Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr A. Nov. 19, 2023.
Readings
1st: Proverbs 31:10-13,19-20, 30-31
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm: 127:1-5
2nd: I Thessalonians 5:1-5
Gospel: Matthew 25:14-30
Theme: You [Are] Worth More Than You Appear
My dear people of God, today is Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr A. Our reflections would touch on all the readings of the day, including the Responsorial Psalm. A travelling portrait painter came out looking for an engagement to earn a daily bread. He came across a drunkard client, very dirty, shabbily dressed with an unshaven face. The client asked for a portrait picture of himself and sat down with all the comic display one can rightly expect of a drunkard. The artist set himself to work in all earnest. After a long while, the artist lifted the painting from the easel (a wooden frame that holds an artist['s] work while he paints) and presented it to his eagerly waiting client. The painting revealed a very promising, smiling and well-dressed gentleman. "This is not me", the pleasantly surprised client yelled. The artist who had looked beneath the exterior (appearance) and seen his inner beauty (worth) thoughtfully replied, "But this is actually the man you could be". You Are Worth More Than You Appear". There is an African witful saying, "Knowing people is knowing God". The reverse is equally true, to truly know God, one must first know people. This double knowing is experiential and is rooted in our relationship with each other and with God. The fruits of such a knowing depend on how properly we order our priorities. Our First Reading artistically presents an ideal wife whose worth goes far beyond outward beauty and charm. She knows how to set priorities right - duty conscious and renders honest services to her husband (family), the poor and the needy. It is safe to assert that such an ideal wife is God-fearing, a type our Psalmist rightly describes as "Blessed (are those who fear the Lord)".
St. Paul in our 2nd Reading continues (from last week) to exhort the Thessalonians to be united (as one believing family) in preparing for the 2nd coming of Christ - the glory of THAT DAY. That is another way of fostering and deepening relationship between people and the Church. What the Apostle alludes to is that, it is uncharitable and selfish to think and hope to experience the glory of "THAT DAY" alone. Such pattern of thinking is a conscious attempt at reducing the true worth of everybody to appearance. Fortunately God, (the expert painter) who looks beneath the "exterior", does not assess and judge from appearance. We are aware, by now, that when God measures our true worth, He does not put the tape around the head, He puts it around the Heart. In other words, it is not the size of one's head or the quantum of knowledge in it that matters to God. What matters to God is the size of one's Heart and the amount of Love in it.This is the optimism (hope) contained in our theme: You Are Worth More Than You Appear, just as everyone else is, if you look beneath the "exterior". We see the essence of same double knowing (God and people) also in our today's gospel - a personal relationship with God, personified in a landlord distributing talents to His servants according to their individual strength, and a subtly comparative relationship with others. In our own translation, we can change the talents into modern day (GHc) currency. It is also important to remind oursleves that the talent in this particular context is actually not just a coin, it is a weight (worth/value). By implication, the value of a talent depends on whether the coinage involved is a copper, gold or silver. Here comes the lesson of our theme: that the true value (worth) of a talent (currency) is not the label on it, (Ghc1,000, Ghc2,000, or Ghc5,000) but how it is used and with what aim and motivation. In other words, the level of phenomenal success or monumental failure in life should not depend on the label on one's talent, but the decisive and determined usage (turn around or give up) of that label.
Our gospel in particular teaches us real lessons of life which connect very appropriately with the image of the ideal wife painted by the artistic author of our First Reading of today - that the only way to keep a gift (talent) is to use it in the service of God and mankind. God gives all of us gifts/talents (according to our individual strengths). Our problem is the label we put on our own gift/talent. The truth is that, the label on our talent does not really matter to the Supreme Giver; what matters is how the talent is used - for God and mankind. Yes, our gifts/talents may not, and must not necessarily be equal, but our efforts can be, and should be equal. In the final analysis, we learn that the reward of a talent/gift well used is the award of more talents. "The reward of work well done in the Catholic Church is more work" (His Emminence Richard Cardinal Baawobr, of blessed memory). Another great lesson is that the man who is punished is the one who will not put his talent into any use at all. Lest we get it all wrong, that man's punishment is [not] because of total lack of talents. No, it is because of his deliberate refusal to do anything with what the Landlord (GOD) gives him. A basic rule of life is that it makes more sense to always stand up and try than to sit down all the time, crying and complaining. There can be nothing more demoralizing and psychologically deforming than the syndrome of inferiority complex and self-pity. It is said of a famous architect who designed very complex and magnificent buildings. Toward the end of his carreer, a reporter asked him, "Of all your many beautiful designs, which one is your favorite?" Spontaneously the expert replied, "My next one". What this means is that your best days and performances are never behind you, they're in front of you. The label on your talent/gift does not reduce your potential. Never settle for anything less than God's best for you. God never performs His greatest feast in your "yesterday". He never wants us to quit growing. May grace and mercy remain ever sufficient for us that we are able to identify and appreciate every (small) talent in us and use it to the maximum in servive to God and humanity. Be a talent user, not a talent waster, because "You Are Worth More Than You Appear". Continue to pray the Holy Rosary daily. God richly bless you and your family.
Rev. Fr. Thomas L. Debuo - Catholic Diocese of Damongo, Ghana. (0244511306/0243711926)