First Reading: Wisdom 6:12-16
Reflection:
The book of Wisdom was likely written in the first century B.C., making it the latest composed book of the Old Testament. It was likely written in Alexandria, Egypt in Greek. There is evidence that the book was well-known by the Apostle Paul and other New Testament authors, who alluded to its contents in their writings. And the early Church Fathers certainly used the book. As with other wisdom literature in the Old Testament, it is full of helpful advice and exhortations. It also expresses the personification of wisdom as a woman, which is common in wisdom literature in the Bible. The author of the book of Wisdom illustrates how Lady Wisdom is desired and pursued through perseverance. She is “readily perceived by those who love her, and found by those who seek her.” The moral is that we should seek and love wisdom. In other words, we should be persistent, patient, and persevering in our pursuit of prudence! We’ll see these virtues exemplified by the five wise virgins in this Sunday’s Gospel Reading.
Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Reflection:
Here Paul offers comfort to those in the Church in Thessalonica regarding the resurrection of the dead. It seems that Christians in Thessalonica were concerned that their friends and family members who had passed away would miss out on the resurrection of the dead when Jesus returned. They were lacking hope. But St. Paul reminds them (and us) that as Christians we should “not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.” Rather, we have great hope that we will see our loved ones who have passed away in faith again in heaven. Christian hope is more than wishful thinking. It is a divine promise. We hope in heaven because God has promised to raise to new life those “who have fallen asleep” in friendship with him. “Fallen asleep” is a phrase used here and throughout Scripture to refer to death, hinting at the fact that death is only temporary and there will be a bodily resurrection. We profess this belief every Sunday at Mass in the Nicene Creed: “I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” At the end of time, Jesus will return, the dead will be raised, and their resurrected bodies will be reunited with their souls. St. Paul teaches that Christians who are alive on earth at that time will be taken up to heaven after the dead have been raised. This promise of resurrection and union with God in heaven for eternity gives us great hope and consolation, even in the midst of grieving the loss of loved ones, for the faithful departed will one day be raised from the dead and we will be reunited with them in heaven.
Gospel Reading: Matthew 25:1-13
Reflection:
As in all of Jesus’ parables, we need to understand who each of the characters represents in this “Parable of the Ten Virgins.” First, the bridegroom is Jesus. In fact, God is described throughout Scripture as a Bridegroom who will wed his people. In fact, the Bible is bookended with weddings. It begins with the marriage of Adam and Eve in Genesis and ends with the Wedding Supper of the Lamb in Revelation. If we look at the pages in Scripture between those bookends, we see the theme of marriage as an illustration of God’s relationship with his people highlighted throughout the Bible. Marriage is the primary analogy given for the relationship between God and humanity in Scripture, including in the Old Testament when God is described as the Bridegroom of the people of Israel and culminating in the New Testament with Jesus being described as the Bridegroom of the Church.
Second, the ten virgins represent the members of the Church, including us. The Church is the Bride of Christ in a spiritual sense (see Ephesians 5:21-33). Jesus’ “Parable of the Ten Virgins” is a message to His followers about being faithful and prepared. As we heard in the Second Reading, Jesus will one day return. Will we be ready for Him when he comes? The five wise virgins were prepared and persevered through the long wait for the bridegroom by keeping their lamps lit. Similarly, we need to keep the lamps of our souls lit and faithfully persevere in Christian discipleship as we prepare for the return of our Bridegroom, Jesus. We do not want to be like the five foolish virgins who were not prepared and, as a result, were not allowed into the wedding feast. As we see elsewhere in Scripture (e.g. Revelation 19:9), the wedding feast (or wedding supper of the lamb) represents heaven, where the members of the Church will be fully united with their Bridegroom, Jesus. If we are not prepared when Jesus comes, we will not be let into the wedding feast of heaven. Therefore, let us diligently and faithfully prepare ourselves to encounter Christ, our Bridegroom, when he returns or when we die (whichever comes first), so that we may be welcomed into the wedding feast of heaven.
Application:
- In what areas of your life can you grow in wisdom? Reflect on times of your life where you have exemplified the virtue of prudence and times when you have not. What can you learn from those times and how can you better develop the habit of being prudent?
- If Jesus were to return today, would you be ready? Are you more like the five wise virgins who were prepared, or more like the five foolish virgins who were not?
