Friday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s Reflection
Gospel: Mt 25: 1-13
September 1, 2023 | Friday
This story throws light on what will happen in the kingdom of heaven: Ten bridesmaids went out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were sensible.
The careless bridesmaids took their lamps as they were, and did not take extra oil. But those who were sensible, took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom delayed, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep.
But at midnight, a cry rang out, ‘The bridegroom is here, come out and meet him!’ All the maidens woke up at once, and trimmed their lamps. Then the foolish ones said to the sensible ones, ‘Give us some oil, for our lamps are going out.’ The sensible ones answered, ‘There may not be enough for us and for you. You had better go to those who sell, and buy some for yourselves.’
When the bridegroom came, the foolish maidens were out buying oil, but those who were ready went with him into the wedding feast, and the doors were shut.
Later the other bridesmaids arrived and called out, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ But he answered, ‘Truly I do not know you.’
So stay awake, for you do not know the day nor the hour.
Today’s Reflection:
The universal call for every believer is to be holy. St. Paul expresses this clearly in today’s first reading. And this call to holiness of life is the best way for every follower of Christ to prepare for His arrival just like the prepared bridesmaids in the Gospel. Doing acts of kindness, no matter how little and simple they may seem, will contribute so much in one’s endeavor to be holy. Nonetheless, the struggle to be good is real.
Every person constantly faces temptation in life. It really is a great task for goodness to be chosen in every circumstance. Yet, amidst all this, God’s grace is always sufficient to fight and win against the enemy. Being ready through a holy way of life is the message in the readings of today. May we all prepare well to meet the Lord, not just at the last moments of our lives, but even in the present. /Vulnerasti, 2023
