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Institute for Homiletics

A Collaboration of The Catholic Foundation and the University of Dallas

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Scripture Study for

The image of the good shepherd aptly characterizes God’s concern and personal intervention in the shepherding of the flock. The first reading describes how  God fulfills the role of shepherd primarily in two ways: by caring for the sheep and  by separating the good from the bad. Those who were responsible for the sheep  failed to carry out their responsibilities. They were not attentive to their charges  and so the owner of the flock steps in to shepherd the flock personally. The rest  of the oracle of salvation confirms this. The final scene is one of judgment, an  appropriate theme for the last Sunday of the liturgical year. 

Paul brings together several of his most treasured themes: the effectiveness  of Christ’s resurrection, human solidarity in Adam and in Christ, the sequence of  events surrounding the end of time, the victory of Christ, and the ultimate reign  of God. The reading carries us back through time to the primordial period of  beginnings, and then forward to the end of time and the eschatological age of  fulfillment. Every aspect of these events is grounded in the resurrection of Christ.  At the final consummation, God will be all in all. All came from God; all returns to  God. At the end, all purposes will be realized. All reality will have come home. 

The scene of the Last Judgment as it unfolds before us today is both sobering  and surprising. It is a scene of apocalyptic splendor and majesty, a scene of separation of the righteous from the unrighteous, a scene of reward and punishment. The  image of the shepherd separating the sheep from goats would have been quite  familiar to Jesus’ original audience. What is surprising is the reason given for the  judgment. It is not the accomplishment of some phenomenal feat. Rather, people  are judged on whether or not they meet the very basic human needs of others. The  scene is sobering because one gets the sense that there is no way of escaping it. 

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How Are Your Investments Doing?

A song in the musical Scottsboro Boys observes that life is what we do while we’re  waiting to die. And this is how our life passes by. Today’s parable calls for a more  purposeful approach: life calls for investing what God has entrusted to you. 

A “talent” was a year’s wages. Jesus uses this parable to warn his followers that  they are to spend their time wisely while waiting for him to return. They will do  this by investing the treasure God has given them. Jesus was not talking here  about natural talents, though that is a worthy enterprise. But a disciple of Jesus  is to do something with the treasure of the gospel, the good news of the kingdom  of God, the gift of faith in Jesus Christ. 

God expects a return on this investment with us. We are to share the Good  News with others, not keep it to ourselves. The gospel is the greatest treasure  we have been given. We might feel we have only a limited understanding of our  faith, but we are not to bury it in silence. Rather, plant the seed of God’s word in  the minds and hearts of others. 

Our first reading about a “worthy wife” describes a person who invests in living life for others. She is also called the “capable wife” or the wife with a capacity  for wisdom. The beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord, honoring God by what  we do in the world. Spend the time wisely while waiting for the Lord to return.

Consider/Discuss

  • How is Jesus like and unlike this master? 
  • What aspects of the gospel do you recognize as a treasure? 
  • How do you invest your understanding of the gospel in life? 

Responding to the Word

We pray for the wisdom to be children of the light, bringing the gospel to others, especially during times when darkness threatens and people act out of fear.  We ask to be ready to welcome Jesus when he comes and asks us to render an  account, so we might enter into his joy.

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Scripture Study for

The woman in the poem from Proverbs is traditionally described as virtuous or  worthy. However, the adjective in Hebrew has a much stronger sense. It denotes  might or strength, the kind of valor found in armies. It is in this sense that the  woman is worthy. This woman is extraordinary, not because valiant women cannot be found, but that among all valiant women this one is remarkable. She  exemplifies virtues such as self-sufficiency, industry, versatility, trustworthiness,  constancy, and general goodness. She is virtuous and successful because she  possesses the wisdom that flows from fear of the Lord. Among all women, the one  who fears the Lord is truly valiant. 

The mysterious “day of the Lord” will be a day of rejoicing for the righteous,  but one of sorrow for the wicked. Paul employs two powerful metaphors to  describe this day. Its unexpected nature resembles a thief in the night; the suffering that accompanies it is referred to as “the birth pangs of the messiah.” Paul  uses the light-darkness, day-night dichotomies to describe both the situation  in which the Thessalonians find themselves and the vigilance that this situation  demands. As children of light and of the day, they must be alert, always on the  watch so that when the day of the Lord comes, they are not found unprepared. 

The parable in today’s Gospel throws light on the meaning of preparedness. It  is not a disposition of passive waiting or non-engagement because of the fear of  possible failure. Rather, the preparedness rewarded here stems from the realization that one is a steward of the goods of another, and knowing the disposition  of that other, one seeks to maximize the potential of those goods. The time of  waiting is a period of opportunity, of active engagement, of creative growth. One’s  future salvation does not rest on the extent or quality of one’s talent, but on how  one utilizes that talent as one waits for the master to return. 

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Getting Prepped

At first hearing, there is a worrisome note in this parable Jesus tells near the  end of Matthew’s account of his ministry. We like to think of Jesus as the Lord of  second chances, even third and fourth, and that we have plenty of time to get our  act together and to gather the necessary “oil” to welcome him when he returns.  But the bridegroom’s final words are, “I do not know you.” 

Is Jesus indicating that a day will come when that opportunity to make up for  what we have failed to do will not be given, that the time for springing into action  will have come and gone? Could we find ourselves locked out of the party? Since  most of us are sometimes foolish, sometimes wise, what form does foolishness  take in our lives? What are we putting off doing? 

Matthew uses this parable to fire up his community’s desire for the return of  the Lord, to call them to a more active hope in Jesus’ return. It also serves to  confront indifference and lethargy in our lives. That necessary oil can refer to  doing those good works that allow the light to shine in the world, especially when  darkness threatens. 

Being wise means being prepared for a future with the Lord. Jesus is the  Wisdom of God who gives us a share of this wisdom as a gift of the Spirit. Let us  both seek wisdom and be prepared to welcome it when it comes to us. 

Consider/Discuss

  • Do you identify with either the wise or foolish? 
  • How do you understand the call to “stay awake”? 
  • Do you consider yourself a person who seeks Wisdom? 

Responding to the Word

We pray for the gift of wisdom, to be seekers of wisdom, and that in our seeking, Wisdom will find us. We pray for the virtue of hope, which is grounded in the belief that Jesus will indeed come again, like a bridegroom, like a thief in the  night, like the Son of Man in power and glory.

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Scripture Study for

Israel’s wisdom tradition is a compilation of the insights gleaned from reflection on life experience. The book of Wisdom makes a bold claim, namely, that  Wisdom is perceived by those who love her, found by those who search for her.  Actually, one’s love of and search for Wisdom are evidence that one is already  wise. It should be noted that while people search for Wisdom, Wisdom is also  in search of them, moving through the highways and byways of life. Those who  find Wisdom find peace and security, meaning and fulfillment. And once she has  been found, one will be able to see her everywhere. 

The concern of early Christians over the death of some of their number suggests that they believed that living the new life in Christ would exempt them  from physical death. Thus they questioned both the authenticity of the faith of  the deceased and the trustworthiness of this new life. Paul seeks to encourage  those struggling with the death of a loved one and with questions of faith. He  explains that those truly joined to Jesus are delivered from the power of death,  for not even death can separate them from the love of Christ. Finally, at the end  of time, all believers will be decisively joined with the Lord. 

The parable of the ten virgins is told against the background of Palestinian  wedding customs. Several features of the parable mark its end-of-time character.  The most obvious are the banquet itself and the idea of waiting in darkness for  an event to occur without knowing exactly when it will come to pass. The difference between the virgins is their preparedness. Half of them made provision  for the possible delay of the bridegroom, the other half did not. This parable  recounts the passage from the present age to the age of fulfillment. One is either  ready to cross that threshold, or one is not. Jesus’ exhortation is simple but  strong: Be alert!

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