If you would like to catch up on some recent posts, here is a place where you can easily access some posts you might have missed. I hope it helps… enjoy.
Continue readingA quick look back
Featured
2
More thoughts for tomorrow
When the 1960s came around, the “Greatest Generation” – those men and women who served during World War II were still largely and stoically silent about their wartime experiences – but the television networks began television shows about the war. Series such as “Combat,” “12 O’Clock High,” and “Men at War” became staples of primetime viewing. Knowing things about WWII became part and parcel of determining one’s status within the pack (and here I am referring to Cub Scouts). Sure, you might be able to identify the German Messerschmitt 109 fighter aircraft from a flash card, but the real test was could you identify the difference between 109-C and the 109-G series (except the 109-G6 which was soooo… obvious). Clearly such things were critical to national defense among the Cub Scouts. Or so it seemed at the time.
WWII seemed like recent history. I mean, our fathers fought in the war! And we had grandfathers (and uncles) who fought in WWI, the “war to end all wars.” The world wars were history, but still kinda’ recent in the 1960s. It has been 108 years since that war ended. A lot of water under the bridge since then. WWII war ended 81 years ago
Frank Buckles was the last of the WWI vets to pass away. He died in February 2011 at the age of 110 years. It is estimated there are approximately 30,000 WWII veterans still with us – that is out of the almost 17 million women and men who served. Two weeks ago, at Quantico National Cemetery, I presided over the burial of a WWII vet. He died at 100 years, 16 days.
Among us are women and men have served their country in Korea, Vietnam, regional conflicts, the Gulf Wars, Afghanistan, and Iraq. The Pew Research Institute estimates there are 18 million Americans, still living, who have served and are rightly called veterans. That represents about 6% of all adult Americans. There is a wide variance by age cohort.
What is the profile of our veterans? And how will it change? Within 25 years all the veterans of WWII and Korea will have passed away as the Gulf Wars veterans become the majority. An increasing percentage of our service men and women will be people of color and women will play a larger role in the armed services.
And what about the people who will make decisions to send our men and women into harm’s way? How many of our Senators and Representatives have served? When was the last time we had a combat veteran in the Oval Office? George H.W. Bush was the last serving combat veteran president. He served in WWII as a Naval Aviator receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross. President Bush left office in early 1993. That was 33 years ago.
The recent election resulted in 70 veterans joining the 10 Senators (who were not up for re-election) to bring the total veterans in Congress to 80 (out of 535 Senators and Congressmen ~ 15%). At least 12 women veterans will be in the House and Senate which is a record, up from nine in the current Congress. To me that is encouraging.
What about us as a people? In 1980 approximately 18% of US citizens were veterans. In 2023 it was 7%. It is estimated that ~5% are veterans today.
In reading essays from veterans about their reasons for serving, their experiences, and their coming home, one notes that every story is different, but there were common threads: all were proud to serve, mourned their loss, and were grateful to come home. And all were silently worried about us, as a people, where fewer families and political leaders have a direct familial connection to service in the armed forces. One writer said that he gratefully accepted “Thank you for your service,” but wondered what the answers would be if he asked in reply, “what are you grateful for?”
That is a question we as people and as a nation need to be able to answer.
Happy 251st
Image
A thought for tomorrow
Tomorrow is Veterans Day. It is a national holiday, but it can be a holy day. It’s a holy day when we reflect on the many women and men who serve in the military and put their own lives in danger for the freedom we enjoy.
It’s a holy day when we stop our daily life routines to celebrate at a parade, pause our businesses and close our schools to show joy and respect for what our veterans have done for us and our nation, for the rights and freedoms that they have won and protected through all these years.
It’s a holy day when we remember and give thanks to God for our veterans who have returned safely from areas of conflict and war.
It’s a holy day when we stop and consider what government and military benefits our veterans who are returning from service find here at home and those who face barriers in receiving them.
It’s a holy day when we pray for those veterans who are homeless, disabled from combat wounds, carry the burden of memories, are affected by mental, emotional and spiritual agonies and are feel alone in their suffering.
It’s a holy day when we mourn our own thoughtlessness for forgetting to thank and be ever grateful to those veterans who have served our country yet feel unappreciated, lonely and forgotten.
To all veterans, tomorrow and every day, we say thank you for protecting and keeping our nation safe. We bless you, pray for you and pledge to never forget the sacrifices you have made for our country and for us.
Some Different Views
This coming Sunday is the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Our gospel is the Parable of the Talents. Warren Carter has a different take on the parable. He views the parable as criticism of “the perspective of the wealthy elite” who punishes “the one who subverts the system:” He writes “On the basis of Jesus’ teaching in 19:16–22 [the Rich Young Man], the master and the first two servants could rightly be rebuked for their greedy and acquisitive actions. The third servant should be commended for not adding to the master’s wealth by not depriving others!” Similarly, Barbara Reid (CBQ 66) notes: “The third servant is the honorable one because he unmasks the wickedness of the master”—though Reid herself mentions this exegesis only as a “possibility” which she does not in fact adopt.
Bruce Malina and Richard Rohrbaugh (Social-Science Commentary on the Synoptic Gospels) suggest that there was a “limited good” understanding in the first-century Mediterranean world. This is quite a different perspective than our western, 20th century, capitalistic world, where we operated with a sense that goods are in an “unlimited supply.” They write concerning this parable: “Because the pie was “limited” and already distributed, an increase in the share of one person automatically meant a loss for someone else. Honorable people, therefore, did not try to get more, and those who did were automatically considered thieves. Noblemen avoided such accusations of getting rich at the expense of others by having their affairs handled by slaves. Such behavior could be condoned in slaves, since slaves were without honor anyway.” The third servant buried his master’s money to ensure that it remained intact. This, of course, was the honorable thing for a freeman to do; was it honorable behavior for a servant? They have further thoughts on the “limited good” in an earlier section: “An honorable man would thus be interested only in what was rightfully his and would have no desire to gain anything more, that is, to take what was another’s. Acquisition was, by its very nature, understood as stealing. The ancient Mediterranean attitude was that every rich person is either unjust or the heir of an unjust person (Jerome, In Heiremiam 2.5.2). Profit making and the acquisition of wealth were automatically assumed to be the result of extortion or fraud. The notion of an honest rich man was a first-century oxymoron.”
I primarily offer these voices to again point to the nature of parables. There is much room for interpretation. Still, one can critique Carter and the others since this is not the only parable which assumes the validity of acquiring wealth and of private ownership. Even in the end of our parable of the talents, the two servants acquire a great deal of wealth in private ownership. Yet there is the question of what one does while being ready.
It is perhaps less about the “what” and more about readiness and responsibility. It is not about natural endowment, though the degree of responsibility given to each depends on their individual ability (v. 15). The “talents,” however, do not represent that individual ability but are allocated on the basis of it. They represent not the natural gifts and aptitudes which everyone has, but the specific privileges and opportunities of the kingdom of heaven and the responsibilities they entail. St. Paul notes this same distinction in “gifts.” The parable thus teaches that each disciple has God-given gifts and opportunities to be of service to the Lord, and that these are not the same for everyone, but it is left to the reader to discern just what those gifts and opportunities are. This is appropriate to the open-ended nature of parables, and different readers may rightly place the emphasis on different aspects of their discipleship. What matters is that, however precisely the “talents” are interpreted, each disciple should live and work in such a boldly enterprising way that the returning master will say “Well done, you good, trustworthy slave.”
Image credit: The Parable of the Talents by Willem de Porter, 17th century, National Gallery of Prague, PD-US
The Parable: Matthew and Luke
This coming Sunday is the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Our gospel is the Parable of the Talents. It is very easy to conflate the Lukan and Matthean versions of this parable. Below I offer a side by side comparison. Surprisingly, the Lukan version is not a Sunday Gospel, not even in Lectionary Cycle C, so I will touch lightly upon the Lukan gospel as we move through the commentary.
In the Lukan version of the parable, a man entrusts each of three servants with an amount of money – actually there are ten servants, but in the end only three play a part in the last scene. Upon his return, the first two have worked with the capital and greatly increased it. Attention focuses on the third, who has acted with caution not to lose what was entrusted to him and is able to return it whole to the master. It is unclear how this last servant was perceived by the original hearers of the parable. There is good evidence that they would have considered burying the money a responsible act, but not necessarily keeping it stored in a handkerchief. The third servant in the Lukan version would be seen to have acted irresponsibly and is thus merely lucky to still have it at the master’s return. When the Lukan third servant is challenged as to why he has not increased the money entrusted to him, he responds with a characterization of the master as a harsh and unjust man who inspires only fear and caution.
This perhaps gives the original hearers a bit of a pause. On the one hand, the hearers have just seen proof of the master’s generosity to the first two servants. On the other hand, the story has led them to be sympathetic to the action of the one-talent man in carefully hiding the money. To his (and the hearers’) surprise, the one-talent man is condemned for fearful inactivity, and his money is given to the first servant, who already has ten talents. The hearers must decide which characterization of the master to accept. The parable has led them in both directions, and it creates a dilemma rather than resolving one.
The careful listener should now be asking whether the original grant of money was entrusted to the servants to manage or was it given to them as their own. Perhaps only the third servant continues to regard the money as his master’s. If true, then the whole parable must be understood in terms of grace and the response to it, rather than stewardship of property that remains another’s.
Luke has positioned this parable between the story of Zacchaeus and Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. Matthew has positioned the parable (with different details) between his “Little Apocalypse” and a scene of the final judgment. It may well point to a different intention and understanding. But then parables always have such leeway. As mentioned above, “readiness” seems to be the point of Matthew’s use of the parable – but then, we shall see.
Matthew’s Thought. A comparison with other Matthean parables is useful. (1) In 18:23–35, a servant is entrusted with the great wealth of another, and an accounting is called for (only place in the NT this expression is used). The servant is forgiven a fabulous debt incurred by his mismanagement of his master’s money. In our parable, a servant is condemned, although he had lost nothing of his master’s money. (2) In both parables the servant is called “wicked.” (3) But, earlier, the judgment is a matter of actively and profligately abusing his authority, while in the later parable the “wicked” servant is cautiously circumspect. (4) the final judgments in each case are severe: “Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt.” (18:34) – and – “And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” (25:30). It is worth noting that the differences are in what lead to judgment: abuse and profligate waste, as well as, lack of action.
Such contrasts in Matthew’s pictures of the judgment and the ultimate judge serve to guard the reader from too readily objectifying the meanings presented allegorically and to frustrate our efforts to summarize the way God works into neat coherent systems. The pictures point beyond themselves and resist systematization, while still speaking of the reality of judgment and the necessity for decision and responsible action – in other words, “readiness.”
Keep in mind that in our parable, the servants are not surprised at their master’s coming, so “readiness” is more attuned to whether the servants will be dependable in the use of the resources. We should note that the master entrusted his resources to the servants “to each according to his ability” (25:15). The third one received only one talent, likely indicating that the master understands that he has less ability than the others. The master does not overburden the third servant who nonetheless fails – not in any loss of money, but in returning it without increase. It was not that he did something wrong—he simply did nothing. This helps focus the parable, narrowing the focus to maximizing opportunities, not wasting them. To be “ready” for the master’s return means to use the intervening time to “maximum gain”; it is again about continuing life and work rather than about calculating the date and being alert for his actual arrival.
Image credit: The Parable of the Talents by Willem de Porter, 17th century, National Gallery of Prague, PD-US
Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome
The Lateran Basilica in Rome is not the oldest church in Rome – that honor seems to belong to Santi Quattro Coronati (314); but then that depends on what sources you believe. Old St. Peter’s, the original church on the spot where the current St. Peter’s stands dates to 324, the same year as St. Lorenzo and St. John Lateran. Did you know that the Lateran Basilica is the Cathedral of the Diocese of Rome – the place from where the Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis, leads his diocese even as he leads the church universal.
The Lateran did not even start out as a church – it was a palace on the Lateran Hill that came into the possession of the Emperor Constantine who lifted the ban on Christianity in 313. Sometime later the emperor gifted it to the church and by 324 it was converted to become a church and was declared to be the “mother church” of all Christianity: ecclesia omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput – of all the churches in the city and the world, the mother and head.
The Lateran has needed a few repairs over the years. As the Roman Empire fell, the Lateran fell into disrepair. It has been rebuilt, burned down, rebuilt, partially burned, rebuilt and finally evolved into the grand basilica you can visit today in Rome. Perhaps one of the “rebuilding” stories is of most interest to we Franciscans. It is there at the Lateran that Pope Innocent III dreamed of the Lateran falling down but held up by a small, brown robed man – Francis from Assisi who had just visited the Pope requesting permission to begin a new religious order. The Pope recalled Francis and commissioned him to live the gospel life, to preach, and to reconcile. Even today the Franciscans maintain a house dedicated to preaching and sacramental reconciliation at the Lateran.
The Living Waters
While we celebrate the dedication of the “mother church” of Western Christianity today, I think the image of the prophet Ezekiel goes to the heart of the matter. An Angel of the Lord comes to Ezekiel and describes to the prophet a temple from which rivers of living waters flow to all the corners of the earth. Everywhere the river flows there is not just life, but abundant life – urbis et orbis – to all the cities and into the world. The living waters turn saltwater to fresh, gives all living creatures the chance to thrive and multiply, and all manner of game, fish, and produce are plentiful.
How can one not think of the living water in terms of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, which are so life giving? It is true, as it is true of the living waters of the Word of God proclaimed. I wonder if we so easily make the same connection with the People of God. We too, in our best days, are a stream of living water moving out into the world. It is from the heart of the Church in which women and men in every age have gone into the world. Living the faith, gossiping the gospel over the backyard fences, proclaiming it aloud in the public square, doing the works of mercy and compassion because they were – and are – compelled by the love and grace of God – all of it a living Faith.
Maybe if Ezekiel were with us today, the Angel would show the prophet a view from space, with the rivers and waves of this living faith washing over the planet.
When St. Paul writes his letter and describes the Corinthians as God’s building he understands that we are more than these beautiful buildings. It is indeed good to have places like the Lateran Basilica as “mother and head” – and to have our own parish church. But it is God’s grace and the faith of people that make the living waters, that make the Church a living entity composed of you and me, living stones, built upon the foundation of the Apostles with Christ as the cornerstone.
Today we celebrate the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, if you will, the source of the living water. We are reminded that we here at Sacred Heart are connected and receive the grace of those waters. Even as we are reminded that men and women build basilicas and churches. God builds a holy people for Himself. The fruit of the living waters.
Image credit: Pexels + Canva, CC-BY-SA 3.0
More Background
This coming Sunday is the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Our gospel is the Parable of the Talents. Over the years I have added additional background materials. As a result, this week there will be days with more than one post – such as today! I hope you find it interesting and not too arcane.
Parallels. This parable has parallels in Mark and Luke. The version in Mark (13:34 ff) sticks to the basic storyline but lacks the detail present in Matthew’s version. The version in Luke (19:11-27) is slightly more rich in details than Matthew, but there are differences: an explicit explanatory introduction (Luke 19:11), the added motif of the journey “to receive kingship,” rebellious subjects, and their punishment (Luke 19:14, 27). Moreover, the details of the story in Luke differ significantly: ten slaves, each given the same amount although much smaller sums of money (mina vs. talent) than in Matthew. Also there is the resulting authority over cities as the reward for good trading.
The essential pattern of the story of trading in the master’s absence is the same, with three servants singled out, similar commendation of the successful slaves, the same excuses by the third servant and the same response from the master, the one talent/mina given to the servant with ten, and even the same apparently editorial comment in Luke 19:26 as in Matt 25:29: “ For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”.
There is one version of the parable that appears in the apocryphal “Gospel of the Nazarenes” (likely written late 2nd century in Alexandria). There one servant multiplies the capital, one hides it, and one squanders it with harlots and flute girls. The first is rewarded, the second rebuked, the third cast into prison. This version focuses on the end judgment with little attention to preparedness or vigilance.
The preceding parables have been about readiness, and this one is particularly about faithful stewardship which readiness produces. The third in the series of parables about being ready returns to a setting similar to that of the first, a master dealing with his servants. But this time there is a more specific focus on their commercial responsibility in their master’s absence. Each is left with a very large sum of money, with no instructions on what to do with it, and the story turns on their different ways of exercising this responsibility. There is again a division between good and bad, between success and failure. Yet the “failure” of the last servant consists not in any loss of money, but in returning it without increase. It was not that he did something wrong—he simply did nothing. This is, then, apparently, a parable about maximizing opportunities, not wasting them. To be “ready” for the master’s return means to use the intervening time to maximum gain; it is again about continuing life and work rather than about calculating the date and being alert for his actual arrival. This third parable is thus essentially making the same point about readiness as the two preceding ones (Mt 24:45-51 and Mt 25:1-13).
Eschatological Application. “Eschatology” refers to the part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind. With the parable set between Matthew’s “little apocalypse” and verses regarding the judgment upon the nations, one is rightly prepared to be concerned with things eschatological. This very setting affects the way the parable is told. The repeated invitation, “Come, share your master’s joy” (vv. 21, 23), sounds more like the language of heaven than of commerce; and the ultimate fate of the unsuccessful servant is described in v. 30 in the eschatological terms which have become familiar from other judgment sayings and parables (8:12; 22:13; cf. 13:42, 50; 24:51).
As an aside, the excellent scripture scholar N. T. Wright [Victory 632–639] argues that the parable is not about Jesus’ parousia (2nd coming) but about the OT hope of “YHWH’s return to Zion,” symbolized and embodied in Jesus’ own coming to Jerusalem. Wright argues for a “realized eschatology” that is completely fulfilled in the person of Jesus. He has a point although this proposal fits much better with the introduction in Luke 19:11 than with the Matthean context, unless one is prepared to argue, as Wright does, that there is no idea of Jesus’ parousia anywhere in this discourse. It should be noted that Wright is of the considered view there is no idea of the parousia anywhere in the gospels.
Image credit: The Parable of the Talents by Willem de Porter, 17th century, National Gallery of Prague, PD-US
Context and Background
This coming Sunday is the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Lectionary Cycle A. Our gospel is the Parable of the Talents. The gospel readings for the 29th through 31st Sundays in Lectionary Cycle A all describe a series of confrontations between Jesus and religious authorities of Jerusalem, namely the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 22 and 23). While not a part of Ordinary Time readings, Chapter 24 continues this theme of imminent destruction and coming tribulation (Mt 24:1-28). It is at this point that we turn the page to Matthew 25. It is here in Matthew 25 that we will finish the final three Sundays of this cycle of Ordinary Time:
- 32nd Sunday: The Wise and Foolish Maidens (vv. 1-13)
- 33rd Sunday: The Parable of the Talents (also “of the Three Servants; vv. 14-30) ~ our gospel
- Christ the King: The Great Judgment (vv. 31-46)
What is the Focus? One question which can be asked of the gospels for the 32nd and 33rd Sundays is about the focus. Some scholars hold that it concentrates on the judgment scenes which conclude the parables. Others hold that its focus is rightly a theme of ‘being ready’, which continues the theme that dominated the preceding parable and is still at the center of our gospel parable for this week. One scholar (Lambrecht) offers that this whole section should be labeled as an “Exhortation to Vigilance” for its portrayal of a ‘coming’ and its consequences for those who should have been preparing for it.
The parable of the talents takes up the question which that of the bridesmaids left unanswered: what is ‘readiness’? While the bridesmaids might be said to be passively waiting, here in this parable, it is not a matter of passively ‘waiting’, but of responsible activity, producing results which the coming ‘master’ can see and approve. The period of waiting was not intended to be an empty, meaningless ‘delay’, but a period of opportunity to put to good use the ‘talents’ entrusted to his ‘slaves’. It is a theme that is clearly present in the account of the Faithful and Unfaithful Servant.
Talents. The Greek word used in the parable, talanton, has no metaphorical meaning. It is simply a weight measure of a precious metal such as gold or silver. Our English use of the word to mean an aptitude or ability really only dates to the late 13th century when it appeared in a metaphorical musing on the parable. Prior to that time, even the middle French and Latin equivalent to the Greek talanton meant “weight.” We point this out to remind us all that before one moves to a metaphorical sense of Scripture, one should consider the literal sense.
Image credit: The Parable of the Talents by Willem de Porter, 17th century, National Gallery of Prague, PD-US
Clothed in Wisdom
A computer, internet access and, these days, the world is at our fingertips. An ocean of answers to any question we might have, just waiting for us to plumb its depth. But our readings today remind us that knowledge is one thing, while wisdom is another. We can search out information, but Wisdom “makes her own rounds, seeking those worthy of her.” The internet can tell you everything you might want to know about bee stings. Wisdom tells you not to disturb the hive.
Knowledge is good but only gets you so far. Folks in Florida and Virginia each have knowledge of their own environments. Floridians are well aware of hurricane season. Northern Virginians are well aware of the possibility of large winter storms. Given our modern weather forecasting it’s pretty hard to be caught unaware of a storm’s approach, but the question is have we prepared? Or will we join the mass of people all of whom are seeking to buy the needed items at the last moment from merchants who have empty shelves. While the foolish, the unprepared, are looking for parking at Costco or WalMart, the wise person is at home watching the news.
One of the memorable verses from today’s gospel is: “Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” (Mt 25:13). I don’t think the real question is who is awake. The foolish bridesmaids fall asleep – but so do the wise bridesmaids. Everyone falls asleep. What is important is when they wake up. Who is prepared? Clearly not some of the bridesmaids who want to borrow some lamp oil. They were ready for the groom but…not ready for the groom’s delay.
The great English scripture scholar William Barclay wrote:
(This parable) warns us that there are certain things which cannot be borrowed. The foolish virgins found it impossible to borrow oil, when they discovered they needed it. A man cannot borrow a relationship with God; he must possess it. A man cannot borrow a character; he must be clothed with it. We cannot always be living on the spiritual capital which others have amassed. There are certain things which we must win or possess for ourselves, for we cannot borrow them from others.
And this parable is about being prepared and, as the first reading notes, possessing “the wisdom that is the perfection of prudence” (Wis 6:13). Prudence is a practical wisdom honed in experience that allows a person to navigate in the real world, making the best of the daily decisions that end up guiding a surprisingly large chunk of a person’s life. Ordinary decisions that open or close doors to the future. Decisions that come before we are ready but must be made. Moments of decisions that come as silent as a whisper.
Decisions that hide within a high school chemistry class. My HS chemistry teacher wanted to talk about life and baseball, and within a week it was clear we were not going to learn much. I remember thinking that I should transfer to Mr. Thansky’s class – where a lot was expected of the students. I stayed put, learned little, avoided chemistry in college, and suddenly found that a nuclear submariner needs to know lots of chemistry and radio-chemistry. One small moment in high school took a surprisingly large chunk of my post-college career trying to catch up – and maybe I never really did.
The foolish bridesmaids never caught up. In fact they were locked out. They said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ 12 But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ (Mt 25:11-12). Such is the plaintive cry of those who thought they ought to be included. They wonder why the others wouldn’t share their oil. Why can’t the gate just be opened? Some things can’t be borrowed. Some judgments are final.
If we are the bridesmaids, both foolish and wise, how ready are we for Jesus’ return? How ready are we for his delay? What does “prepared,” or having “enough oil,” look like almost two thousand years after Jesus died and rose again, promising to return one day, but not saying when? The wise ones in the church are those who are prepared for the delay; who hold on to the faith deep into the night; who, even though they see no bridegroom coming, still hope and serve and pray and wait for the promised victory of God. Who arise each day to live out our Hope in an obedience of Faith.
Such faithfulness requires endurance: Lots of us can maybe do this for a short while. Being a peacemaker for a day is not as demanding as being a peacemaker year after year when hostility breaks out again and again. People who faithfully and joyfully serve the homeless event when they don’t seem to be making a dent – all while the promised bridegroom continues to be delayed. It is in the long delays that the oil runs low.
What happens when the oil runs out? I would tell you that collapse in the Christian life is seldom a blowout; it is usually a slow leak. It comes from operating with something borrowed rather than possessed.
The wise bridesmaids took stock, took inventory of what they possessed. Good advice for us – to check the air pressure in our spiritual tires – see if we possess within ourselves the enduring faith, prudence and hopefulness of the promises of Christ. See if we are exercising those gifts. Or have we just borrowed these things and just used them from time-to-time?
Hurricanes, snow storms, everyday life. The prudent Christian will learn from this parable and take stock, stock up on the one thing that matters – a personal relationship with God through Jesus in the Holy Spirit. You can’t borrow it; you must possess it. We need to prepare, to seek the knowledge of God that the Bible offers. Sit with that knowledge. Clothe yourself in its holy word. Listen to the Wisdom of the Church. Let all that shape the thoughts you have, the words you speak, the actions you take, the character you develop, and the person you become: a wise and prudent believer for whom the gates of heaven are open and waiting. One who during the delay of His return has clothed themselves in Wisdom.
Amen
Image credit: Greek Fresco, “Bridal Chamber”, iconreader.wordpress.com, CC-BY
