Reflection
The Gospel passage of today is a powerful preaching by Jesus on the need to remain ready for His second coming. Chapter 24 of the Gospel of Matthew begins with Jesus addressing His disciples on the destruction of the Jerusalem temple and continues with Jesus further explaining the forthcoming persecutions and calamities that were to be befall. With this background, Jesus speaks of the need to be watchful at all times and explicates it with the help of the parable of the unfaithful servant.
One of the important realities of human life is unexpectedness.
Unexpectedness strikes at many turns of life. An unexpected sickness or disease which pushes people into the pit of anxiety and worry and Jesus tells us today to stay awake. We do not know when the Lord will come. Just as a master may return at an unexpected hour, the important moments of life can also come without warning. The faithful servant does not wait until the master returns to begin his work. He continues to serve every day.
Christian watchfulness does not mean sitting and waiting anxiously but it means living faithfully every day.
We need to be vigilant in being faithful to God and one another. The master in the parable might remind us of Jesus, who will one day return in glory to judge the living and the dead. But while he is away, he has entrusted us to carry on his work and this charge applies to all of us. Each of us is called to serve God in a way that reflects Jesus’ selfless love, both in our everyday relationships and as we care for one another.
Today the Church keeps the memorial of St. Monica, an exemplary mother saint, who was ever vigilant in interceding for her child to get back to the ways of the Lord. She becomes an example for us to be always on the watch and wait in patience and hope. Her prayers bore fruit in St. Augustine, the great saint and doctor of the Church. Let us thank God for calling us to be servants.
