The story of the Foolish and the Wise Virgins can be difficult for us in the 21st century to fully appreciate. Not only do we not understand the wedding customs themselves, the actions of the Wise Virgins seem rather selfish: why wouldn’t they just share with the Foolish Virgins and then everyone could go to the wedding and have a good time? If the point of the story was to encourage sharing, then that’s probably how Jesus would have ended it. But the point is to tell us that we must be patiently prepared for the coming of our bridegroom—Jesus himself.

The oil in the story represents the light of faith as it applies to good works and charity. And while there are many things we can do in pursuit of our spiritual life that we can share with others, there are certain things that we can do only for ourselves: things that build up the oil in our own lives—like reading the Scripture, attending Mass, and offering up our daily sacrifices. No one can do those things for us… and we can’t do them for anyone else.

As we read this week’s Gospel, we are reminded that although we are all invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb, we must do our part by being ready at all times to meet the bridegroom, who will come like “a thief in the night.” We must make sure that we have sufficient “oil” to light the lamps of our lives because no one can give us that “oil” at the last minute.

This wasn’t an easy teaching to accept in Jesus’ day, and it’s no easier today. We all have the tendency to want to be recognized, to be important, to be respected. But Jesus says that if we want to be elevated in the sight of God, we need to humble ourselves in the sight of men. It is only when we recognize hypocrisy in ourselves and take steps to root it out that we can begin to allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, changing us and the world we live in.

First Reading: 

Zechariah 9:9–1

The Book of Wisdom, like Proverbs, continually invites us to seek out wisdom. Wisdom is a virtue and a gift. It is not merely a clever way of thinking but encompasses the whole of living, thinking, and deciding in accord with God’s plan. Here, wisdom is personified as a woman, and the passages invites us to seek her with a succession of verbs. We are to love her, seek her, desire her, watch for her, find her, set our hearts on her, and keep vigil for her. All of these verbs are about whole-hearted devotion to the Lord. We need to seek wisdom, not because she is lost, but because we are. We need her guidance, and so we must seek her out. We should keep an eye out for her at morning and at night, as if we were holding a perpetual vigil for her, always ready to do her bidding. This sense of anticipation and vigil-keeping will recur in the second reading and the Gospel, where God calls us to keep vigil for Wisdom Incarnate, Jesus himself. In return for our vigil-keeping, Wisdom will make herself known to us, sit at the gate for us, seek us out, appear to us, and meet us. In ancient times, people would sit at the gate of the city for conversation, and so wisdom will make herself accessible to those willing to look for her. If we respond to God’s grace with open hearts, then he will come to meet us, welcome us, and reveal himself to us. It is encouraging to think that the pursuit of wisdom is a two-way street—if we seek her, she will seek us.
 

Second Reading: 
Thessalonians 4: 13–18

We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, about those who have fallen asleep, so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus, bring with him those who have fallen asleep. Death comes to visit each of our families. At first glance, death seems like the worst catastrophe we could possibly experience. When it befalls those near to us, we can lose hope and feel its awful sting. The early Christians were no different. After hearing Paul preach about the resurrection of the dead and the Second Coming of Jesus, they began to think that no Christian would die before the end of all things. Then, when some of them did die, they became worried that the deceased Christians had missed the boat and lost their chance at salvation. While Paul acknowledges that some believers will be alive when Jesus returns (v. 15), he encourages those who have lost hope: those who have “fallen asleep” as Christians will rise from the dead to greet Christ at his glorious return. We therefore have great hope not only for ourselves, but for our Christian family members and friends who have died. When Jesus returns, “the dead in Christ will rise first” (v. 16), and then the rest of us. Paul depicts the Second Coming in simple but rich terms that recall Mt. Sinai: a word, an angel’s voice, a trumpet, and the Lord’s descent. In the beauty and power of the moment, w e will be caught up to meet him in the air. Then the best par t: we will be with him forever! When we profess our belief in the Lord’ s return and the resurrection of the dead, w e acknowledge that Earth is not our true homeland. Only in that great, final “family reunion” of the resurrection will we really feel at home—at home with Jesus forever in Heaven.
 

Gospel: 
Matthew 25:1–13

We typically hate being caught off-guard. In fact, much of our life is about preparation and planning: we schedule events on our calendar; we buy groceries in advance; we dress differently for different activities. Being prepared for life is an essential component of life. Jesus, however, will point us beyond our day-to-day preparations to emphasize how prepared we should be for that final meeting, when he returns as the bridegroom-king. Jesus teaches us with the parable of the ten virgins—attendants waiting for the wedding feast to begin. After much delay and naptaking, the bridegroom finally arrives on the scene. Sadly, half of the virgins are caught unawares. They have run out of oil for their lamps. These foolish virgins represent Christians who are not prepared for the Lord’s return. Some scholars see the oil as symbolizing the righteous deeds of believers, which the foolish virgins have failed to do. On the other hand, the wise virgins have been “keeping vigil” for Wisdom (see Wisdom 6:15) and are ready for his arrival. They are invited into the wedding while the others are stranded outside. The interpretation is simple: we want to be ready, awake, and vigilant for the return of Jesus in order that we might enter into the eternal wedding feast of the Lamb. The finality of eternal punishment is terrifying, but the irrevocability of eternal life is tantalizing. Our hope is in the Lord, not in ourselves, yet we participate in our own redemption and spiritual growth by our moral action. If we neglect the “oil” of doing good, we will fall into {the “sleepiness” of sin.

DIGGING DEEPER
Wedding Customs

Knowing a bit about ancient Jewish wedding customs is key to understanding some of the imagery in Jesus’ teaching. In that time, a young man would pay a bride’s father a sum of money and sign a betrothal contract. From that point on, the union can be dissolved only by divorce, but the couple does not live together. This is the state Mary and Joseph were in at the time of the Annunciation. During the time of betrothal, the groom prepares a place for his bride, often by adding a room onto his father’s house. This may take up to seven years, during which time the bride must be ever ready for his return, which always takes place at night. He will then come with great fanfare, accompanied by his family and friends to take his bride to their new residence

Reprinted from  Opening the Word at Formed.org .
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