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Today, 27th of September, we celebrate
Saint Vincent of Paul
1 Corinthians 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.
Psalms 33:12-13, 18-19, 20-21
Blessed the nation whose God is the LORD,
the people he has chosen for his own inheritance.
From heaven the LORD looks down;
he sees all mankind.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
But see, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield,
For in him our hearts rejoice;
in his holy name we trust.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Matthew 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.'”
I read today’s Gospel parable, and the first thing that comes to mind are the many times I’ve gone to church and knelt down to ask God for things in my prayer. I could almost say, using an old Spanish saying, that in those moments “my mouth becomes a friar,” meaning that all I do is ask and ask for all the favors, needs, and problems that come to mind. From passing an exam to the health of my family member or a job for a friend who has become unemployed. It’s all about asking and asking. And, deep down, assuming that God is the one who can solve everything for me, the handyman who can fix everything. From an illness to my financial problems. It’s all about asking and asking.
This came to mind because today’s parable presents exactly the opposite idea. God is not the one who takes care of solving our problems but the one who puts in our hands the tools to solve them. It is in our hands to take advantage of those talents that he has given us all with a clear and distinct purpose. It’s not just about using them for our own benefit: solving my problems and the problems of those close to me. The goal is much broader. We are the workers in the Lord’s vineyard, and our goal is not just to look out for myself. It’s not about focusing on the tip of our nose or our navel. It’s about making the master’s vineyard bear fruit. It’s about aligning ourselves with the master’s goals, with God’s goals: to build the kingdom of brotherhood and justice where all men and women can live as brothers and sisters.
Let’s stop asking. Let’s put our hands and our hearts to work in the service of the Kingdom. It’s not about going to Church to ask God to solve this or that for us. It’s about putting ourselves in his presence to assume the commitment and responsibility to use the talents he has given us in the service of the Kingdom. What a change in perspective and attitude! From beggars to committed and responsible members of the Kingdom. That’s the key.
Little people as most of the Corinthians are should be aware that they are great before God. God chooses what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. Their boast, their wisdom, is God.
Gospel. In today’s parable of the talents, Jesus speaks of what we do for the kingdom of God with the gifts we have received from him. For the kingdom, that means, to animate the Church and the world with a faith, a hope, a love that transform us, the Church and the world. For this purpose, we invest ourselves, take risks, are involved. If we seek a deceptive security in our little practices, in immobility, we bury a hole in the ground, we bury ourselves, we opt for death, we are devalued. Do we use our God-given talents as a capital not merely to be proud of, but to bear interest for God’s plans with us and the world?
Almighty eternal God,
to give a human life to their children
is the great task you entrust to mothers.
We thank you today for St. Monica,
who prayed to you for her son, Augustine,
that he might find Jesus.
Grant to all parents
that they may help their children live and grow
in the life and the future
of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
– That all people may share in the earth’s resources in justice, friendship and peace, we pray:
– That inspiring homes and good educators may equip our young people to place their potentials in the service of the Church and of our people, we pray:
– That women may take with honor their rightful place in the Church and in the world; that their talents of cordiality, tact and sensitivity may warm this harsh world with gentleness, we pray:
Lord God,
let this bread and wine be the signs,
that with your Son, Jesus Christ,
we care about your kingdom among people.
Help us through your Son
to lead one another forward
on the way to you.
May he live in all of us,
for he is our Lord for ever.
Lord our God,
we thank you for Jesus Christ
and for the many men and women
to whom he meant enough
to dedicate themselves to their neighbor
for his sake.
Let them inspire us today
to care for those around us.
Help us to believe firmly enough
in the mystery of your Son’s resurrection,
to rise above our petty selves
and to help others overcome
their fears and their servitudes
through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Every one of us has received from God one’s own particular gifts. That you may be good servants of what God has entrusted to you, whether much or little, may Almighty God bless you, he Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
