Nov 15, 2020 - 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Prv 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31; 1 Thes 5:1-6; Mt 25:14-30)
The description of the “worthy wife” in Proverbs is about more than normal marriage, just as last week's reading about the wise and foolish bridesmaids was about more than a normal bridegroom. It was an allusion to Christ and his bride, the Church, which is all of us. Similarly, today's reading is also about us – both male and female. As the bride of Christ, we, the Church, are supposed to take what we have and use it as the “worthy wife” in Proverbs uses her talents and resources. We may not have the skill to spin wool and flax, but we have other talents we can apply, and we can reach out our hands to the poor and extend our arms to the needy. If we do this we will be ready at the coming of the bridegroom, our Lord. But St. Paul warns us we do not know when that might be. We must be ready at any time. That does not mean we need to live our lives in panic, for as today's Psalm tells us, walking always in the ways of the Lord is a blessing more than a burden.
We can be joyful in anticipation of the Lord's return – not fearful. Fearful is a good way to describe the servant in today's Gospel parable who buried his master's treasure, rather than develop and increase it. This parable is calling on us to develop our resources and talents to the fullest – not just sit on them. Each of us has different talents that can be developed. It could mean going back to school, or reading, or doing charitable work, or evangelism, or even taking good care of our health so that we can do even more good work. Keeping this in mind, we can see more purpose in our everyday lives. That's what the more ambitious servants in the parable did. Let us strive to be more like them, and the “worthy wife.”