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Contemplating today's Gospel

Today's Gospel + homily (in 300 words)

View saints: Memorial of Saint Monica
Friday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time
View 1st Reading and Psalm
1st Reading (1Thess 4:1-8): Brothers and sisters, we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us how you should conduct yourselves to please God —and as you are conducting yourselves— you do so even more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. This is the will of God, your holiness: that you refrain from immorality, that each of you know how to acquire a wife for himself in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion as do the Gentiles who do not know God; not to take advantage of or exploit a brother or sister in this matter, for the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you before and solemnly affirmed. For God did not call us to impurity but to holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this, disregards not a human being but God, who also gives his Holy Spirit to you.
Responsorial Psalm: 96
R/. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice; let the many isles be glad. Justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.

The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his justice, and all peoples see his glory.

The Lord loves those who hate evil; he guards the lives of his faithful ones; from the hand of the wicked he delivers them.

Light dawns for the just; and gladness, for the upright of heart. Be glad in the Lord, you just, and give thanks to his holy name.
Versicle before the Gospel (Lk 21:36): Alleluia. Be vigilant at all times and pray, that you may have the strength to stand before the Son of Man. Alleluia.
Gospel text (Mt 25:1-13): 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.”

“Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.”

Fr. Joan Ant. MATEO i García (Tremp, Lleida, Spain)

Today, Friday, 21st week in ordinary time, the Lord, in the Gospel, reminds us of the convenience of staying always awake and ready to meet him. Whether at midnight, or at any other moment, a cry can ring out at our door to invite us to come out and meet our Lord. Death never makes appointments. In fact, “you know neither the day nor the hour” (Mt 25:13).

To be on the alert does not mean to live with fear and anguish. It means to live our life as sons of God, our life of faith, hope and charity, in a responsible way. The Lord is continuously waiting for our response of faith and love, constant and patient, amid the chores and preoccupations that weave our life.

And this response can only be given by us; you and I. Nobody else can give it in our place. This is what it means —the denial of the sensible maidens to the careless ones— to share their oil for the lamps that were going out: “Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves” (Mt 25:9). Our response before God is, therefore, personal and not transferable.

Let us not wait for a “tomorrow” —that may never come— to trim up the lamp of our love for the Spouse. Carpe diem! We must live every second of our life with all the passion a Christian must feel for his Lord. It is a well-known saying but we might as well refresh our memory: “Live each day of your life as if it were the first day of your existence, as if it were the only day we have, as if it were the last day of our life.” A realistic call we have to carry out for a necessary and reasonable conversion.

Let God give us the grace of his mercy that we may not have to hear in the supreme hour: “Amen, I say to you, I do not know you” (Mt 25:12), that is, “you have had no relation whatsoever with me.” Let us treat the Lord in this life in such a way that we may become his acquaintances and friends in our time and in eternity.

Thoughts on Today's Gospel

  • “You have a task, my soul, a great task if you so desire. Scrutinize yourself seriously, your being, your destiny; where you come from and where you must rest; seek to know whether it is life that you are living or if it is something more. You have a task, my soul, so purify your life” (St Gregory Nazianzus)

  • “It is not enough for the Christian to wait, he must “act”» (Benedict XVI)

  • “Christ is the center of all Christian life. The bond with him takes precedence over all other bonds, familial or social. From the very beginning of the Church there have been men and women who have renounced the great good of marriage to follow the Lamb wherever he goes… to meet the Bridegroom who is coming…” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 1618)