Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint 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.’”
What will save you, is how you make the gifts and the charisms you received from God, grow
1. “To each according to his ability.” God has given you a gift, but it is for you to develop it and put it at the service of others, the community, and to reveal the presence of God to others. Don’t start looking at others, you have your own gift, work on it and stop envying people who have other gifts. Sometimes, the gifts of some generate envy and competitiveness in others. There are times when we think of people who have the gift of preaching or healing and end up envying them and that leads us to criticism. No! Use the gift that God has given you (you know very well which it is), next to another who has a different gift in order to bring more souls to God. This is what will make you happy and will make other people happy too. Your contribution is great even if you think it’s nothing compared with others. Look, if a Dominican (who has the charisma of evangelizing at universities) looks at and envies a Salesian, who would evangelize in universities? If a Franciscan looks at and envies a Mercedarian, who would evangelize the poor and fulfill what St Francis of Assisi expected? Everyone has charisma and a gift, don’t envy others. Build on yours, and make it grow! How are you making your gift available to the community? Is the gift you received from God producing for God and for the community?
2. “Out of fear he buried it.” When fear and laziness get into your life, instead of growing, you stagnate, and you remain in the same place. When fear makes you incapable of growing and developing as a person because you do not want to confront others or look bad for example, anguish takes over and that gift that you have is lost and all that ends up hurting you. When laziness takes over, it causes inaction, and life becomes monotonous and meaningless. That’s why you should put your gift to work and not be afraid. You will surely be criticized whether you do something or not, so it’s better to put your talent into action and do good to many people.
3. The outcome. Producing and giving to God what you do brings about great benefits, for all the community, and for the greater glory of God. What is important is that this gift be placed at the service of the Kingdom and make the goods of the Kingdom grow. These gifts are love, fraternal spirit, and sharing. What you have as a gift does us all good. With your gift you can help others be happy – perhaps you can listen to them, give them advice, embrace them, or even pray for them. Which is your gift? I know you have a gift – find it and believe in it, believe in yourself. Let’s get down to work because there’s not much time and remember: Heaven is Our Goal! God bless you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
