Wis 6:12-16; Psa 62:2-8; 1 Thess 4:13-18; Matt 25:1-13
Theme: Even when You sleep, Keep Your Oil Ready
Beloved in Christ, we are still in the month of November, the month in which we not only pray in a special way for the dead, but also remind ourselves of the importance of being always ready for our own death. Today, we reflect on the following points from the readings:
Preparations for the Arrival of the Bridegroom
The gospel reading presents us with this Jewish setting of wedding banquet in which everyone had to wait for the arrival of the bridegroom. Among the people waiting were the bridesmaids. We do not know if the bride was already in the wedding hall with these bridesmaids, or she later came in with the bridegroom.
The most important thing to note is that the bridesmaids were expected to wait until the bridegroom arrives. In this parable, the five foolish virgins started failing even before the arrival of the bridegroom. They knew that their lamps would be needed, so they carried their lamps along. But it did not occur to them that their lamps could not burn without oil. They thought they were prepared, but in fact, they were not.
Sometimes, we think we have everything needed to welcome the Lord when he comes, sometimes we think that our being Christians is already a certificate that qualifies us for the Day of the Lord. But how can a lamp burn without its oil? Sometimes we pray and work, believing that we have done everything sufficient to make our prayers be answered, to bring success to our work. But could it be that there is something as essential as oil for the lamp, which is still missing in our preparation?
The Bridegroom Arrives not at the Expected Hour
We all are familiar with this particular problem: the lateness of the ‘about-to-wed’ couple always to the Mass. In the parable, the bridegroom was also late, or better put, he did not come at the expected time. Having waited for him, everybody, the wise and the foolish ones, all fell asleep.
We all get tired while waiting for God to accomplish something in our lives. Just like the bridesmaids, we can also fall asleep while waiting for the bridegroom, Christ the Lord. To sleep means to become uninterested, to become totally dismayed. It can also mean, giving up on ourselves and on our aspirations and goals. But I want us to observe something in the lives of these bridesmaids, both the wise ones and the foolish ones. When they waited for the groom and he did not come at the expected time, they all became weak and began to sleep, but they never moved away from the arena where they were asked to stay and wait for the groom. Yes, they fell asleep, but they never abandoned the place of expectancy. In the same way, we can get tired of waiting for God to come to us, not because God is late, but because he did not come as and when we expect him, but we must never abandon the good place in which we are.
Second point to note is that death meets all of us, the wise and foolish alike. In the Biblical world, to fall asleep also connotes death. No matter how holy and ready and prepared we are or not, at certain point in our lives, our body will become weak, and death will occur.
Hence, death is not a punishment for the wicked, but something inevitable for everyone. But even when we are dead, the things we have carried throughout our lifetime, will be there with us, If we have brought only lamps without oil, death will meet us there. If we have accompanied our lives with oil of love, peace, justice, uprightness, etc, they will all be present with us until the arrival of the bridegroom, Christ the Lord.
The Bridegroom Arrives in the Midnight
The parable says that while everyone was sleeping, the bridegroom arrived. He arrived in the midnight, that is, at the time where day has passed, the early hours of night had also passed, hence, there could not have been any other hope left that the bridegroom would still arrive. Dearest friends, such is how life goes. Some people receive the divine visit in the morning of their lives, some in the afternoon, some in the evening, then some in the very deep hour or even last minute of the night. When we see those whose own visitation happened earlier, we should not lose hope, thinking that God has abandoned us. The scripture says, “he will come to you at the hour you do not expect”. The bridegroom arrived at the same place the bridesmaids were asked to wait for him.
Assuming they had left the place after they waited, they would not have even known when he arrived. This is a call to me and you that even when we get tired of waiting, we should remain in uprightness and righteousness, we should remain committed to our worship of God, we should remain committed to the worthy and frequent reception of the sacraments. When the bridegroom arrived, there was a cry: “the bridegroom is here! Go out and meet him.” This shout corresponds to what St. Paul said in the second reading that when the Lord comes, “there would be sounding of trumpet, and the voice of the archangel will call out the command” (1 Thess 4:16). And when this cry went out, both the foolish and the wise virgins heard it and woke up. On the last day, both the righteous and the wicked will hear the voice of the Lord, and all will be awakened.
Please Give us some of your oil
When the bridesmaids heard of the arrival of the bridegroom, they all woke up. Now, it was the time to put on the lamp for the bridegroom to see. It was only then that the distinction is made between the wise virgins and the foolish ones. While the wise virgins had the oil for their lamps, the foolish ones did not bring any. Oil, in this context means all the good things one had done. Life without good qualities is as useless as lamp without life. It is only our good deeds that make our lives to shine when the Lord appears. The fact that the bridegroom arrived in the night necessitated the putting on of the lamp. But because the virgins lived during the day and went for the activity during the day, while the wise ones remembered that night would come when they would need their lamps to be burning, the foolish ones forgot to think of the night of their lives. Dearest friends, while we live in the day, we must not forget that night must definitely come. While we enjoy the life we have, we must not forget to get ready the oil that will give us light when it is dark, and when the Lord appears. We must also remember that certain things cannot be given, not because the owners are wicked or stingy, but because they are not meant to be shared, they are meant to be acquired. And these things must be acquired at their right time, otherwise, it becomes too late. Virtues are not something one to lend to another, it is what one has to acquire by himself/herself.
We pray God to give us wisdom to know how to get ourselves always ready for his coming. We pray that the wisdom of God enables us to understand that God does not work according to our calculations and rhythms so that we never give up hope while waiting for God to visit us with his blessings and consolations.
Fr. Nnamah Henry C
Catholic Diocese of Aguleri