NINETEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR C
Commentary of Fr. Fernando Armellini
A good Sunday to all.
We certainly remember the parable we reflected on last week, the parable of the foolish farmer who made a great fortune one year with extraordinary harvest and enlarged his barns so that nothing would be lost and that no one would steal them. And, precisely when he thought the moment had finally arrived to enjoy the fruits of his labor, he lost everything—so much effort for nothing.
All of us who envy this man should not repeat his mistake; Jesus says that what he did was foolish. Today, Jesus tells us what we should do and how we should manage with intelligence and wisdom the goods at our disposal.
Let us listen to what he suggests:
"At that time, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your belongings and give alms. Provide money bags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.’”
"Do not be afraid." Why does he introduce his proposal in this way? Because he knows he is about to suggest to us a choice of life that frightens us. If it were some religious practices, fasting, some devotion, there would be no reason to advise us not to be afraid. But here we are talking about investing money, we are talking about goods, about very concrete things, and we know that when one buys or sells, one is always afraid of making a mistake, being deceived, passing up an opportunity that doesn't come back, and having regrets. 'If I had sold at the right time... if I had bought....'
"Do not be afraid,” says Jesus, ‘I am about to make you a proposal.’ To whom does he make it? To a little flock, he does not make it to all because they would not understand; he makes it to those who know him, to those who have been with him for a couple of years, to those who have given him their adherence and who know that he is a person who can be trusted. Being a little flock, one becomes a little suspicious because there are only a few; we are more careful and hesitant when investing because it means it's very risky. Most people don't even want to hear about it.
Now, what is the right thing to do? It seemed good to the Father to set the gift of the kingdom before them. They have been blessed to find a treasure: the gospel. They believed in the new world and entered God's kingdom. ‘To some of you, fortunate ones, I propose to you an investment of the goods you have in your hands, concrete goods: money, house, field, the luck of having been able to develop all your abilities.'
What to do with all these assets? 'Sell what you own; listen to me, it's time to sell all the shares because they are devaluing every day; trust me, and where to invest these assets? Bet on handouts.' It doesn't mean throwing everything out the window to be picked up by the first one that passes by; no, it means putting the treasures with which life has intelligently benefited us at the disposal of our brothers and sisters. All of them must be invested to create joy, to create life. If you have empty apartments, make them available to families who need them and don't have a home. They will give you a lot of headaches, a lot of inconveniences... you must take them into account, but they will create joy; they will create life. You have fields; make them produce to help the needy.
In short, bet everything on love. Love is unlike that farmer's wheat grain rotting in the barns. Love is a treasure that does not depreciate and cannot be stolen by thieves, not even from that thief who had surprised the farmer (death), who had taken everything. Now you realize why Jesus began by saying, 'Do not be afraid.'
If you are unafraid, you have not understood the investment Jesus is proposing. And now, to understand his proposal, he tells us three parables.
Let's listen to the first one:
“Gird your loins and light your lamps and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at the table, and proceed to wait on them. And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared this way, blessed are those servants.”
The scene of the first parable takes place in the house of a rich man who was invited to a wedding feast, and he entrusted his house to his servants. It is easy to identify this man; it is Jesus who, having fulfilled his mission, left this world and assigned to his disciples the task of giving continuity to his work. The Acts of the Apostles describes this transfer in the ascension narrative. We remember those two men in white robes telling the disciples not to stare at the sky but to go down to the plain and give continuity to that new world that Jesus began.
Let us dwell upon these servants that live in this house, for they are very important. In the house of this Lord, there are only the servants, each with his or her task to perform, what the master entrusted to each one. This house is the Christian community composed only of servants; there are no masters, lords, eminences, or excellencies to be reverenced, no. Service is what characterizes the life of this house. Eminences, excellencies to be reverenced, no. Service is what distinguishes the life of this house.
How should these disciples behave if they want their master's approval when he returns from the wedding? They must always remain awake, ready to serve; they cannot fall asleep. In Greek, 'eréguein' means to watch, and this lord can come at any time; he may come at midnight or dawn when one is almost tempted to doze off.
This readiness for service is presented with two very effective images: the tunics gathered up, and the lights are always on in this house. In the East, men wore long tunics down to their feet; in the house, they left them loose, but when they went to work or on a journey, they tied the tunic around their waist to be freer in their movements. The servants in this lord's house always have their tunics drawn up. The Christian has no free moments in which he can withdraw into himself, seek his interest, be lazy, do what they like, no. If someone needs you, you should always be ready to serve.
The second image: The lamps lit. There is never the sign in this man's house: 'The light is off; do not disturb because we are resting.' He who needs knows that he can call this house because someone can perform the service he needs. And now comes the master returning from the wedding and knocks politely at the door. He doesn't open it; he asks permission to go in. What coming is it? There will be the last coming of this Lord in our lifetime. It will be the final meeting when our life is evaluated, precisely to see if it resembles his life or not, to the life of the servant, but before this final meeting, the Lord comes many times to knock at our door; he does not pass by; he knocks because we must freely open and respond to his need. Jesus is the poor brother who comes to ask us for help, who knows that we have the goods that he needs, the gifts, those treasures that God has put in our hands precisely because we must give them to our brother in need. When the brother knocks at our door, it is the time to invest our treasures, sell them, and provide them in alms.
These watchful servants deserve not one but two beatitudes from Jesus. "Blessed are the servants" is an unheard-of blessing because, in the culture of the time, the 'blessed' were the masters, not the servants. 'Blessed' means 'I congratulate you; you are beautiful and successful.' And they are awake even at night. This night could be our world wrapped up in the darkness of selfishness, the uncontrolled pursuit of possessions, power, and what is pleasing and nothing else.
On this night, those who remain awake are blessed; even if there is only darkness, they keep the lamps burning and faithfully perform their service. This beautiful beatitude is seldom mentioned: "Blessed are the servants whom the master, when he comes, finds awake."
The parable's conclusion presents one of the most touching scenes in the bible. One expects that when the master comes in, it is to be served, no. He is the one who girds his garments and places himself at the service of the servants, who now sit at the table. It is the reversal of the self-made image of God. The God of Jesus of Nazareth is the servant of the people.
Let us not do him the wrong of disfiguring his face, which makes himself a servant; we deform him. Let us turn this image upside down because the image of God to be served is diabolical. We find an equally poignant scene in the book of Revelation where it is said that God will wipe away every tear from the eyes of these servants because building love costs them toil and many tears. These goods that are evaluated and must be invested are also exposed to the danger of thieves.
In a second parable, Jesus teaches us how to protect them from thieves. Let us listen:
"Understand this well; if the master of the house knew at what hour the thief was coming, he would not let him break into his house. You also must be prepared, for the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.”
This image of the thief coming when you least expect it is unique; the rabbis never used it; instead, it has been very popular among Christians; we find it often in the New Testament. Paul uses it in his letter to the Thessalonians when he says: “You well know that the day of the Lord will come at night like a thief.” We find it also in the second letter of Peter, “the day of the Lord will come as a thief.” In the book of Revelation, the letter that the risen Lord writes to the church of Sardis, who is not watchful, says: “I will come as a thief without your knowing at what hour I will come to you.”
The image is always that of the thief. We have already mentioned the thief who surprised the foolish farmer; death took everything; he was not vigilant and had not insured his goods. This menacing thief must be considered. The best way to defend yourself against this thief is to ensure he finds nothing to carry when he arrives. Juvenal's famous address reads: "Cantabit vacuus coram latrone viator" - (A man who has nothing, has nothing to lose.) The wayfarer with nothing with him when he finds the thief sings and laughs because he can't do anything to him. At the end of life, salvation finds ourselves with nothing because all the goods God placed in our hands have been delivered to the recipients.
It is the beatitude of Jesus: blessed are the poor; congratulations to those who have been left with nothing because they have given all their goods to the poor, to the needy. However, in this parable, the image of the thief is not that of death or a threat. The gospel is good news; it is the recommendation to be alert and careful and not lose any of the opportunities of love offered to us in life.
These opportunities often present themselves suddenly, and you must know how to take care of them, so it's a very special thief who does not come to steal but to save us; he comes to protect our goods; he comes in the poor who asks for a service; we have the abilities that God has given us to give him life; it is an opportunity not to lose.
The poor save our possessions and put them safely in God because he allows us to transform them into love. The poor man does not rob us of our possessions; he saves them because he saves us in God. The community of disciples is composed only of servants; we have heard what Jesus said: 'We must always remain awake.’ But some must be more vigilant than others, and Jesus dedicates the third parable to them.
Let us listen to it:
“Then Peter said, ‘Lord, is this parable meant for us or everyone?’ And the Lord replied, ‘Who, then, is the faithful and prudent steward whom the master will put in charge of his servants to distribute the food allowance at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master finds doing so on arrival. Truly, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ he begins to beat the menservants and maidservants to eat, drink, and get drunk. That servant’s master will come on an unexpected day, punish him severely at an unknown hour, and assign him a place with the unfaithful. That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely, and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. The person entrusted with much will be required, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.”
The image of the banquet is very dear to Jesus; we often find it in the gospels. Jesus uses it mainly to emphasize that there are always two groups of people in the banquet hall. There are the guests, the people sitting or lying down waiting to be served, and then there's the second group, the servants, who are always ready to receive orders and carry them out immediately.
Here is the third parable, which is introduced by a question from Peter, who asks the Lord: “Is this parable meant for us or everyone?” Everyone should be watchful, but some must be more watchful than others, says Jesus. Someone who must be more of a servant than others. They have been put in charge of servitude because they have proven themselves to be models of service, and the master trusts them. The reference is to the leaders of the Christian community who are called "οἰκονόμος" - 'oikonomoi' - administrators, not masters, bosses, superiors, no. They are responsible for the life of the community. The term 'oikonomoi' was also used by Paul in chapter 3 of the letter to the Corinthians when he asks: 'But what has Apollos more, what has Paul more?' 'Oikonomoi' - administrators, not people with particular honorary titles. What is their task? To nourish the whole community. They must commit themselves generously and unselfishly to the service of the community.
This is the positive image of the parable. And now comes the negative image. These guides may begin to act out of self-interest and lord it over the people entrusted to them as bosses. Even in the home where all are servants, one can enter again the logic of this world, which is the one that leads to the desire to dominate, to want to prevail, to want to be served. Jesus takes this into consideration and describes it in a very stark way.
And through the words of Jesus, we grasp the denunciation that Luke is making with crude realism about the behavior of the unfaithful servants present in his communities. He is talking about people who engage in loitering and squandering, who use arrogant tones, and who behave in a despotic way. These unfortunate situations were already present in these primitive communities of Asia Minor.
Jesus recalls this danger with harsh words. The danger these people run is to find themselves at the end of life (the verb used is 'dikotomeo' - to cut in two) and to be cut in two, out of the group of disciples to be placed among the infidels. They are eminent members of the Church, yet a dramatic sentence hangs over them. Jesus regards them as failures. It is not that they will be sent to hell, no, but it will be tragic for these people to verify that they have made a mistake in interpreting the service they have been called to do in the Christian community.
The parable closes with the image of the beating. It reflects the social context in which it was used severe and even cruel punishments against those who did not fulfill their duty. Naturally, the Lord does not punish anyone. The image is intended to underline how deplorable the behavior of these community leaders is. They are in the privileged position of those who have known better than others the will of the Lord, better than those who have also been unfaithful. Their responsibility, says Jesus, is greater. We must remember this situation because we also find this danger in our lives and communities today.
I wish you all a good Sunday and a good week.
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