Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time_B - The Passing of Time and Place_111421

Deacon Tom Writes,

“The Passing of Time and Place”

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Our Liturgical Year comes to a close next Sunday on the Feast of Christ the King. As we reflect about the passing of another year, our readings today focus our attention on the “End Times.” The physical laws of the universe tell us that all things must come to an end. That pertains to our world as well. Today we read an account of those days and they paint of pretty grim picture. The Prophet Daniel says, “it will be a time unsurpassed in distress.” Jesus tells his disciples, “the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give it’s light.

Daniel tells us that during these devastating days, “the wise shall shine brightly….and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever.” Jesus tells his disciples that, “they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds… and he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds.”

Today’s readings tell us some truth about the future. Hollywood imagines the “how” in its myriad depictions of “the end times;” our Christian focus is on the “why”. For we all must consider how we live our lives and prepare ourselves for that day which will be our last day, whenever that may be, in days, or months or years. Through the eyes of faith we know that we have nothing to worry about on our “last days” if we have been faithful to our Baptismal promises and have used the time God has given us wisely, helping others, sharing their burdens and lightening their loads, comforting them during their times of sorrow. Aware of our shortcomings in this life we trust in God’s abundant love, mercy and compassion that he will come and gather his faithful sons and daughters from the “four winds” and bring us home to be with him forever when our time comes. Our days are numbered, as is all creation. And there will come a time when all that we see will be transformed into the new heaven and earth that awaits us. Today’s readings suggest that we take some to see how prepared we are to render an account of our lives to the God of all creation.

Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time - From Servants to Sons and Daughters_111520

Deacon Tom Writes,

“From Servants to Sons and Daughters”

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A 

The Parable of the Talents is a cautionary tale that has been appropriate for all ages and especially to our own when the common perception is, “The rich get richer and the poor get poorer!” Money, the economy, our social status are so very important to us that they can at times be an obstacle to our physical and spiritual well-being. That’s why Jesus frequently uses them as the subject matter for His parables. His perceptive and unique insights into wealth, possessions and our attitudes toward them captured the attention of so many of the people of His time. 

Today’s story is about a man as he makes arrangements to go away on a journey. He entrusts portions of his estate to his servants to manage in his absence. He doesn’t give them any instruction on how to manage his affairs but he does allocate the amount that each will manage according to their abilities. Because of this we may conclude that the Master had some expectations about how each of his servants would manage the portion of the property he entrusted to them. It’s obvious that the Master was looking to increase his wealth by virtue of the fact that praise and more responsibility is given to those who achieved sizable returns.  The thought that his money would sit idly by and not get so much as shekel’s worth of interest from the bankers was beyond his imagination.  

If we are able to imagine this parable with some spiritual insight we might easily see that we are the players in the very script we hear today. We are the servants, at least from God’s perspective. And, He has entrusted us with many talents. They are God’s gift to us. What we do with them is our gift to God. It seems from today’s lesson that God is pleased when we are willing to go all out for His kingdom; when we are willing to put the effort and energy into living those values that Christ taught us and actually incorporate them into our lives and giving good witness to those around us. As they say in the financial world… no risk, no reward. Make no mistake about it, trying to live the gospel values in our day is putting ourselves at great risk of rejection, humiliation, and even death in some corners of the world today. 

Being timid, hoarding or squandering the gifts God has given us stifles the spreading of His kingdom and condemns us to a life of deprivation...we will reap what we sow! We would do a much better job of building up the kingdom if we came to see ourselves not as servants managing someone else’s property, but rather as we really are, sons and daughters of the king who one day stand to inherit the riches of His entire kingdom. 

Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom