Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord

St. Philothei of Athens icon,  Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens, Greece

"For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents;  look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' "

- Matthew 25:14-30

In yesterday's reading, and in the context of His Second Coming and the end times, Jesus told the parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins:  "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight a cry was heard:  'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!'  Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'  But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.'  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!'  But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.'  Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."

"For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents;  look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' "   My study bible tells us that this parable is meant to illustrate the use of the gifts given to us by God.  A talent was a very large sum of money.  (According to Wikipedia, approximately 130 pounds or 59 kilograms of precious metal such as silver or gold.)   Here, the talent represents the goodness which God has bestowed on each person.  It is because of this parable that "talent" has come to have its current meaning in English.  The amount each receives is based on that person's abilities (Romans 12:4-7).  My study bible says that God does not show partiality in the ultimate reward, as all are invited to share in the same joy in the parable.  It says that the wicked and lazy servant could not evade responsibility for ignoring his talent, as idleness is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness.   To bury his talent in the ground, my study bible says, is an illustration of using God-given talents for earthly pursuits.  Bankers represent other faithful people to whom the man could have turned to help him use his talents wisely.  Since help was available to him in the Church, it says, the man has no excuse.

What is a talent?  In ancient times, a talent (from τάλαντον/talanton in the Greek, pl. talanta) was a measure of weight.  It later came to be monetized, assigned as a measure of money or wealth.  What seems to be indicated in the parable is just how much freedom is given to each servant in the use of the talent or talents entrusted to them.   Each one must find their own opportunities for using it wisely and growing it; each must think on his or her own in terms of how this will be done.  The opportunity for creativity, use of skills and intelligence, and diligent hard work is wide open.  So it is also with using our own talents.  There is nothing written in stone about how we are best to serve God.  We are each given capabilities, each has a unique life with unique opportunities, and most especially the ability to think and to create:  therefore each one is entrusted with initiative.  Plus, let us take note that there is help available in the figure of the bankers in the parable, which my study bible says indicates the Church.  We always have those around us who can help to pray for wisdom, discernment, and inspiration, who can give advice from experience.  And these "bankers" also extend to the saints who pray with us, to the whole history of the Church and those who have served.  There is plenty of wisdom and help to go around, to which we also may contribute with our own lives and our own efforts.  As human beings, we are endowed with these marvelous gifts of creative capacity, talent, ability, hard work, intelligence -- and we are also gifted within the Church and its wealth of such who are fellow faithful as well as those who have come before.  When we pray, we pray with the entire communion of saints, including the angels who also represent help in their ministry to us.  In this context, it becomes frustrating and confusing to be confronted with those who would insist that there is only one way to properly use a talent or a gift or to serve God.  Like the servant who buries his talent in the ground, we may come to encounter a type of moralism that does not recognize the true abundance of gifts were given nor the creativity and initiative within which God gives us the ability to live our faith and so contribute to the entirety of the Church.  Jesus addresses this very subject when He defends John the Baptist, and tells the people that "wisdom is justified by her children."  Note that in Luke's Gospel, that reads, "all her children."  (See Matthew 11:18-19, Luke 7:34-35.)   No one could be more different in outward appearance than Jesus and John the Baptist, in terms of each one's ministries.  The Jewish leaders condemn both, but for different, opposite reasons.  And yet Jesus puts the two into perspective as both justifying Wisdom in their works, each part of the outpouring work of the Holy Spirit in the world, each one in the lineage of God's work.  No two saints look exactly alike, each having the dynamism of unique personalities and ways of serving God.  It is the lazy servant who buries his or her talent in the ground and is afraid to do anything who fails in this parable.  Let us note that the returning master does not require our labors nor profits to be stupendous to give us a reward.  Our faith, even in a few things, is worthy.  He says to his profitable servants, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things."   The least each of us can do is to seek wisdom and understanding by studying the lives of the saints and the Scriptures, the history of the Church, and in particular through prayer and the experience of others who will also help to pray for us.  This is an active ministry that Christ offers to each of us in which to participate to the fullest of our abilities.  Let us remember that prayer is also a way of actively using talent and abilities and intelligence, of seeking wisdom through which we live and express our faith.  God calls us, by the examples in this parable, to the responsibility and capacity to contribute that involves initiative and a voluntary response to that which God has entrusted to us.  This is a high calling indeed.  For consideration of the wealth in the Church for how to use and invest our talents, I invite readers to contemplate the icon above of St. Philothei of Athens, who lived in the 16th century, when Athens was under Ottoman rule.   She was born into a wealthy family, and upon inheritance of this wealth she chose a monastic life for herself, taking the name Philothei which means "Friend of God."  She established monasteries and schools to train both boys and girls.  She also founded hospices, homes for the elderly, establishments for training in handiwork, weaving, housekeeping and cooking, and stalls for selling goods so that both those she helped and also her monasteries and charities could be self-sufficient.  Among the many charitable acts she initiated, she took in those who had been made slaves by the Ottomans, including in particular young women placed into harems who sought refuge.  She purchased freedom for many by paying ransoms and bribes, and helped them to escape to territories outside the city when they were hunted.  Her monasteries were continually raided and plundered.  She was beaten by authorities, which happened on more than one occasion, and also imprisoned for her active work in securing freedom for Greeks who had been made slaves by the Ottomans.   For this work she was increasingly hated.  She died a martyr due to injuries from one such beating by mercenaries (depicted in the icon) on February 19, 1589, and is commemorated on February 19.  A district of Athens is named after her, and in particular much of central Athens owes its names and history to the land she had converted for the use of her monasteries and charities for the people of the city.