'I tell you,
to everyone who has, more will be given,
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king,
bring them here and slay them before me.'"
At least as frightening as Jesus's story of the nobleman's punishment is Saint Luke's remark about what happened next,
"After he had said this, he proceeded on his journey up to Jerusalem."
The man means business and his pilgrimage to the holy city has a purpose. Jesus is the lord who is returning to his fiefdom, and he might not be happy about what he finds there. Plus, a lord knows he is responsible to a higher authority and must answer for disappointing results.
As the liturgical year ends and Advent approaches, the Church remembers "death and judgment, heaven and hell." The mood fits November, when we do inventory, and ask ourselves, "Are we ready for winter?" Although few of us are subsistence farmers who must check their supplies of meats, canned goods, and grain, we nonetheless rely on a supply chain that can sustain us through plagues, droughts, and catastrophes. Are we as a people ready for the Judgment Day?
This is the time of year when we tell our children the story of the grasshopper and the ants. While the grasshopper was dancing, singing, and playing his fiddle, the ants were laying up for the winter. When the cold arrived, the foolish individual perished while the communal, hard-working ants survived despite the enforced idleness of winter. The fable reminds us that life is hard. If we survive the hard times it's because we plan, work together, labor intensely and prepare for every contingency.
Jesus's fable also teaches us to expect his return, and not to expect much indulgence from the impatient Lord.
Everyone knows what happened when he arrived in Jerusalem. Hailed as the messiah by the crowds, he was condemned by the same mob and crucified. He took the judgment and God's wrath upon himself and died for our sins.
But the threat remains. We can see that in the violence that continues among restless peoples. If Americans once regarded themselves as the hardworking ants and other nations as idle grasshoppers, we're beginning to see a more complex history of exploitation and impoverishment. We're also discovering that the world is flat, and that American youth are competing with better trained children all over the earth.
With his parable of two successful investors and one slacker, the Lord teaches us to expect and welcome judgment. It will come; it will be very real; it will be rewarding for some, and terrible for others.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.