32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, November 12, 2023

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Be prepared; live now as if the kingdom were already here

Matthew 25:1–13

Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked.

Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Music Meditations

Opening Prayer

Teach me to go to this country beyond words and beyond names.
Teach me to pray on this side of the frontier, here where these woods are.
I need to be led by you.
I need my heart to be moved by you.
I need my soul to be made clean by your prayer. I need my will to be made strong by you.
I need the world to be saved and changed by you.
I need you for all those who suffer, who are in prison, in danger, in sorrow.
I need you for all the crazy people.
I need your healing hand to work always in my life.
I need you to make me, as you made your Son, a healer, a comforter, a savior.
I need you to name the dead.
I need you to help the dying cross their particular rivers.
I need you for myself whether I live or die.
It is necessary.
Amen.

Companions for the Journey

From “First Impressions” 2011, a service of the Southern Dominican Province:

We shouldn’t be distracted by the “unreal” details of the parable in today’s gospel. Why didn’t the maidens, who had oil, share with those who didn’t? Where could those in need ever find a market to buy oil at midnight? Why did they cry out with the special title “Lord, Lord” to the bridegroom? Why didn’t he recognize them, after all, they were in the wedding party? We have to allow Jesus, the storyteller, the creative license to include details that will help him paint a picture to give us insight into, what he describes as, “the kingdom of heaven.”

We know that in Jesus’ time marriages were arranged by the families of the couple. Fathers arranged the marriage, while mothers set the terms. First, there was the betrothal period of a year or so after the terms of the marriage were set. Then the bride was transferred to the husband’s home. These marriage practices may help explain the delay in the groom’s coming.

Today’s parable is the second in the sequence of three that emphasize preparedness while we await the Lord’s Second Coming. Like the others, the parable of the ten maidens, emphasizes the need to be vigilant and ready NOW for the Lord’s return.

There are choices we must make NOW in the light of our hope and as we wait. We do what we can to nourish our spirits, form our minds and fortify our wills—NOW. We can’t put off for tomorrow decisions that show our fidelity to God and commitment to Jesus and his ways. If we delay doing that, isn’t that a sign of our lack: of faith in Christ’s presence NOW, as well as our hope in his final coming?

We can’t prepare for the in-breaking of Christ into our lives at the moment he comes. The parable urges a more constant vigilance and state of preparation. Nor can we rely on the vigilance and preparedness of others. No one can take responsibility for us, we must do that for ourselves—ready to greet Jesus each day of our lives and then when he comes at the end.

What is clear in this parable is that when the critical moment of Jesus’s entry into our lives arrives, it will be decisive. Preparation time is over. If we have lived vigilant lives we will enter the wedding feast with Christ our bridegroom. The foolish maidens arrived after the door was locked and when they knocked the door was not opened. It was too late. Poor choices were made, the time for preparation was over. The parable has allegorical features. For example, the wise maidens trimmed their lamps when the bridegroom’s arrival was announced. Psalm 119 refers to God’s Word as “a lamp unto my feet.” Hearing the Word of God will illumine us and help us recognize the Lord when he arrives. The light of the Word will also sustain us until he does.

For some this is a welcome parable; for others it is an ominous one. For those whose lives have been lived actively seeking and doing God’s will, their light will shine bright and the door will be opened for them. Those who have lived by false lights and indifference to their future fate will find the door barred.

”What’s taking so long?” We live in an impatient world. Someone got angry the other day at the supermarket. We were on the “Express lane—10 items or less,” the sign said. But the man in front of me had 12 purchases. The woman behind me challenged his “lack of consideration.” “Can’t you read the sign,” she told him sternly, “10 items not 12!” In light of today’s parable we too might express some impatience and ask, “What’s taking the Lord so long?” But we know we don’t have to wait till our deaths or the Second Coming for the Lord’s arrival. The kingdom Jesus brought about in word and deed comes into our lives every day in a variety of ways. The parable reminds us to be alert and prepared for it. Meanwhile, during our waiting time, the Lord has taught us that we can welcome the kingdom’s arrival by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, giving drink to the thirsty, sheltering the homeless and setting free the oppressed. So, while we wait for the final arrival of Christ we have plenty to do, because he comes daily in disguised and surprising ways. Wisdom is a key virtue for our gospel today. It helps us stay vigilant and guides us in the practical choices of daily life. And so we pray, “Come Spirit of Wisdom.” “Come Spirit of Vigilance.” “Come Spirit of Preparedness.”

Further reflection:

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

Therefore, stay awake

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

  • What does it mean to live in the moment?
    What does it mean to live now as if Jesus was already here?
  • Are there times in my life when I have been wise?
    Are there times in my life when I have been foolish?
    Which times define me?
  • Are there people that we know of, say someone diagnosed with a terminal illness, who might make different choices about what they do and how they live based on this diagnosis?
    Why do we not do so as well?
  • Why does every age seem to have people who predict the end of the world as we know it?
  • Until the second coming arrives, what are we to do meanwhile?
  • Did you know that there are still people who profess that if you are not Catholic you cannot get into heaven?
    Is being in the right religious group important for our salvation?
  • Why do we keep referring to the kingdom of heaven as if it were heaven itself?
  • “He will come again to judge the living and the dead”. What does this mean for you?
  • Matthew uses the phrase “weeping and gnashing of teeth” six times, Luke once, and Mark not at all… How do you react to Matthew’s emphasis on the final judgment?
  • How does our emphasis on reward and punishment (Heaven or Hell) as motivators for good behavior fly in the face of real love for God?
    Can you love what you fear?
  • How does focus on the “selfish” maidens miss the point of the story?
    How or why do we lose focus on what is really important in our lives?
  • Do I believe that Jesus is present in our world right now, or only at end times?
  • One commentary suggested that the response of the wise virgins to the foolish virgins was to illustrate that you have to have your own faith, that someone else cannot believe for you. How do you react to that?
    Is our putting off until tomorrow decisions that show our commitment to Christ laziness, denial, or lack of faith?
    Can others actually help us with this task?
  • Henri Nouwen had a completely different viewpoint: “…worrying about the next life seems a false preoccupation. When my clear goal is the eternal life, that life must be reachable right now, where I am, because eternal life is life in and with God, and God is where I am here and now.” Does that liberate us or scare us?
  • Father Jude Siciliano said in a commentary on this gospel: “People will desire it; many will believe God’s promise; many will commit themselves to wait for its realization. But only a few will find their desire, their belief, and their commitment in ample supply. Time and the flame of the weary, mundane ordinariness of life will try to lick dry our desire for the Kingdom and our belief in God’s promise.”
    Do you agree or disagree?
  • If this parable is read as a Wisdom teaching, then what is the wise thing for me to be doing today?
    Am I doing it, or do I live in denial?
  • Why is it that we tend to think we need more “stuff” (as in more oil) in order to be prepared for the worst in our lives?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Dominican style/Asking Questions:

This parable, at first glance, would seem to suggest that the virgins were foolish because they did not come prepared with enough oil. Another possibility is that their mistake was assuming that having oil was preferable to staying around to greet the bridegroom. So what if they did not have enough oil? It would not have been great, but at least they would have been there to welcome the bridegroom and to join in the festivities. They took the focus off the bridegroom and put it on lighted lamps and the oil for those lamps, assuming that having perfectly lit lamps was absolutely necessary to be part of the celebration. This parable really speaks to the worriers and the perfectionists among us, those who think we need to be sinless to be loved by God and to be welcomed into God’s kingdom. The kingdom of God is not about our imperfections, our mistakes and our sins, but about our right relationship with Jesus the bridegroom. I take some time to reflect on my relationship with Jesus, looking especially on what habits of the heart I can cultivate to make that relationship stronger—mercy, forgiveness, generosity, concern for the poor that results in actually trying to do something to mitigate their pain. For example… I pray for the wisdom to discern what is important in my life and what needs to change for me to participate joyfully in the wedding feast that is God’s presence in my life.

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

Let us imagine the scenes of this parable, then translate it to our own times. In the wedding ceremonies of Jesus’ time, the actual wedding began with a formal betrothal, under the special bridal tent (Huppah). Here, the groom would give the bride money or a valuable object such as a ring, and a cup of wine was customarily shared to seal their covenant vows. In this public ceremony under the huppah, the couple entered into the betrothal period, which typically lasted for about a year. Although they were considered married, they did not live together or engage in sexual relations. This was as binding as a marriage itself. On the wedding day, the groom would take the bride from her father’s house to her own, but only after all of the negotiations (What dowry the bride’s father pays, what property the groom’s family bestows on the bride, etc.) were completed. It is surprising that this was not all done before the actually wedding day, but it seem that this was not always the case. So depending on how the negotiations went, the arrival of the bridegroom and his bride was an ever-moving target. Therefore, the guests and the lamp bearers (the 10 young women) went to the groom’s house and waited for the party to start. Someone in the groom’s entourage might go ahead and alert the guests that the bridal couple was coming, but only after they had actually set out from the ride’s house. As we look at this parable of the poor young women who ran out of oil, and the five wise ones who brought enough, we try to find who we might be in this story. Translating it to real times, what am I waiting for? Is it Happiness? Family? Financial security? God? Death? The Second Coming? Am I willing to wait even though what I am waiting for seems to take a very long time? Can I trust myself to the unknown and develop the patience needed? Do I focus too much on the future, with its fears and rewards, instead of living fully in the present? If someone were to ask me for spiritual or material help on their particular journey, how would I respond? Where does generosity and love come in? I talk to Jesus about entrusting myself to the unknown, asking for his wisdom and his help in the waiting room we call life.

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

JUSTICE BULLETIN BOARD

“Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.” (Matthew 25:12)

It would be pretty scary that when we meet our God, who has counted every hair on our head, that we might be unknown. Since today’s Gospel is about a wedding, I thought about how our lives could be fashioned as a memorable cake in God’s eyes. Feel free to add your own special ingredients.

The Compassionate Life Cake

Ingredients:
4 lb. of compassionate love
1 lb. of mercy
1 lb of tenderness
1 lb. of humbleness
½ lb. of justice
½ lb. of grace
¼ lb. of forgiveness
¼ lb. of good humor
1 pint of laughter
1 cup of common sense
2 tsp. of adversity
1 oz. of spirit
… and a sprinkle of beauty

Put your compassionate love, mercy and tenderness into action together. Combine humbleness, justice and grace and mix well with forgiveness and good humor. Don’t forget the laughter! Be sure to include common sense and season with a touch of adversity and a dose of spirit. Combine all the ingredients and sprinkle with the beauty of wisdom. Take a lifetime to perfect your creation. May you live your life compassionately and with passion.

—Barbara Molinari Quinby, MPS
Coordinator of Social Justice Ministries
Sacred Heart Cathedral, Raleigh, NC

Poetic Reflection:

Read the following poem by Mary Oliver… How does it capture the sense of what we should be focusing on as we prepare to meet Jesus?

“Making the House Ready for the Lord”

Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but
still nothing is as shining as it should be
for you. Under the sink, for example, is an
uproar of mice—it is the season of their
many children. What shall I do? And under the eaves
and through the walls the squirrels
have gnawed their ragged entrances—but it is the season
when they need shelter, so what shall I do? And
the raccoon limps into the kitchen and opens the cupboard
while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;
what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling
in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly
up the path, to the door. And still I believe you will
come, Lord: you will, when I speak to the fox,
the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering sea-goose, know
that really I am speaking to you whenever I say,
as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in, Come in.

Closing Prayer

From this week’s letter from Paul to the Thessalonians:

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be unaware about those who have fallen asleep, so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For the Lord himself, with a word of command, and with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

[Take a moment to name anyone who has died for whom you wish to pray.]

Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air…

[Take a moment to name and pray for anyone in your life who might need lifting up.]

Thus we shall always be with the Lord… therefore, console one another with these words.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.