Thursday, August 30, 2012

 

FRIDAY 21ST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II

AUGUST 31, 2012
FRIDAY 21ST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II

1 Cor 1:17-25 / Mt 25:1-13

1 CORINTHIANS 1:17-25
For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to proclaim his Gospel. And not with beautiful words! That would be like getting rid of the cross of Christ. The language of the cross remains nonsense for those who are lost. Yet for us who are saved, it is the power of God, as Scripture says: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and make fail the foresight of the foresighted. Masters of human wisdom, educated people, philosophers, you have no reply! And the wisdom of this world? God let it fail. At first God spoke the language of wisdom, and the world did not know God through wisdom. Then God thought of saving the believers through the foolishness that we preach. The Jews ask for miracles and the Greeks for a higher knowledge, while we proclaim a crucified Messiah. For the Jews, what a great scandal! And for the Greeks, what nonsense! But he is Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God for those called by God among both Jews and Greeks. In reality, the "foolishness" of God is wiser than humans, and the "weakness" of God is stronger than humans.

MATTHEW 25:1-13
This story throws light on what will happen in the kingdom of heaven: Ten bridesmaids went out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were careless, and the others were sensible. The careless bridesmaids took their lamps as they were, and did not bring extra oil. But those who were sensible, brought with their lamps flasks of oil. As the bridegroom delayed, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep. But at midnight, a cry rang out, `The bridegroom is here, come out and meet him!' All the maidens woke up at once, and trimmed their lamps. Then the careless ones said to the sensible ones, `Give us some oil, for our lamps are going out.' The sensible ones answered, `There may not be enough for us and for you. You had better go to those who sell, and buy some for yourselves.' They were out buying oil when the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him to the wedding feast, and the doors were shut. Later the other bridesmaids arrived and called out, `Lord, Lord, open to us!' But he answered, `Truly I do not know you.' So stay awake, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

REFLECTION
What evil did these poor girls commit that they should be excluded from the banquet? The tragedy and the pathos of the five foolish bridesmaids is the heart of the parable. They were not wicked or indecent; they were just careless. They really did nothing seriously evil, nor even anything mildly wrong. Their sin: they did not do what they were expected to do. So they were cut out of the banquet.

Jesus used this image to tell the people about his coming at the end of time. It can also be applied to the coming of death at the end of our lives. Those who are not prepared to go with the Lord, whether it is at the end of this life or at the end of time, will not accompany him to the heavenly banquet.

There is another message that should be noted here. In God's eyes, refusal to do good is as worthy of condemnation as is doing evil.

In this context let us call to mind the lesson of the parable on the Last Judgment. If sometime we can sit quietly and listen deep in the silence of our soul to Jesus' words: if we fail to help the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the sick, the little ones, we are refusing help to the Lord.

The improvident bridesmaids did no evil. But they were not ready to do the good they were expected to do. They were neither good nor bad. They were foolish. They were careless. And they were not allowed into the banquet of the kingdom.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Fr. Ismael Zuloaga, SJ
- Kathy
- Mon Torres
- Fleur Torres
- Ditas dela Paz
- Tito Oreta
… for the personal intentions of Romeo, Nilo and Marian
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
- Eriberta Calvario
Eternal rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine upon them. May they and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Juan Carlos Rosca
- Birthday: Mrs. Vilma Roy Duavit
… for families who are in need of healing
… for world peace and reconciliation.

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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