people; and in the life to come, share in the fullness of life with God. More so if we are leaders because what we say or do, or omit to do, would have serious implications for those under our care and charge. A leader who does not lead is damned. Hence, in the parable, those who were good leaders were given greater responsibilities. Conversely, those who do not appreciate God’s grace given to them are damned because they did not live up to the trust God had placed upon them.
But it is important that we go beyond understanding talents in the natural and worldly sense, in terms of money, power, influence, intelligence, skills, knowledge and ability. It concerns the spiritual gifts we have received. The lazy servant symbolized the Scribes and Pharisees who sought to keep the Law exactly as it was, and built a fence around it without allowing any development to it. Such an attitude would paralyze the intent of the Law because of changing circumstances. One can keep the Law but not the Spirit behind the Law. So, too, those who have received the gift of faith, the gift of baptism, the sacraments, the Word of God, and those who have the opportunity to study scripture and theology. How have we made use of these gifts that the Lord has given to us? Have we grown in faith, in our spiritual life, and most of all, in virtues as well?
Indeed, the best way to grow the talents the Lord has given to us is to use them for the good of others. These talents are not for ourselves but for us to exercise and expand our hearts to love, serve and give. When we give and share, the talents are multiplied. This is why the faithful servants were rewarded with more opportunities to do good. The greatest joy in life is to spend our talents and treasures by sharing them with others. By praying for others, sharing with them, showing mercy and compassion, we bear fruits of love. This is the only way to prepare ourselves for heaven and the life to come. If heaven is mutual love, inclusive love and union with each other and with God, then we must begin to live heaven on earth. So let us live life to the fullest, not by exhausting ourselves with the pleasures and pursuits of this world for ourselves but by expending all our energy, talent and time for the love and service of our brothers and sisters so that after our death, we will be reunited with them in heaven where we live together as a communion of saints together with our Lord forever in joy and peace.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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