33rd Sunday: What have you done for me?

"Well done my good and faithful servant!"

Matthew 25: 14-30

The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/111923.cfm

Artists, architects, and musicians all have something in common. What they design and create they must simply let go of after their work is accomplished. A beautiful painting, sculpture, building or a piece of inspiring music once finished lives on beyond the artist themselves. The famed sculptor and painter of the Renaissance, Michelangelo, never signed a piece of his work. Only the beautiful and tender “Pieta,” the moving marble sculpture of Mary holding the dead body of her son, has his name inscribed upon it. That was done by Michelangelo himself, to prove to many, despite their doubt, that indeed he, a young artist in his 20’s at the time, did indeed shape that priceless image.

Our familiar Gospel parable this Sunday about the talents entrusted for what the master hoped would be a positive outcome by his servants. It is about wise investment of money as an analogy, but about our natural talents and gifts and about the treasure of faith we have been given. But in the end, the constant theme is accountability.

In Jesus’ time a talent was a measure of weight – about 80 pounds to be exact. When used in trade it was the value of its weight in silver or gold, estimated to be 15 - 20 years worth of wages, a huge amount of money per talent.  

So this extravagant master entrusts a generous amount (do the math) of talents to each servant: 5, 2, and 1, each according to his ability and he leaves to see how they will invest the talent. How clever, industrious, generous, or grateful for his generosity will they be? In other words, how much one has been given is less important than how they use the given gift.

We see that two out of the three servants were enterprising and gave their master a 100% return as they doubled the original investment yet the one given just one talent simply did nothing with what he had. While he didn’t spend it foolishly, he simply buried his money in the ground so no one could find it or even know of its presence then just returned basically nothing to his master. The result for each servant is both reward, advancement, and for the laziest one, severe punishment.

As always, such a parable can be taken in several ways but since our Lord was the teacher here it certainly has a spiritual context. Jesus, aware of the value of money even in ancient times, used what was familiar to the people to stress the greater treasure he was offering. Jesus’ treasure of salvation, of spiritual growth, of the proposal to live a better life in accordance with God’s will and come to know the way of love was of greater value than what would have been reasonable – the sharing of such an exorbitant amount of wealth by a master to his slaves. But the common call to responsibility that we all must use the gift of our faith wisely seems to also be at play here. In the end, I believe when we appear before the judgement seat of Christ, he will ask us how we used all that he gave us: for ourselves in wasteful pursuit or for the benefit of others?

Like the artists, architects, or musicians we are called to let go of vain glory and self-recognition. Unlike artists and such we are not to seek our own glory with our talents – be they money, natural abilities, or opportunities but rather to do all for the glory of God and to inspire others in the ways of the Gospel.

Unlike the servant who hid his money out of fear of the master we use our abilities, wealth, opportunities and multiply them for the good of the Gospel. How we use what we have been given will be the result of our judgment. Yet, more than just our own personal gifts and advantages from God, the talents also remind all Christian disciples to share in the whole mission of the Church and to play our part in advancing the Gospel to all.

I don’t think that it is without conscious intent, that following this parable in Matthew is the scene of the Last Judgment with the separation of the sheep and the goats. There we are reminded that judgment will be based upon how compassionate and generous we have been towards the little ones: “I was hungry, and you gave me food; thirsty and you gave me drink; a stranger and you welcomed me . . .” (Mt. 25: 31-46).

Seen as a whole, as we hear in the first reading from Proverbs about the worthy wife who: “. . . reaches out her hands to the poor and extends her arms to the needy. Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.”

Something may have value by itself, but even greater value is given when it is honored, nurtured, cared for, and offered to others. So, the same is true with our life of faith and with our material wealth.

How do I want to be judged in the end? What would I like to hear the Lord say to me? What is on the resume of my life that I may need to account for?

“Well done good and faithful servant . . . come share your master’s joy.” Or “You worthless, lazy servant.” Hmm, seems to me that the answer is obvious. Such a thought may give even more immediacy to the dismissal of each holy Mass: “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.”

 

 

 

 

 

Grant us we pray, O Lord our God,