The 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, November 8, 2020

Matthew 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.”

The term “the kingdom of heaven” does not occur in the Old Testament, although God had spoken through the prophets of a renewed Jerusalem and a time when Israel would be free of her enemies, as in Isaiah 65, 19-20: “I will rejoice in Jerusalem,  and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress. No more shall there be in it  an infant that lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days.”  In the years after the end of the Babylonian exile, during which the Chosen People suffered from nearly continual occupation by foreign powers, the idea grew from a wrongful reading of these prophecies of a coming of God’s kingdom to earth, when all would be put right and the Messiah would overthrow the nations and reestablish the kingdom of David.  The kingdom of God, then, would be a prosperous earthly kingdom protected by God forever from foreign armies.

John the Baptist is the first, as far as we can tell, to announce this kingdom in as many words: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven draws near” (Matthew 3, 2).  When the Lord Jesus begins his public life, he also announces that the kingdom of heaven is drawing near.  He also explains what he means by this “kingdom”.  He describes it in terms of a buried treasure, as a pearl of great price, as a place where the Gentiles will sit with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (cf. Matthew 8, 11), and to a man who sowed good seed but then his enemy came and sowed bad seed in it.  Because it is not of this world, it must be described in many ways for us to get any glimpse at all of it.

Here, the Lord compares it to ten virgins “who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom”.  The Lord then specified that ten were wise and ten foolish.  The wise ones brought flasks of oil with them but the foolish ones did not.  Thus, the five wise virgins were ready to welcome the bridegroom when he came and the foolish ones were not.  Why did some of the girls not bring enough oil as a precaution against the bridegroom coming later than was expected?  The answer is that they did not care.  They would do the job on their terms or not at all.  They had no real interest in sharing in the celebration.  Only when they realize their shameful position do they take action.  The girls who had gone to the trouble and expense of bringing extra oil for themselves were looking forward with excitement to the coming of the bridegroom and the wedding celebration.  They wanted to be there.  The foolishness of five of the girls consisted in only seeing their role as a job that had to be done before going back to their normal lives.  They did not see that it lead to festivities in which they would join.

The Christian life requires zeal for serving our Bridegroom, and looking forward to being in his presence, no matter the difficulties and trials that come before we can enter his presence.  It means never thinking we have done enough, but always looking to do more for his pleasure.  When we stand in his presence and he shares his glory with us, we will not look back on past hardships, for, like St. Paul, we will “count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3, 8).