YOU KNOW NEITHER THE DAY NOR THE HOUR

Hos 2,16b.17b.21-22; Ps 44; Mt 25,1-13
9 AUGUST
Time runs out. You enter eternity. The personal judgment will immediately take place for us. It will define our life or our death for eternity. We know the rules of judgment. The disciples of Jesus will be examined on their obedience to the Word.

How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few. “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves. By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you will know them. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’ Then I will declare to them solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’ “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined” (Mt 7,14-27).

When will we pass from time to eternity? We do not know it. Every moment of the day and night the passage could take place, without any warning or pre-warning. Here is what our wisdom must be: always making us be found by death firmly planted and rooted in the Word of the Gospel and always obedient to it. The foolish virgins are Christian, but without life in the Word, without obedience to the Gospel. Their lamp is without oil, that is without any fruit of the Gospel. They are disciples of Jesus, but without his Word, without listening to his voice. They live a religiosity without any true faith. Religiousness does not lead to Paradise. Our beautiful liturgies do not lead to eternal life. They are means to live with faith, by faith, from faith to faith. They might never be substituted to faith. The lamp – for us the whole external apparatus of religion – gives life if in it there is the oil of true faith. Without oil the apparatuses are switched off. They do not give light either to us or to others. Who must shed light in the darkness of this world is the Christian who lights his light from the light of Christ and nourishes it with the oil of the Word, to which immediate and prompt obedience is given. Only obedience is true oil. The more you obey and the more oil you put in the lamp, the more intense and strong the light is.

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

The Christian who believes in the Word of Jesus is wise. Faith in the Word of the Lord is the first oil to be placed in the lamp. Today it is this wisdom that is disappearing from the heart of the Lord’s disciples. Everyone is by now convinced – and this is the great folly of current times – that eternal life is for every man. God will welcome all into his kingdom. This foolishness is the mother of all other foolishness.

Wise Virgin, Angels and Saints, give us the purest faith in every Word of Christ Jesus.