Archbishop of Sydney

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

St Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney
Prov 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31; 1 Thess 5:1-6; Mt 25:14-30

By + Cardinal George Pell
Archbishop of Sydney
13 November 2005

It has often been said that if you want to enter quickly into the heart of Jesus’ teachings, you begin by studying and praying over the parables.  This can be both confusing and surprising, because Our Lord was an unconventional teacher.  That was one reason why people listened to him; his enemies, the idle and the curious, religious searchers and his devoted followers.  All of them were uncertain about what he would say next, and knew that he would give them food for thought.  Many too must have been struck by the beauty of his teaching; by the way he developed the Jewish tradition, often drawing together elements which had been isolated and unconnected e.g. linking the idea of the suffering servant and redemption.

We cannot focus excessively, much less exclusively on any one particular parable to the detriment of the others.  Jesus’ parables are meant to be considered as a whole, together with all his teachings.  But the parable of the talents still remains for me one of the most distinctive elements in Our Lord’s teaching.  In the eyes of Christ it is not important whether we are champions, whether we are in the middle of the field, or whether our capacities are limited, perhaps because of unfortunate circumstances.  What is important for Jesus, and therefore for God Himself, is that we use well what we have.  Therefore in the supernatural grading order a lazy person with great talents, who gets by well enough in the eyes of the world, would rank below a much less gifted person who worked hard with what he had.  Neither do I believe that Our Lord is only talking about secular advantages, such as wealth, a good education, high intelligence or personal attributes e.g. in the arts or sports.

I believe that Our Lord is also talking about spiritual and personal gifts.  Therefore much more is expected in God’s eyes from someone who has grown up in a good family (imperfect like every family, but where the parents really love and effectively protect and serve their children), where the faith is practised and valued and where the children have received good example and regular love.  A person who grows up to abandon these standards, because “everyone is doing the wrong thing”, will be much less equipped to plead his cause before God the Eternal Judge, than someone who grew up with few family advantages and overcame these problems to make a good contribution.

There is some debate among the experts about the persons Jesus is addressing.  Some suggest that the target audience is only the scribes and Pharisees, many of whom were Jesus’ opponents and often well placed in society.  Other experts suggest that Our Lord is speaking to his own disciples, insisting that they do their best.  But I believe that while Jesus would have been speaking to a particular crowd of listeners he was giving teaching to us all; just as he was when he told everyone to love their enemies.

Part of this teaching has been taken by St. Paul in his letter to the Romans (12:4-7) where we are urged to use the different gifts we have been given as teachers, or prophets, or ministers for the good of the Body of Christ.

Perhaps three other points can be made to clarify Jesus’ teachings further.

We should not conclude that we are being urged to do the right thing so we shall be rewarded.  The element of judgement which brings reward or punishment is essential to the parable, (the good tree is to bear good fruit), but the motivation is to serve God in other people, for our love to be active in the service of others, helping meet their needs.

The strangest aspect of the story is Jesus’ claim that he who has will receive more, while the man who has next to nothing will lose even that.  While life is often like this, it does not seem fair and it is even stranger that Our Lord seems to be endorsing these developments.

The man with one talent is not all bad, because he was not disobedient or rebellious; he did not waste his money, but simply did next to nothing.  Perhaps he is like a selfish person who strives not to sin, but does not help anyone, because he is thinking of himself and not of God or other people.

In ordinary life if we have a particular skill or capacity, we have to use it or it becomes weaker and weaker.  “Use it or lose it” is a slogan we understand.  So too with faith and love.  If we never pray, if we never help others but think only of ourselves, we come closer and closer to being faithless and loveless:  This is the best explanation I can find for the claim that we cannot stand still, but either progress or regress.

And a final point, the parable is about the kingdom of heaven and the landowner is a figure of God once again Jesus’ imagery is remarkable here because the landowner is regarded as a hard man who reaps where he has not sown and gathers where he has not scattered.  It parallels his stories of the unjust judge and the servant who halves his master’s debts for his own purposes.

All those examples are provocative contrasts to Jesus’ central message to pray and trust God, to use God’s gifts in courage and freedom because God is merciful, loving, and to be trusted; trusted to reward us when we consistently do what we can with what we have.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen