Engage in trade with these until I return

2 Mac 7,1.20-31; Ps 16; Lk 19,11-28
20 NOVEMBER

When the Lord created man, he assigned him the fruits that he would have had to produce with his life. God made him lord not in his place, but lord from the Lord at the service of the Lord to make his creation more beautiful and harmonious.

Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals and all the creatures that crawl on the ground.” God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying: “Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth” (Gen 1,26-28).

In the second chapter, together with this command, which is specified as cultivation and garden custody, there is a second one. If man wants to be lord of life he must obey his prohibition not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil that is in the centre of the garden. Otherwise he would introduce the germ of death in his nature and throughout creation.

The Lord God then took the man and settled him in the garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for it. The Lord God gave man this order: “You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and bad. From that tree you shall not eat; the moment you eat from it you are surely doomed to die” (Gen 2,15-17).

The parable of Jesus clearly and explicitly recaptures the end of man’s creation. God created man with a clear mission. This mission must be lived fully. Every gift of God must be put to use. The life of all humanity and also of the earth and of all that is in it depends on the well-ordered development of what has been commanded. Those who do not obey might not live in God’s house tomorrow.

While they were listening to him speak, he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near Jerusalem and they thought that the kingdom of God would appear there immediately. So he said, “A nobleman went off to a distant country to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return. He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins and told them, ‘Engage in trade with these until I return.’ His fellow citizens, however, despised him and sent a delegation after him to announce, ‘We do not want this man to be our king.’ But when he returned after obtaining the kingship, he had the servants called, to whom he had given the money, to learn what they had gained by trading. The first came forward and said, ‘Sir, your gold coin has earned ten additional ones.’ He replied, ‘Well done, good servant! You have been faithful in this very small matter; take charge of ten cities.’ Then the second came and reported, ‘Your gold coin, sir, has earned five more.’

And to this servant too he said, ‘You, take charge of five cities.’ Then the other servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your gold coin; I kept it stored away in a handkerchief, for I was afraid of you, because you are a demanding person; you take up what you did not lay down and you harvest what you did not plant.’ He said to him, ‘With your own words I shall condemn you, you wicked servant. You knew I was a demanding person, taking up what I did not lay down and harvesting what I did not plant; why did you not put my money in a bank? Then on my return I would have collected it with interest.’ And to those standing by he said, ‘Take the gold coin from him and give it to the servant who has ten.’ But they said to him, ‘Sir, he has ten gold coins.’ ‘I tell you, to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king, bring them here and slay them before me.'” After he had said this, he proceeded on his journey up to Jerusalem.

Today the transcendent, supernatural dimension of man’s dependence and obedience from his Creator, Lord, God, Redeemer, Saviour and Giver of every gift, has been lost. This dimension must be placed in everyone’s heart. Without this dimension, human life becomes ephemeral, closed in its own egoism, deprived of eternity and lacking in true hope. It is a life imprisoned in a basement from which it is impossible to see the light. Unfortunately, the more days pass and the more the supernatural light goes out or we move away from it. In anthropological losses the damages are highly harmful.

Mother of God, Angels and Saints arrange that every Christian regains the end according to truth.