Wisdom, hope and vigilance

Apologies to both Holy Scripture and William Shakespeare, but it seems that one of the playwright’s famous lines from Hamlet, “The readiness is all,” may serve as a fitting summary of this Sunday’s readings, which emphasize wisdom, hope and vigilance. 

The first passage reveals that wisdom, the quality we often associate with old age and a lifetime of hard-won experience, is not as rare or difficult to find as we might think. In the biblical world, wisdom was the embodiment of practical advice about how to live a proper life, one that would result in perfect understanding for anyone truly seeking knowledge. The writer of the book of Wisdom personifies her as a woman and portrays her as “resplendent and unfading” and surprisingly easy for her seeker to find (Wis 6:13-14). She does not hide. She rises at dawn and sits at the gate, ready to be discovered. In fact, she has been known to reveal herself even before a seeker has stumbled upon her. 

In this Sunday’s second reading, from Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians, we hear him trying to allay that community’s very practical fears and also to offer them a double dose of hope. Some in the church are worried about those who have died before the risen Christ returns to earth, an event that seemed imminent to some early believers. But Paul is straightforward in his teaching. Nothing less than “the word of the Lord” assures us that when the risen Christ does return, “the dead in Christ will rise first.” This is the first hope he extends to them. Then, he adds, “we who are alive, who are left,” will join them “to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thes 4:16), the second dose of hope. Finally, he asks them to infuse each other with these powerful assurances. Do not worry or despair, he says, “console one another with these words” (1 Thes 4:18).

This Sunday’s Gospel reading from Matthew connects this hope to vigilance. Jesus tells a parable in which he likens the kingdom of Heaven to a wedding, where ten young women “took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom” (Mt 25:1). Half of the women were so foolish they forgot to bring oil to light their lamps. The other, wiser half brought with them “flasks of oil” (Mt 25:3-4). As it turns out, the bridegroom was delayed, and the waiting women grew drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight comes the cry, “Behold the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!” (Mt 25:6). The foolish women ask the wise ones to share their oil, but they refuse, sending the ill-prepared ones out to buy oil. Meanwhile, the bridegroom arrives, the guests enter the wedding feast, and the door is locked behind them. When the foolish maidens return and demand to be admitted, the host refuses: “Amen, I say to you, I do not know you!” (Mt 25: 12). And Jesus has the last word: “Stay awake for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Mt 25:13). 

Wisdom, hope and vigilance are key. Perhaps, it is wise here to remember that New Testament texts are to be read and understood in conjunction with the hope of Christ’s promised return. Today we might consider them a wake-up call. Remember that all of the young women in the parable—those prepared with oil and those who weren’t—grew drowsy and fell asleep. So perhaps it is possible to be so distracted by the bridegroom’s tardiness that we forget that we are, right now, at a wedding. The present circumstances of our world, like wild fires, gun violence, the climate crisis, poverty, and social injustice to name just a few, may cause us to lose track of Christ’s presence in our lives right now. When we are distracted by all the world sets before us, we may forget that Christ is with us here and now, that his presence can fuel us the way oil lights a lamp – if we are mindful of it. So let us cultivate a sense of attention and expectation in response to that presence that will keep us awake, even when we are tired or discouraged. 

As the church’s liturgical year draws to a close—Advent begins in three weeks—the readings this Sunday offer sage advice to all of us who are awaiting the return of Christ and, at the same time, trying to stay aware of his presence now. First, keep an eye out for Wisdom; attend to her suggestions. Then, do not worry about those who have died in Christ; they will rise when he comes again and so will we. Finally, hold on to the oil of hope and be vigilant. Remember, “the readiness is all.”