HOMILY for Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. Nov 12, 202

 HOMILY for Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time.  Nov 12, 2023  

Last Sunday I had the pleasure of attending the Court of Honor for Tyler Giesler   EAGLE badge.

Any Eagle Scouts with us today??     I never made it that far.   I was a little too anti-establishment back in those days. 

In any case,    ..   Boy Scout motto????:  BE PREPARED!

I mention all this because that brief motto could be the motto for our Gospel today.  BE PREPARED!

Jesus tells us a rather odd story about ten young ladies who were, what we would today call bridesmaids, but what he calls virgins.  They are waiting for the groom and the bridal party to show up at the banqueting hall. 

Five of them apparently were Scouts and were prepared by bringing extra oil with them, and five foolishly did not think ahead, and brought no oil with them.

The groom finally arrives.  Those whose lights were shining went into the feast, and the others got left out in the dark.

What are we to make of this odd story???  …

Well, how is your oil supply?  …  The point is not really about oil however, it is about keeping your light shining.  It is all about LIGHT.  Earlier in Matthew’s Gospel Jesus told us; “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”    

Remember that?   It’s not the oil that is important, but rather the light.  This is about being prepared to keep your light shining brightly.

This is, I believe, about actively looking for opportunities and occasions to do good and so let your light shine.

Opportunities to do good are all around us.  For example, let’s say you are driving in rush hour traffic and the cars are backed up at the stop light.  Some person is trying to make a left hand turn out of side street.  So instead of pulling up immediately behind the car in front of you and blocking the cross street, you stop to let the other person out, since you are not going anywhere anyway.  Your light just shone.

Or you ride one of the ubiquitous scooters around campus.  You arrive at your destination.  Instead of leaving the scooter in the middle of the sidewalk where it is an obstacle to people in wheelchairs, or on crutches, or pushing a baby buggy, instead you put the scooter off to the side, leaving the sidewalk clear.  Your light just shone.

You take time to call a relative or neighbor who is lonely.  You offer assistance to a co-worker who is having a bad day.  You smile at a person panhandling on the street.  You say “Thank You” when it isn’t expected.  In each case your light just shone. 

When the opportunity presents itself, when the long delayed groom finally arrives, be prepared to let your light shine.

Jesus tells us today: “Therefore, stay awake,…”   Stay awake to the opportunities and possibilities of doing good, of helping others, of making your light shine. 

And then the Lord will surely say, “I know you.”    AMEN.