Dear Parishioners,
Our Scripture readings today can give us some good ideas of what we should want as our legacy. The first reading, from the Book of Proverbs, tells of the ideal woman, gifted not just with physical attributes, but with gifts of ingenuity, hard work, generosity and love of others. She is presented as a model of what is possible when someone uses their gifts and skills well. The point of the reading lies not in the fact that she is gifted, but in what she chooses to do with those gifts and skills.
The Gospel takes up this theme in the parable of the three servants entrusted with their master's talents. In this case, a talent was a coin of great value. To be entrusted with five, two or even one talent meant to be entrusted with something of great value. As we hear the gospel passage proclaimed, we may be drawn to side with the little guy, the one who simply buried the talent and presented it back to his master. After all, he did show some degree of prudence and care in dealing with another's property. As we know from the current economic climate, the cautious, and even timid, approach can often be the better path. Yet, as with many of the parables of Jesus, he ultimately turns the story upside down. In a twist of events, the little guy ends up losing everything, including what was entrusted to him. All is taken away and given to the others, for only those who take risks in faith are given greater responsibilities and ultimately invited to share the Master's joy.
So what is the moral of the parable for us? If we see this as an exhortation to work diligently and without fear for the return of Christ, then now is the time to use all that God has placed at our disposal to this end. Now is the time to use our gifts, talents, our sense of hope and our commitment to charity for the sake of the Gospel. This is the sacred task entrusted to each Christian by virtue of Baptism - to invest ourselves totally in the work of the Kingdom and to bring others to Christ. Today, as we are encouraged to reflect on our own inevitable death, we are to assess how well we are fulfilling this task. We are to live each day as if this were the day the Master is calling us to account. If today were that day, what would our epitaph say? Would it announce that we were a bold servant of God, using all we were given to build up his Kingdom on earth? If this is not what it would say, now is the time to make a change.
Blessings be to you and your dear family, my good people of God!
Fr. Alex Dalpiaz, c.s.