Luke 19:11-28

2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31

Psalm 17:1bcd, 5-6, 8b and 15

Luke 19:11-28

While people were listening to Jesus 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 man;

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 man,

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.’

He replied, ‘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.

Opening Prayer: Lord God, teach me to be faithful in small matters. May the gift of your grace flourish within me. I promise to engage in trade with what you have given me and do my best to produce good fruit for your kingdom.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Royal Judgment: As Jesus journeys seventeen miles from Jericho to Jerusalem, he tells a parable addressed to those who thought that the Kingdom of God would appear immediately. The parable emphasizes that Jesus will depart for an unknown period of time and return after obtaining the kingship. The parable in Luke is similar to one found in Matthew but also different in some ways. Unlike Matthew’s Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), in which each servant was given different amounts of money, each of the servants in Luke’s Parable of the Ten Minas was given the same amount by a nobleman. Matthew’s parable speaks about a talent, a monetary unit equal to what a person would earn over 20 years. Luke’s parable speaks about a mina, equal to the wage earned for 3 to 4 months of work. In both parables, there is a servant who didn’t exert the minimum effort in using the gifts he was entrusted with. While Matthew’s parable emphasizes the diversity of gifts we have been given, Luke’s parable emphasizes the common gifts we have been given in and through the Sacraments of the Church. Theologically, Luke’s parable refers to Jesus’ ascension into heaven to receive the kingdom from his Father and to Jesus’ return to judge his disciples, who are called to work diligently until his return, and to judge those who reject his royal authority (see Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 144). 

2. The Martyrdom of a Mother and Her Seven Sons: The theme of faithful servants is brought out in the First Reading, which narrates the martyrdom of a mother and her seven sons. Like the elderly Eleazar yesterday, the family refuses to break the Torah by eating pork. The sons proclaim that they are willing to die for faithfulness to God’s law. The martyrs did not see themselves as victims of a political system, but rather as enduring the consequences of the nation’s infidelity to God’s covenant. “Despite the attempts of the pagan rulers to undermine the Jews’ fidelity to the Torah that Ezra had worked so tirelessly to reestablish, many Jews chose to submit to torture and death rather than to commit apostasy. These martyrs lived a life of fidelity to the covenant and its laws, and like Daniel and countless others before them, they confessed their sins and the sins of their fathers, begging God’s mercy” (Gray and Cavins, Walking with God, 243).

3. Drawing Down God’s Mercy: One of the most powerful and striking features in the story of the martyrdom of the mother and her seven sons “is that these martyrs believed that their suffering, which was brought upon them because of their fidelity to God’s law would bring about the redemption of the nation” (Gray and Cavins, Walking with God, 244). They believed that their redemptive acts would bring down the mercy of God upon Israel and end the chastisement that had come upon their people because of their national infidelity. 2 Maccabees teaches that the Maccabean Revolt was successful, not primarily because of the military prowess and strategy, but because of the martyrs, “who by their fidelity and sacrifice had caused the wrath of the Lord to turn to mercy” (Gray and Cavins, Walking with God, 245). Jesus will call his followers and countrymen, not to violent uprising but to martyrdom (see Matthew 5:39-42). “In fact, for Jesus, the only way to the renewal of Israel lay in the act of embracing the supreme threat of Roman violence in his time – death by crucifixion” (Gray and Cavins, Walking with God, 245). Just as the mother and her seven sons offered themselves and drew down God’s mercy, Jesus and his mother offered themselves and unleashed the mercy of God upon the earth.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, your mother stood by your Cross and watched your torturous crucifixion, like the faithful mother of the seven sons. Steel my heart for the difficult times ahead, so that I might be strong and resolute in my witness to your love.

Living the Word of God: How am I using the gifts and talents God has given me through his Son? If Jesus were to return today, how would he judge me? What can I do concretely tomorrow to be a better steward of what God has entrusted me?