Matthew 25:1-13

Gospel according to Matthew 25:1-13

Jesus spoke this parable to his disciples: “The kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five of them were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. “But at midnight, there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! There will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him to the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. “Later, the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you; I do not know you.’ Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

Reflections

Oil lamps in Jesus’ time were the main form of producing light at night. They were made from clay, with a cloth wick that was dipped in olive oil. When the wick was lit, it burned for an average of about three hours. After that, the light went out, the lamp had to be re-filled with oil and the wick lit again to burn and give light.

Jesus took this everyday object, found in every household, and used daily, to illustrate essential wisdom about keeping on the right path to enter the kingdom of heaven.

The bridesmaids were honored by the invitation to wait for the bridegroom to be allowed into the banquet hall. Their responsibility was to tend their lamps and to make sure that they had enough oil to burn through the long hours of the night. To have enough oil, it was not enough to carry only what was already inside the oil lamp, they had to buy additional oil to take with them in flasks so that they could re-fill their lamps and keep the light burning through the night. The wise bridesmaids had gone to the dealers and bought oil in advance. They carried the extra oil in flasks, in addition to their lamps. The foolish bridesmaids did not care to prepare themselves and to plan how they would keep their light burning through the night. They did not buy additional oil and did not carry extra oil with them. They had no way to re-fill their lamps.

Since the bridegroom was late, after a few hours or so in the darkness, the light of all the lamps started to go out. To make matters worse, all the bridesmaids were resting and waiting, until a shout suddenly sounded, announcing the arrival of the bridegroom. The bridesmaids hastily got ready and arranged their lamps to be ready. Those that had an extra flask of oil poured it into their lamps and lit the wick. The ones who did not have extra oil with them started to beg those who were re-filling their lamps to share some of the oil with them. If they had shared their oil, perhaps there would have been light for all the lamps for some time. However, the light would not have lasted through the night. At some point, all the light would have gone out of all the lamps before dawn.

The wise therefore said to the others to go and fetch some oil for themselves from the dealers. Alas, by the time those made it to the dealers, managed to buy oil for themselves, and come back, the bridegroom had already called those who were present to enter. The doors were closed, and the celebration started. Whoever was late was no longer allowed in. The bridegroom did see those who were late but did not recognize them. They were not let in because they were not part of the group who entered with him. When they kept insisting on being let in, he said to these bridesmaids who arrived late that he did not know them. As a result, the doors remained shut and they were not allowed in.

Being ready, in this parable means to be responsible for the oil lamp and to be disciplined to keep it in good working order. The bridesmaids had to plan how they would wait for the bridegroom and how much oil they would need to last through the night. They carried extra oil in flasks, in addition to their lamp, which made their load heavier.

That the bridegroom arrived late was not the reason that the foolish bridesmaids did not have enough oil in their lamps. They did not have enough oil because they did not plan well. They chose not to buy enough oil to last through the night in advance, or if they did, they chose not to bring the extra oil with them to refill their lamps. They travelled lighter and easier than those who carried the weight of the extra oil in flasks, in addition to their lamp. They thought that they would ask the others who had enough oil for the entire night to share some of their oil with them when they realized that extra oil would be required for their light to last through the night. However, those who had enough oil knew that if they give some of their oil away, there will not be enough for them or the ones who they share the oil with. This was the natural consequence of the physical and chemical laws of how their lamps operated. They could give only so much light for so long, with a certain amount of oil, and no more.

The wise bridesmaids understood the limitations of their lamps. They respected those limitations and planned how they would refill their lamps. Their lamps gave enough light for the entire night.

The foolish bridesmaids ignored the consequences of their decisions. They wanted to demand from the others the oil that they could not give. Furthermore, when they arrived back from the dealers and refilled their lamps, they demanded to be let in.

One cannot but feel sorry for the foolish bridesmaids. While all the bridesmaids became tired and rested while waiting for the bridegroom, those who planned ahead and acted responsibly by buying their oil in advance, bringing it with them, knowing that at some point they will need it to refill their lamps, were ready much faster than those who still had to go and buy it. Those who planned and acted responsibly, even though this took more effort, had an advantage over those who did not.

How could this parable apply to us?

1. Everyone in life is welcome and invited.

Like the bridesmaids, we are invited and wanted in life. We do not know how long we have to wait until the doors are open and we will enter the heavenly kingdom. In other words, we do not know how short or long our lives may be. Regardless of the length, we are entrusted with tasks specific to our abilities.

2. Everyone is endowed with freedom of will to respond.

The bridesmaids were free to respond to the invitation to attend the feast. It was up to them to respond, to tend their lamps and to buy enough oil to last through the night. Just like bridesmaids, we are free to respond to being invited, but we are not forced to respond. It is up to us whether we decide to take good care of our lamps or not. Response-ability requires that we act responsibly and tend our lamps, the instrument which serves to accomplish the mission of illuminating the darkness.

3. Responding the right way requires making responsible decisions.

To enter, the bridesmaids had to fulfill certain conditions. They had to take good care of their oil lamp and make sure that they had enough oil to fuel the wick. The parable tells us that we have to plan our actions so that there is enough sustenance for our mission. In other words, we have to lead our lives in a foresightful fashion, keeping ourselves physically, mentally fit and spiritually agile to accomplish the everyday tasks that are entrusted to us. Through collaborating with the invitation to respond, accomplishing our mission day by day and step by step, leads to the door of the kingdom of heaven.