33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time (A)

• Lectionary Readings from the USCCB

The first reading for Mass this Sunday, from Proverbs 31, always makes me smile because it reminds me of my wife. Praising a “worthy wife,” it says, “She obtains wool and flax and works with loving hands. She puts her hands to the distaff, and her fingers ply the spindle” (Prv 31:13, 19). You see, my wife is a fibre artist. She knows how to spin wool, knit, crochet, and sew. So when I read these words, it makes me think of her and her skills.

But that is her. She has certain talents and interests, as we all do. Some people are very adept at the domestic arts. Other people are more inclined to business, or to academics. What makes the wife in Proverbs 31 so blessed is not her skill at the spindle but her love of God and service to others (Prv 31:30).

Our gospel this Sunday (Mt 25:14-30) tells the parable of the talents; three servants are each entrusted with different amounts of talents (a coin worth a great deal) by their master and are praised or chastised according to how they used them. This parable teaches us how we are called to use our various talents — whatever they may be — in the service of the Lord.