Episode Transcript
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew
Jesus told his disciples this parable: "The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps.
Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight, there was a cry, 'Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps.
The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise ones replied, 'No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.' While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked.
Afterwards the other virgins came and said, 'Lord, Lord, open the door for us!' But he said in reply, 'Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.' Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour."
The Gospel of the Lord
Matthew was writing his gospel about two generations after Jesus died. In deciding what he wanted to include in the gospel, he quite naturally selected things that particularly applied to the people for whom he was writing. And when you're writing for people two or three generations after the great event, one thing to consider is that some of the initial enthusiasm – the initial burst of energy – has died out. People have come to terms with the everyday life of Christianity.
You may remember Jesus told a story about that -- about the need to be practical. You can't be caught up in occasional bursts of religion. You have to look ahead, you have to make practical decisions, just as you do for your car, for your job, for your budget and for all the things we do as we live our lives. He knew that to live our faith is no easy thing to do.
That message is needed as much for you and me today as for any generation of Christians. It's easy to get caught in a burst of religion around Christmas or Easter, or if you go on a retreat or read a good book. Those things are all fine. But you have to take those bursts of religion and build them into your lives in a practical way.
In my own life, I'm far more practical and decisive in the things that have to do with what you might call “normal life” than I am with things that you might call “religious.” For example: I recently moved 90 minutes from the Chancery, so I have to get up earlier in the morning because it's an hour and a half to get wherever I'm going. It’s a very practical thing and I plan for it, and you do the same things with school, your job, and so forth.
Yet how many times do people say: "You know, I think I need more time with the Lord. I'd like to pray every day…. I'd like to just spend 15 minutes and just be alone with God." If it’s your work schedule – something you must do – it’s different. But when we talk about religious things, it sometimes evaporates into: "I was meaning to do that!"
I'm afraid that a lot of people are going to die saying: "I was always going to spend more time with the Lord. I was always going to do that." And they don't!
In this Gospel, Jesus is saying you’ve got to be decisive about things in your life, and the religious life is just as important.
And so, I invite you, in the light of this gospel, to give that some thought. After all, we're coming to Advent, which is a time when you reassess your life, take a long view. Do some of that now and give some thought to practical things you can do to implement the good ideas that you already have.
