INDUSTRIOUS OR LAZY?

November 19, 2023.
Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Readings: Prv 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31; Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5; 1Thes 5:1-6; Mt 25:14-30.          

A Hebrew proverb says: “Laziness likes to justify itself for not doing anything because it cannot do everything.” A Welsh proverb adds: “The seed of all evil is laziness.”

With your talents, are you industrious or lazy? We all have received gifts and talents from God. We will have to give an account of those gifts. How do we deal with them? How do we use them? Are we industrious or lazy stewards of God's gifts?

As per the dictionary definition, laziness means disinclined to activity or exertion. Laziness is the greatest sign of infertility. It can be as well spiritual or physical. Lazy people are an insult to their creator who himself is industrious through creation, recreation, and redemption. They seem to say that God has given them no ability or capacity for anything. There is no handicap worse than laziness. It paralyzes and empties the present and the future of all their content.

I live in Quezon Province. Here, there is a common saying that, "There is no lazy person in Quezon." Is that saying true? There is something I read somewhere about being lazy or not: "Lazy people are the ones who are not aware of their thoughts, emotions, and actions. Those who are aware of their thoughts as they occur, the feelings that pass through them, and the actions they take are the ones who are not lazy. So, one can be very active and still be very lazy, or one can be not active at all, but be very diligent. It is simply about being mindful and finely tuned in to the present moment."

We are now almost at the end of the liturgical year.  We are the 33rd Sunday. Time of evaluation, time of giving feedback, time of final decision and awarding. Speaking of final judgment and particular destination, the Church says: "Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven-through a purification or immediately, -- or immediate and everlasting damnation. At the evening of life, we shall be judged on our love." CCC 1022.

To avert eternal damnation or punishment, we ought to be industrious and productive with our God-given talents. That is, to work energetically and devotedly; to be hardworking; diligent, busy, and sedulous with what God has given us. For, any form of laziness, may it be spiritual or physical, will cost us retribution and divine chastisement.

The first reading speaks of the industrious woman. She is presented as a treasure for her husband and her family. That "her value is far beyond pearls." And because of her being industrious, her husband entrusts his heart to her. She has an unfailing prize.

Reading these words, I think of so many of our mothers. I think of my mother. I have never seen a woman so industrious as this one. People say that I am a hard worker and diligent. I owe her this. I have never heard my mother say she is tired. Always ready, and never says no to anyone who asks her anything she can. Many qualities we could find in some of our mothers. But not all the women, not all the mothers are industrious and diligent. Some, unfortunately, through personal decisions, have embraced laziness as a lifestyle. They waste all their talents doing nothing and expecting everything from their husband.

A talent not put into production is taken away from us, we read in the Gospel and given to he who is wise enough to multiply it. Through the parable of the Talents, we read that no one can blame God for having been given any capability or flairs. Instead, we should blame ourselves for our irresponsibility to make them produce. God knows each of us. He knows whether we can or not. God will never give you something that you are not able to do, and he will never ask you to give him back what he has not given you.

In the Gospel's parable, Jesus emphasizes that the master gave each of his servants a talent according to their ability. "To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one..." He knew well the capability of each. So, he did not give the five to the one who received one. It would be too much for him to manage and also a waste of opportunity for productivity. So too, brethren, God will never give you something beyond your strength and he will not ask you for something beyond your capacity or above what he has given you. Nevertheless, you should be ready to give a fruitful account of what has been entrusted to you.

We all are stewards of God's gifts and blessings. Our talents are given by him to be put to use and make them produce. Laziness or unwise use of our talents will cost us severe retribution.

In our churches as a community, each one has a talent. You are good at playing musical instruments, and help the community in animating the Eucharistic celebrations. If you are good at decoration, put that talent at the service of your community. You have an angelic God-given voice, why not join the choir or the lector-commentators to praise God with your voice? You are an expert in management, leadership, accountability, or in any other field. Your Church as a community could benefit from this. Keeping these talents and not making them productive or benefiting others is a sin.

The worst form of laziness we can see in today's churches as a community is that many people who are known as great singers with beautiful voices refuse to join the choirs. Many great musicians and instrumentalists come to church and prefer hiding or sitting behind. And these people are the most critics of the poor performance of choirs and church servers or leaders. Let's not forget the words of the wicked and lazy stewards: "Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back..." You know. You are skilled. You are an expert. Then why don't you do it? He will then be retributed based on his words. The end is near. Let us not waste our talents.

Besides laziness, another vice that leads to an unfruitful Christian life is fear. Fear paralyzes and keeps static and inactive. Because of fear, many people choose to do nothing. The wicked steward was filled with that vice too. He told his master who was asking him the use he made of his talent: "Out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground..." Out of fear of failure, he chooses to do nothing. So too, do many Christians in our churches. Out of fear or shyness, they choose to not belong to any group or to not be active. An inactive Christian is equal to a dead Christian. So, churches are filled with living dead Christians. The time is near. Let’s get out from the darkness of laziness and fear, and come to light. Be actives.