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Saturday – Twenty-first Week – OT2
Readings: 1 Cor 1:26-31; Mt 25:14-30.
Reading 1 (1 Cor 1:26-31):
Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters.
Not many of you were wise by human standards,
not many were powerful,
not many were of noble birth.
Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise,
and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong,
and God chose the lowly and despised of the world,
those who count for nothing,
to reduce to nothing those who are something,
so that no human being might boast before God.
It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus,
who became for us wisdom from God,
as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption,
so that, as it is written,
Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.
Gospel (Mt 25:14-30):
Jesus told his disciples this parable:
“A man going on a journey
called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them.
To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one–
to each according to his ability.
Then he went away.
Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them,
and made another five.
Likewise, the one who received two made another two.
But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground
and buried his master’s money.
After a long time
the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them.
The one who had received five talents
came forward bringing the additional five.
He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents.
See, I have made five more.’
His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master’s joy.’
Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said,
‘Master, you gave me two talents.
See, I have made two more.’
His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master’s joy.’
Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said,
‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person,
harvesting where you did not plant
and gathering where you did not scatter;
so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.
Here it is back.’
His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant!
So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant
and gather where I did not scatter?
Should you not then have put my money in the bank
so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?
Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten.
For to everyone who has,
more will be given and he will grow rich;
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.'”
Fr. Anthony Dinh Minh Tien, O.P.
I. THEME: Superiority and inferiority complex
There was a conversation between St. Bonaventure and a lay brother as follows: One day, a lay brother with a sad face said to Bonaventure, “I feel sad for my unlucky fate because if I am night and day around the kitchen, how can I save people’s soul and be holy like you?” Bonaventure advised him, “All can be saints if they fulfilled all the tasks which God had given to them, either a well-known bishop or an unknown lay brother.”
Today readings advise us to be confidence in ourselves and to benefit others with God’s gifts. In the first reading, St. Paul advised the Corinthians to avoid the superiority complex by reviewing of their past and recognizing all what they have are from God, so that they should never boast before God and people. In the Gospel, Jesus cited a parable to teach his disciples that all must use God’s gift to make a profit for Him; if not, he must be responsible before God.
II. ANALYSIS:
1/ Reading I: No human being might boast before God.
Corinth is a city, lies along the coast of Peloponnesian toward the northwest. Here St. Paul met Aquila and Priscilla and preached the Gospel to the Corinthians about 18 months in his second missionary journey (x/c Acts 18:1-18). Later, he wrote at least two Letters to them (1 & 2 Cor). This ocean city is well-known of its richess and enjoyed a long time of social and political well order; partly because it was led by good leaders who knew how to predict what would happen and make a corresponding preparation, partly because it had a diverse economy and was oriented toward manufacturing. The city is famous for its pottery, fabric, ships making and architecture.
St. Paul chose Corinth as one of his main locations to preach the Gospel even though he knew that only the brave and patient one can survive. He showed his confidence in God among many human weaknesses. Since it is an habor, so there are many tourists; and these tourists shall tell the good things which they saw and heard about the city for their compatriots when they return to their country. He hoped that those who heard him preaching the Gospel shall preach to their countrymen so that the Gospel might reach to many people. Not as Athens where people are close-minded and oppose to all changes, Corinthians are open-minded, searching and eagerly welcoming new ideas.
One of the weak points of rich people is their superiority complex before God and human beings; they think that their richess is completely from their wisdom and effort. Such an attitude steals God’s blessing and insults His presence in their life. St. Paul questioned them, “Consider your own calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, so that no human being might boast before God.”
And he taught them a right attitude which they should have before God, a confidence in Christ, “It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.”
2/ Gospel: The inferiority complex
In opposition with the superiority complex of the Corinthians is the inferiority complex of the useless servant in today Gospel. Those who have this kind of feeling think that they were born under unlucky stars. They constantly compare themselves with others and blame the Creator for His unequal distribution: giving the wise abundant prosperity while they are both foolish and poor. Jesus wanted to teach people a lesson about God’s justice through a parable as follows: The kingdom of heaven “will be as when a man who was going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one– to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. Likewise, the one who received two made another two. But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money.”
(1) Those who gave their master a profit: “After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five. He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ (Then) the one who had received two talents also came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I have made two more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’”
God is fair in His judgment, He required the one was given five talents to profit five more, and the one was given two talents to profit two more. He didn’t require the one was given two talents to profit five more.
(2) The one who was both lazy and bitter: “Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back.’”
His master said to him in reply, “You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter? Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return? Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”
III. APPLICATION IN LIFE:
– We need to avoid both superiority and inferiority complex. The earlier insults God’s power while the latter insults His wisdom.
– Our proper attitude before God is our self-confidence. We believe that what we have are God’s gift and we have ability to bring back to God an equivalent profit.
– We shouldn’t blame God because of our lacking of talents as the useless servant in the Gospel. Let try our best with what we have; God shall not ask us to exceed our ability.