by Father Alonzo Cox
A few years ago, I had the great privilege of traveling to Italy on pilgrimage with about 50 others. The stops on the pilgrimage were some of the usual destinations: Rome, Assisi, Sienna, Milan, and ending in Venice.
It had been a while since I had been to Italy, so I was very much looking forward to getting reacquainted with the cities and
having the opportunity to spend some time in prayer at these beautiful churches.
One of my favorite cities is Assisi. Having been assigned to the parish of St. Clare as a newly ordained, the city of Assisi took on a special place in my heart.
As you may know, the poverty level in Assisi is quite high. As soon as you leave the train station, poor families are out pleading for money. As in most of the cities in Italy, it is heartbreaking to see children in tattered clothes sleeping outside in very cold weather.
In my many previous trips, I have made it a custom to have some extra pocket change available to give when I am approached by these families.
As I was walking to the basilica, a young brother and sister approached me with their heads bowed. Assuming they were asking for some pocket change, I reached into my pocket. The young boy said to me in English, “No, Father, we don’t want money, just a blessing.”
After bestowing my blessing upon them, they walked away. It was at that moment that I realized I gave them something that was worth more than all the money in the world: God’s abundant blessing.
I think of that encounter as we reflect upon our Scripture readings for this Sunday. God is so good to us that he provides for all our needs. God blesses us abundantly with the gifts we need to continue the journey of walking with his son, Jesus.
We hear in today’s Gospel the parable of the servants being given “talents.” These talents can be seen as monetary, but are ultimately looked at as gifts from God.
We see how the first two servants are able to multiply the talents given to them by the master. With tremendous joy, they go back to the master and tell him how they were able to abundantly multiply these gifts given to them. The third servant, though, does the complete opposite.
He buries the talent given to him by the master so that it would not multiply. It has no opportunity to grow or flourish, because it was buried by the servant. We see that the talents left behind by the master to the servants are divine wisdom.
As disciples of Christ, we wait in joyful hope for the coming of the Lord. As we wait for that day, we are called to share that wisdom with others. We must multiply generosity, forgiveness, compassion, and mercy.
All of this has been given to us by God, ultimately to be shared with all our brothers and sisters. These talents are much more than money; they are blessings of God’s mercy and forgiveness.
St. Paul reminds us in his Letter to the Thessalonians that the Lord will come like a thief in the night. It sounds a bit scary, but it is the truth. We know neither the day nor the hour, but we know that the Lord is coming.
We must not give in to fear, for we are children of light. It is the light of Christ that dispels the darkness of this world. We are witnesses of the light of Christ in our lives.
As followers of Christ, we are called to share the gift of Christ, coming in glory and majesty, with others and to let it shine brightly for all the world to see.
Just as the servants are given talents, each of us is given those same talents. Let’s not keep them to ourselves or bury them, but share them with the poor and the poor in spirit.
Our goal here on this earth is to prepare for the kingdom that awaits us, which is heaven. It is in that kingdom where all of us will share in our master’s joy.
Readings for the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Proverbs 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31
1 Thessalonians 5:1-6
Matthew 25:14-30 or Matthew 25:14-15, 19-21
Father Alonzo Cox is pastor of St. Martin de Porres Parish, Bedford-Stuyvesant, and coordinator for the Vicariate of Black Catholic Concerns for the Diocese of Brooklyn.