Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
21ST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 1/ (Green)
Responsorial Psalm: Ps. 33: 1-2, 4-5, 10-11: The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
1st Reading: 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.
Gospel: 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 foolish, and five were sensible.
The careless bridesmaids took their lamps as they were, and did not take extra oil. But those who were sensible, took flasks of oil with their lamps.
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 foolish 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.’
When the bridegroom came, the foolish maidens were out buying oil, but those who were ready went with him into 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:
“Stay awake.”
The fifth and last discourse in Matthew’s Gospel is known as the eschatological discourse (cf. Mt. 24–25).
This eschatological discourse speaks of the last things. It also describes the kingdom of heaven in the end of times.
Matthew 24–25 also constitute the Matthean little apocalypse (cf. Mk. 13; Lk. 21), which actually tells not about the end in the terminal sense but as a period that ushers a new epoch.
Today’s Gospel, which narrates the parable of ten virgins, belongs to this fifth discourse.
The kingdom of heaven will be like the story of the ten bridesmaids who were invited to wait for the bridegroom.
Five were wise while five were foolish. The five sensible ones brought with them flasks of oil together with their lamps during their time of waiting.
The five careless ones brought their lamps but did not bring extra oil with them. The bridegroom’s arrival was delayed.
The bridegroom arrived when the careless maidens were out, buying oil.
The sensible ones went with the bridegroom into the wedding feast. The door was shut.
We are called to emulate the wise virgins ever ready to welcome the bridegroom, Jesus Christ, into our life.
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