Welcome to our Bible

Study

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time A16November 2014

In preparation for this Sunday’s LiturgyIn aid of focusing our homilies and

sharing

Prepared by Fr. Cielo R. Almazan, OFM

1st reading: Proverbs 31:10-13,19-20,30-31

10 When one finds a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls. 11 Her husband, entrusting his heart to her, has an unfailing prize. 12 She brings him good, and not evil, all the days of her life. 13 She obtains wool and flax and makes cloth with skillful hands.

19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her fingers ply the spindle. 20 She reaches out her hands to the poor, and extends her arms to the needy.

30 Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 31 Give her a reward of her labors, and let her works praise her at the city gates. The focus is on a worthy wife.

1st reading: Proverbs 31:10-13,19-20,30-31

10 When one finds a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls. 11 Her husband, entrusting his heart to her, has an unfailing prize. 12 She brings him good, and not evil, all the days of her life. 13 She obtains wool and flax and makes cloth with skillful hands.

19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her fingers ply the spindle. 20 She reaches out her hands to the poor, and extends her arms to the needy.

30 Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 31 Give her a reward of her labors, and let her works praise her at the city gates.

Commentary: V.10 says a man is lucky if he finds a worthy

wife.– She is more valuable than pearls.

V.11 is parallel to v.10.– His wife is priceless.

Actions of the worthy wife: She brings her husband good (v.12) She obtains wool, makes cloth (v.13) She puts her hands // her fingers (she

weaves) (parallelism) (v.19) She reaches out… to the poor // extends… to

the needy (parallelism) (v.20)V.30 contrasts the attributes of a worthy wife to

charm (deceptive) // beauty (fleeting, temporary). (parallelism)

Hirit pa: the woman who fears the Lord, is to be praised

V.31 gives a tall order: Give her a reward// let her works praise her… (parallelism)

Reflections on the 1st reading

It is important for man to find a good wife. A good wife is a true treasure. She is

priceless. A good wife is one who is responsible, hard

working, practical, and has a heart for the poor (sense of justice).

A good wife does not cause her husband his downfall.

A good wife does not need to be charming and beautiful. Looks can be deceptive.

A good wife is God-fearing. She deserves a reward and recognition from

all of us. Is there still a woman who is like this?

Resp. Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5 R. (cf. 1a) Blessed are those who fear the Lord.

1 Blessed are you who fear the LORD,who walk in his ways!2 For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;blessed shall you be, and favored.

3 Your wife shall be like a fruitful vinein the recesses of your home;Your children like olive plantsaround your table.

4 Behold, thus is the man blessedwho fears the LORD.5 The LORD bless you from Zion:may you see the prosperity of Jerusalemall the days of your life.

Resp. Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5 R. (cf. 1a) Blessed are those

who fear the Lord.

1 Blessed are you who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways!2 For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;blessed shall you be, and favored.

3 Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your home;Your children like olive plantsaround your table.

4 Behold, thus is the man blessedwho fears the LORD.5 The LORD bless you from Zion:may you see the prosperity of Jerusalemall the days of your life.

Commentary In v.1, the psalmist recognizes

those who fear God as blessed.

Vv.2-3 enumerate the blessings of walking in God’s ways (fearing God):

To eat the fruit of your work, v.2

Your wife shall be fruitful, v.3 Your children shall be like olive

plants, v.3 V.4 repeats the idea of v.1. V.5 indicates the place from

where we are blessed: from Zion/Jerusalem.

To be blessed is to prosper.

Reflections on the Psalm

We should fear the Lord (refrain from violating his laws).

To fear God is to walk in his ways. Blessed (happy, fortunate) are we if we

fear God. God promises us his blessings.

– Abundant food– Joy– Healthy children– Healthy environment

2nd reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6

1 Concerning times and seasons, brothers, you have no need for anything to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night. 3 When people are saying, "Peace and security," then sudden disaster comes upon them, like labor pains upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness, for that day to overtake you like a thief. 5 For all of you are children of the light and children of the day. We are not of the night or of darkness. 6 Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober. The focus is on the day of the LORD.

2nd reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6

1 Concerning times and seasons, brothers, you have no need for anything to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night. 3 When people are saying, "Peace and security," then sudden disaster comes upon them, like labor pains upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness, for that day to overtake you like a thief. 5 For all of you are children of the light and children of the day. We are not of the night or of darkness. 6 Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober.

Commentary In v.1 St. Paul talks about times

and seasons (time of the Lord). V.2 spells out what Paul really

means. “The day of the Lord.” “The day of the Lord” comes

like a thief at night. – It means it comes without

warning. It is unexpected. The proper action is vigilance. V.3 further explains how to

prepare for “the day of the Lord.”

People should not be naïve to believe what other people (ignorant of God’s mysteries and plans) say.

Those people do not know what they are doing are living in darkness. They mislead.

2nd reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6

1 Concerning times and seasons, brothers, you have no need for anything to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night. 3 When people are saying, "Peace and security," then sudden disaster comes upon them, like labor pains upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness, for that day to overtake you like a thief. 5 For all of you are children of the light and children of the day. We are not of the night or of darkness. 6 Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober.

In v.4, Paul says that the Thessalonians do not live in darkness. They will not be overtaken by “that day.”

By virtue of their faith, they are children of the day and light. V.5

V.6 exhorts the Christians to be vigilant, alert and sober.

Those who are in darkness sleep and get drunk.

They don’t care about their future.

Reflections on the 2nd reading

“The day of the Lord” is the end of time. For Paul, time is not only the past, present

and future, but also the end. It is the second coming of Jesus Christ

(parousia for the theologians) The thought of the end should help

Christians to lead moral lives. The second coming of Jesus brings

judgment to the unrepentant sinner, but salvation to the just and vigilant.

The reading reminds us, people of today, who seldom think about the end of the world, that there is such a thing as, the end.

Gospel reading: Mt 25:14-30 or 25:14-15, 19-21

The man entrusting his talents 14 A man who was going on a journey called in his

servants and entrusted his possessions to them. 15 To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one -- to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately 16 the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. 17 Likewise, the one who received two made another two. 18 1 But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master's money.

The faithful servant with 5 talents more 19 After a long time the master of those servants

came back and settled accounts with them. 20 The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five. He said, 'Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.' 21 His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy.'

The faithful servant with 2 talents more 22 (Then) the one who had received two talents

also came forward and said, 'Master, you gave me two talents. See, I have made two more.' 23 His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy.'

The unfaithful servant without any gain 24 Then the one who had received the one talent

came forward and said, 'Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; 25 so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back.' 26 His master said to him in reply, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter? 27 Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return? 28 Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. 29 1 For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.'

Commentary The parable is entitled “The Parable of the

Talents.” St. Matthew places this parable towards the end of

his gospel, along with the parables concerning the end of the world, before the passion narrative. (Matthew 25)

There is a pattern: 1st servant, 2nd servant, 3rd servant (also in entrusting, in responding, and in accounting)

The 3rd servant (the lazy one) receives longer “footage,” more attention than the others.

The gospel seemingly promotes “capitalism.” (bank, interest, making more money), but, that is not the point.

The teaching (saying in v. 29) needs more explanation. It is a warning to those who do not produce anything. It is a kind of stripping (recalling) of anything that is left in an unproductive person.

To entrust one’s property (huge amount) to servants is not a joke.

Imagine: 1 talent = laborer’s wage for 15 years– Today’s minimum wage and ECOLA = Php 404

x 24 days x 12 months x 15 years = Php 1,745,280.00. (Php 1.7M)

Reflections on the gospel reading

God has entrusted us with many gifts. We are fully equipped to be productive.

The gifts must be used, developed and multiplied.

God recognizes the capacity of each one and expects each one to perform accordingly.

God is prodigious and lavish in entrusting. Exaggerated even. Unbelievable, very flattering but hard to take for granted.

We, too, must impress God in return. We don’t squander his gifts by doing

nothing.

For God, there is no place for unproductivity. It is contrary to our being the images and likenesses of God.

God considers everyone as capable of producing.

Punishment awaits those who do not produce anything in their lives.

Some people are not productive because of fear and lack of faith (3rd servant). They don’t trust anyone, even the ones who can help them.

God will entrust more things to us if we are responsive to him.

Tying the 3 readings and the Psalm

The first reading commends a wife, who is responsible and productive.

The psalm commends people, who fear the Lord (being productive).

The second reading talks about the “Day of the Lord”, when the Lord comes to reward those who are productive and to punish the evildoers.

The gospel reading talks about rewarding the productive servants.

How to develop your homily / sharing

The end of time is usually associated with the second coming of Christ to judge or reward us according to our deeds.

The three readings are strong on productivity. In order to enter heaven, we must show diligence. We do good works.

The first reading praises a wife who is industrious, diligent and productive.

She is an asset to her husband. It also praises the wife who knows

her priorities. She is not concerned about skin-deep

beauty and appearances, but fear of the Lord.

The second reading warns us to be vigilant always because we never know when Jesus will come to judge us.

Jesus’ coming may be delayed, but still we are asked to watch our behavior.

We stay awake and vigilant until the end of days.

There is no end to waiting and watching. Vigilance does not mean doing nothing. We will be judged according to our deeds.

The gospel reading greatly rewards those who respond to God’s challenge, with diligence and creativity.

He has entrusted us with a lot of talents and treasure.

We must be enterprising when it comes to God’s interests.

God recognizes all the efforts we exert. God rejects lazy people, who do not

contribute anything good to this planet. There is no place for irresponsible people in

the kingdom of God.

In our communities, we can easily spot people who are accomplishers and who are not.

The accomplishers work with their minds and hands. They are usually the quiet type.

The non-accomplishers talk more. Their glib talks do not match their actions. They find it hard to move their bodies to accomplish something.

They take so much time and energy to accomplish a small thing, because they are not used to doing.

When they accomplish something, it is half-baked and done haphazardly because they are not convinced they should do it.

The eucharist helps us to be productive. In the eucharist, Jesus strengthens us to

be productive as missionaries and evangelizers.

In the eucharist, we recognize our giftedness and our ability to do a lot for God and for our fellow believers.

Our Context of Sin and Grace

Laziness, sloth Gets tired easily (needs

physical check up) No energy Does not find work More concerned with

beauty, looks Emphasis on external

appearance Bad wife (pahamak sa

asawa)

Creative Enterprising Responsive Accountable Spirituality of

Stewardship Productive Inventive, resourceful Reads the signs of the

times Keen on the best Does work with

passion.

Suggested Songs

Service Ikaw Ngayon Bukas

– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLXGRycu6ko

Happy the Man by Sebastian Temple Happy is the Man by John Miffleton