By Fr. Dennis Chriszt, C.PP.S.
At a vastly different time and in a very different culture,
the teacher who wrote the proverbs
describes the perfect wife
to young men who are not yet married.
He tells them what they ought to value
as they seek wives,
in that time and in that culture.
The Psalmist cries out,
“Blessed are those who fear the Lord.”
He invites his readers to stand in awe of God,
to value God above all.
Paul reminds the Thessalonians,
as well as all of us who read his letter to them,
that concern about the end time is not that important.
It is time to live in the present moment,
not to let the darkness get them down,
but to be aware that God is with them,
is with us.
Jesus tells the story of the landowner
who gives his most trusted servants large sums of money
to take responsibility for while he is not around.
Jesus has given us much more than silver or gold.
And, like the landowner in the Gospel,
Jesus expects us to do more than bury the gift
or keep it to ourselves.
Jesus expects us to recognize the value of what we have been given,
of the salvation we have in Christ,
and to invest it so that it might grow.
How do we invest what we have been given?
First of all, we recognize how valuable the gift is.
Second, we recognize our responsibility to invest the gift.
Third, we use the graces we have been given
to build up the kingdom of God
here and now.
A week from now,
Jesus will be more specific on how we do that.
Jesus will call us to feed the hungry,
give drink to the thirsty,
welcome the stranger,
clothe the naked,
care for the sick
and visit the imprisoned.
Investing the gift that we have received will end
with the Father welcoming us into the Kingdom,
just as the landowner rejoiced and rewarded those who invested well.
If we don’t invest the graces we have received,
we could end up with those the Father calls accursed,
whom the landowner calls wicked and lazy servants.
We know that we have been blessed.
We know the responsibility that comes with these blessings.
We also know how to invest those blessings.
May the grace of God help us to do so!
To view the full scripture reading, click here.
Fr. Dennis Chriszt, C.PP.S., is the director of advanced formation for the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. He also directs Precious Blood Parish Missions.