For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him

 

 Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.  Therefore He said:  "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.  So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, 'Do business till I come.'  But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.'  And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.  Then came the first, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned ten minas.'  And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.'   And the second came, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned five minas.'  Likewise he said to him, 'You also be over five cities.'  Then another came, saying, 'Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief.  For I feared you, because you are an austere man.  You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.'   And he said to him, 'Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant.  You knew that I was an austere man, collecting what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow.  Why then did you not put my money in the bank, that at my coming I might have collected it with interest?'  And he said to those who stood by, 'Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.'  (But they said to him, 'Master, he has ten minas.')  For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.'"

 

- Luke 19:11–27 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus entered and passed through Jericho, on His way toward Jerusalem.  Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich.  And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature.  So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way.  And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house."  So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully.  But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, "He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner."  Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor, and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold."  And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."

 

  Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.  Let us first observe that the parable given in today's reading is given in response to the disciples' understanding that the kingdom of God would appear immediately as Jesus would enter Jerusalem.  So the parable is meant to illustrate this time in which we await Christ's second coming.

Therefore He said:  "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.  So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, 'Do business till I come.'  But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.'  And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading."  This parable (similarly to the parable given in Matthew 25:14-30, in which the sums given are talents, the name of a large currency) is meant to illustrate the use of gifts which are given to us by God.  A mina was a unit of currency worth about one sixth of a talent, still a large sum of money.  My study bible says this money (or rather a unit of weight of precious metal) represents the goodness God has bestowed on each person.  According to Wikipedia, one mina would have been equivalent to the purchasing power of the wages of a worker for one quarter of a year.

"And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.  Then came the first, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned ten minas.'  And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.'   And the second came, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned five minas.'  Likewise he said to him, 'You also be over five cities.'  Then another came, saying, 'Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief.  For I feared you, because you are an austere man.  You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.'   And he said to him, 'Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant.  You knew that I was an austere man, collecting what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow.  Why then did you not put my money in the bank, that at my coming I might have collected it with interest?'  And he said to those who stood by, 'Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.'  (But they said to him, 'Master, he has ten minas.')  For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.'"   My study Bible says that the wicked servant could not evade responsibility for ignoring the gift of the mina given to him, as idleness is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness.  To put away the mina in a handkerchief symbolizes using one's gifts for earthly purposes:  the word for handkerchief, in the context of the time, was used either for wiping fluids such as persperation for the body, or even more to the point, it meant a death shroud for burial.  The bankers, my study Bible says, represent other faithful people to whom the man could have turned to help him use his gift wisely.  Since help was available to him in the Church, this man doesn't have an excuse.

When Jesus tells this story in Matthew's Gospel, He uses the currency of talents, which was a larger sum than the mina.  (This does not change the meaning of the story, however.)  But it is from this story that we get the current popular meaning of the word "talent" in English.  The gifts of God include all the capacities we have, whatever their nature.  That would include our energy, capacity for work, for thinking, creativity, and an unnamable number of additional capabilities.  The story clearly sets out our personalities and aspects of our talents as gifts.   That is, gifts which are given from God.  A good servant would be a disciple of Christ, who uses their lives and individual unique abilities for the kingdom of God, in pursuit of their faith.  Recently I read of a woman, Ann Russell Miller, who led a rather remarkable life.  When she was young, she wanted to be a Roman Catholic nun.  But she fell in love with a man and was married.  He became the Vice President of Pacific Gas & Electric Company, a public utility that served the state of California.  She had ten children, was a socialite known for her entertainment skills, many friends, and philanthropy.  She also smoked, drank, and played cards.  But after her husband died, she realized her ambition to become a nun.  After giving away all of her possessions, she became a cloistered nun, known as Sister Mary Joseph.  She is quoted as saying that she had devoted her first 30 years of life to herself, the second 30 to her children and that the last third of her life would be dedicated to God.  But I would venture to say that such a life is possible to have been lived faithfully all along, with each season of life devoted to that which she felt God had guided her at that time.  It is but one example of the power of life and the gifts that we're given.  The variety and uniqueness of her life is a statement about the variety of gifts and uniqueness of each life.   Although in some ways one could call her life conventional, in other ways it certainly was not, and is stamped with the uniqueness of conviction to live with the fullness of capacities God had given her, whether that was to bear and raise children, to support others with philanthropy, and I would say even a life in which her many friends played a role.  I can't venture to know all of her personal motivations, but it would seem to me that each life must be carved out in the unique way one is led to use talents and capacities through faith, regardless of what that looks like.  This woman does not strike me as having buried her talent or "mina" in a handkerchief, a slave to the world and to convention or selfish materialism.  The saints that we know in the Church are each unique, with great potency of personality, and the expression of faith as borne out in their lives, and this is something important to remember.  To pursue a life of holiness is all about allowing God to help us understand how to express our faith in ways pleasing to God, and that simply won't look identical for every person, but will be a path that is meant to teach that the uniqueness with which our Creator has endowed us is meant for expression of our love of God in the world.   Ann Russell Miller became Sister Mary Joseph in one of the strictest cloistered monasteries, with very little contact with the outside world.  On the other hand, I offer the example of the various podcasts and internet posts of Sister Vassa, an Orthodox nun found at this site.   Although having been a committed nun from a very young age, Sister Vassa reaches out to the world through modern media, and expresses her faith in this way.  She also shows us the uniqueness of persona and a life lived in commitment and expression of her faith to the world in ways that benefit others.  I might offer one more unique life of a woman whom I know in Athens, Greece, who serves as the custodian of a tiny ancient church in the center of the metropolis.  She's an extremely humble person, but thousands of people come to her and speak of their lives and their unique problems.  She offers each a space of sanctuary, prayer, and seems to know each one personally, with a great gift of love and consoling.  As Sister Mary Joseph, the former Ann Russell Miller prays for the world inside the sanctuary of the monastery; Sister Vassa lives a life of prayer, and also uses her unique position to help teach others about prayer.  My friend whom I shall not publicize sits through all the prayers and hears the problems and circumstances of so many who come to pray and find sanctuary and faith in the tiny but powerful church, and her heart offers wisdom.  These are just three examples of lives lived in pursuit of faith and the use of capacities and talents in service of that faith, and each woman is striking for her uniqueness and individuality in doing so.  Let us contrast the mina hidden in a "handkerchief" in the parable -- possibly meaning a shroud covering one who has died -- with the vibrant, expressive, and creative variety of the  lives of these women who serve as but two examples of those who lived in ways that expressed their faith.  It remains my observation that the energy which God gives us in faith serves as a kind of light of uniqueness, each set of potential "talents" having its own expression that lights up the world with color and variety and intelligence.  Let us remember our own capacity for love will also be expressed in unique ways as given by God and is part of a "talent set."  Let us consider what it means to be a good servant, each in our own way with what we've been given.