33d Sunday of Ordinary Time
Nov. 16, 2008
Collect
Matt 25: 14-30
Provincial House, New Rochelle
“Father
of all that is good, keep us faithful in serving you, for to serve you is our
lasting joy” (Collect).
Faithfulness
and service resound thru the Opening Prayer and the readings this morning. The industrious housewife who serves her
household is praised (Prov 31:10-31), the man who fears the Lord is blessed (Ps
128:1-5), the children of the light stay alert and sober in faithful vigil for
the Lord’s coming (1 Thess 5:1-6), the master praises the good and faithful
servants who carry out his wishes (Matt 25:14-30).
Some
are praised and rewarded for their industry, some for their vigilance. Both industry and vigilance are activities of
sorts, and both require faithfulness.
In
our situation—here at the provincial house—how are we to be faithful? Some of us can be industrious like the worthy
wife of Proverbs or the slaves in Jesus’ parable because we have province
assignments or household chores to carry out.
Some of us are like John Milton in his blindness: “They also serve who only stand and wait.” (He was reflecting, by the way, on this
gospel parable of the talents.)[1] That is, we’re present to God in prayer and
in waiting for his will to be revealed (as Dominic said in his conference on
Wednesday). We’re present to one another
in friendship and support. We’re ready
with hospitality when called upon (even when our guest doesn’t show up)[2]
and with an attitude of service to the young, however indirect it may be, as 2
of our Toms reminded us Thursday nite.
 |
| Blind Milton dictating poetry to his daughters |
All
of us are challenged to be faithfully alert and sober. That, of course, doesn’t refer to our state
of mind at meditation in the morning (and it might be good that it doesn’t!) or
our use of Irish coffee on birthdays. It
does refer to our living in God’s presence, living in joyful hope of the coming
of our Savior Jesus Christ (communion rite), awaiting our master’s return and
ready to turn in our accounts. That’s
vigilance.
Whether
we have a specific task to do or we’re basically retired, we’re still the
master’s servants. The talents entrusted
to us may involve money or publishing or maintenance or guidance of people; or
encouragement, prayer, attentiveness. It
doesn’t matter how big or small the matter, so long as we seek to please the
Lord. That’s industry. We all remember, too, Mother Teresa’s
wisdom: success doesn’t matter, so long
as we’re faithful. For all of us our
faithful service involves a right intention:
fearing the Lord and walking in his ways (cf. Ps 128:1) and not our own,
seeking his will and not our own.
The
Opening Prayer identifies our lasting joy with our service. The psalmist—ignorant of eternal
life—promises material blessings to the person who fears the Lord, and the compiler
of Proverbs awards a sterling reputation to the faithful housewife. In Jesus’ parable the master welcomes the
faithful servant into his joy, echoing also a Lucan parable we heard 3 weeks ago
wherein the master who finds his servants vigilant on his arrival will “have
them recline at table and proceed to wait on them” (12:37). That’s an image of the eternal banquet, of
the lasting joy awaiting those who are faithful and industrious: not by comparison with everybody else but in
relation to what the Lord has asked of them.
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