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Greetings, SBT Readers:
When one finds a worthy wife,
her value is far beyond pearls.
Her husband, entrusting his heart to her,
has an unfailing prize.
She brings him good, and not evil,
all the days of her life.
She obtains wool and flax
and works with loving hands.
She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her fingers ply the spindle.
She reaches out her hands to the poor,
and extends her arms to the needy.
Prv 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31
The image I selected this week seems to have little to do with the Gospel, but the depiction of Mary in the painting, Mater Admirabilis, does capture the description of Wisdom in our first reading. Though the artist, Pauline Perdrau, rscj, 1844, depicts Mary at a moment of contemplation, it is clear that she has been industrious -- or that she intends to be. There may -- or may not-- be wool in her basket, and she may -- or may not-- have wound wool and flax for spinning. As for the open book, she may -- or may not-- have been studying. All we know for certain is that she is attentive to the present moment and that this moment carries her away from "work" into prayer. Her labor, in fact, is of a spiritual nature. Unlike the lazy lout in today's Gospel, she lives in a state of spiritual readiness, fully awake to the presence of the Holy One; like the "good and faithful" servants, she is spiritually active. Through her contemplation, she is fulfilling her purpose and using her gifts. Her wealth is her prayer; her "talent" is her contemplative spirit!
Many Blessings!
Elizabeth
PS. The photo is of a replica of the original fresco in the monastery of Trinità dei Monti, Rome; the painting hangs in the main staircase of the Sacred Heart College, Malta, where I attended school decades ago.
SCRIPTURE REFLECTION
Link to Readings
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.
"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.'"
Mt 25:14-15, 19-21
Not everyone possesses business acumen. There are those who come up with a solid business plan after conducting market research, targeting a specific audience, and calculating all costs, and there are those who simply decide to start a business on a whim. For them, it doesn't matter whether there is a need for their goods or services, or whether their business concept is actually viable-- they simply forge ahead without doing any of the preliminary fact-finding. Similarly, there are those who make wise investments, and those who are foolish enough to leave their assets in a non-interest bearing checking account. We find these two classes of investors in Jesus' Parable of the Talents: two servants are wise enough to work towards financial growth while another servant is content to bury the one talent entrusted to him.
The point of this parable, however, goes beyond business acumen and financial wisdom. The three servants are not "playing" with their own assets but with their Master's. Two are "good and faithful," worthy of sharing in their Master's joy, while the third is a wicked, lazy lout. It seems there is more to wealth than money-- hence the Master's rage. Assuming that the Master represents God, "wealth," in fact, could be seen as a metaphor for the spiritual life --or, by extension, for building
spiritual life in community (the Kingdom of God). Increasing wealth means to build up, to expand, to deepen, to further the Master's interests, to create something new; it represents loyalty, love, respect-- to be a disciple worthy of the name. Conversely, burying the Master's wealth represents treachery,
indifference and disrespect; it is to behave as the Master's enemy, as a saboteur intent on undermining the Master's plans and vision for the future. It is to be the serpent in the Garden of Eden, the Judas in the Garden of Gethsemane, the betrayer...
The Master, Jesus tells us, has gone away, leaving the servants
in charge. Instead of controlling their behavior from afar, instead of monitoring their activities, he gives them the freedom to make their own choices, entrusting them with his wealth. In so doing, he is not being unreasonable: each servant, in fact, is put in charge of an amount that matches his abilities. Upon his return, the Master doesn't expect all three to have produced the same results but to have "grown" his money at a rate proportionate to the original sum each has received. Two of the three servants meet his expectations; the third disappoints him. Two -- like the five wise bridesmaids in last week's Gospel--are prepared for his return; the third -- like the five foolish bridesmaids-- is not. Two choose their future -- that is, to be included in their Master's celebration of joy; the third, adding insult to injury, even blames the Master for his lack of initiative and thus chooses his fate -- to be cast out into the darkness.
The themes of wisdom v. folly and being prepared v. being
unprepared invite us to reflect on our own stewardship. God has entrusted each of us with wealth beyond all telling-- are we increasing that wealth or burying it? Are we ready to account for all we have accomplished, spiritually speaking, or will we spew out excuses regarding our lack of action? Have we built up the Kingdom of God or have we diminished it? What has happened -- or not happened-- on our watch?
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