Here in the last weeks of Ordinary Time the readings from the Gospel of Matthew are focusing on the future, with emphasis especially on the theme of judgment - and our being vigilant and prepared for the coming of the Lord. This Sunday’s gospel is The Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13).

In this parable, Jesus compares the Kingdom of Heaven to ten young women awaiting the arrival of the bridegroom for a wedding. Five are wise and prepared with enough oil for their lamps, while five are foolish and unprepared. When the bridegroom finally arrives, the wise virgins enter the wedding feast, but the foolish ones are left out. But we only know that at the end.

Right at the beginning of the parable, Jesus tells us that five of them were foolish, and five were wise. The reason why he tells us this from the onset is that we cannot tell this just by looking at them. All ten have come to the wedding; all ten have their lamps aglow with expectation, all ten, presumably, have on their bridesmaid gowns. We would never guess from appearances that half were wise and half foolish.

At the beginning of the life of faith, you cannot really tell the followers of Jesus apart. They all have lamps; they are all excited about the wedding; they all know who to sing, “Lord, Lord.” Deep into the night, when we spot some persons attempting in vain to fan a dying flame to life, we begin to distinguish wisdom from foolishness.

There is a lot more to this gospel. Sit with it for a moment on the back porch.

Full Text of the Sunday Readings

Detailed Commentary on the Gospel

Greek Fresco, "Bridal Chamber", iconreader.wordpress.com, CC-BY

The Parable of the Talents takes up the question which that of the wise and foolish bridesmaids left unanswered from last Sunday: 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.

Even though “talent” in our text refers to a large sum of money, I also think that we can use it to refer to abilities that God has given us and how we use them while we are waiting for Jesus' return. We need to consider them as gifts from the gracious God and we need to consider that what we do with them becomes our gift to God. The parable is not a gentle tale about what Christians do with their individual gifts and talents, as helpful as that may be, but a disturbing story about what Christians do or do not do with the gospel as they wait for the coming of the kingdom of heaven.

There is a lot more to this gospel. Sit with it for a moment on the back porch.

Full Text of the Sunday Readings

Detailed Commentary on the Gospel

The Parable of the Talents by Willem de Porter, 17th century, National Gallery of Prague, PD-US

You might think that this Solemnity would celebrate the enthronement of Jesus as King of Heaven, but the last several Sunday gospels have all been building toward “the end days” when Jesus, on that heavenly throne, will judge the flock, separating the goats (not the greatest of all time) from the sheep. And so the gospel for this final Sunday of Ordinary Time is the great judgment scene from Matthew 25. And it is not an easy gospel.

The gospel seems to make charitable works the requirement for being saved by God. There is no mention of faith or justification or forgiveness or the cross -- the acts of God that bring us salvation. Rather, the text is all about human actions. It is as though it hints at heresy of Pelagianism, a late 4th century heresy that, in its most ardent forms, taught man is capable of saving himself through free will and doing what God asks while avoiding that which is forbidden. This salvation was apart from the grace of God, the merits of Christ, and the attending faith in Jesus. And yet the whole of the gospel is filled with Jesus telling us to “to do.”  Of course, why we “do” matters.

The gospel is filled with Old Testament imagery and reference that St. Matthew draws upon to show Jesus has fulfilled all the Old Testament promises, satisfied the Law, and more - He is the promised King and Messiah.

There is a lot more to this gospel. Sit with it for a moment on the back porch.

Full Text of the Sunday Readings

Detailed Commentary on the Gospel

Image credit: Jacob Adriaensz Backer: Last Judgment (Matthew 25:31-33), National Museum in Warsaw, PD-US

The beginning Advent is also the start of Lectionary Cycle B when we will primarily take our Gospel readings from St. Mark. The reading, taken from the Gospel according to Mark, becomes a signpost to the Advent Season in its use on the first Sunday of Advent, the liturgical season that precedes and prepares for Christmas. It is a season of hope and of longing, of joyful expectation and of peaceful preparation. And yet the gospel begins: “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.”

It is good to remember that Advent is a time of preparation and anticipation for the coming of Jesus Christ, both in his historical incarnation as a baby in Bethlehem and his future return in glory at the end of time. The readings during this season are meant to evoke a sense of longing, repentance, and vigilance - not just for Christmas but also for the destiny of Christian life.

There is a lot more to this gospel. Sit with it for a moment on the back porch.

Full Text of the Sunday Readings

Detailed Commentary on the Gospel

Image credit: Christ taking leave of the Apostles, Duccio di Buoninsegna, 1381| Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena | Public Domain US