Lamps and Oil

Day's Saints 
Our Lady of Montevergine
Ambrosinian of Armenia

Gospel Mt 25:1-13

Jesus told his disciples this parable:
"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."

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What store would be open at midnight so the foolish virgins might buy oil for their lamps? 

For those prepared, the door was open, they were invited to a feast, and rested with the bridegroom. Although they could trim their lamps and light them, there was insufficient oil in the lamp to keep the flame alive.

Perhaps the Lord  wants to prevent us being locked out of the wedding feast. Preparation means vigilance and practice. If we are distracted and not paying attention, all sorts of misfortunes can happen and we will be caught off guard. That is all He asks of us; He wishes us to go into the wedding feast with Him, not be caught off guard unready.

The Gospel speaks about the day the Kingdom of Heaven appears and the old world passes away. "passes away" sounds peaceful and serene, but that day may not be tranquil, as we can see in nature, that changes in things is often accompanied by great violence. The way to stay awake is to distract ourselves, strangely enough. We should not be resting, taking our ease, but working and praying and caring for our brothers and sisters.

If He comes in the middle of the night, we should be ready to spring into action and use our preparations to make ourselves presentable and ready to receive the Bridegroom. The lamps are the symbol of our light, which as humans, is not great; far greater is the light of God which shines whether we see it or not. Blessed are those who believe even if they have not seen, and have prepared themselves with holy exercises to be ready so we know what to do. The purpose of the lamps is for us to see, since God sees whether He has a lamp lit or not. The truth is, that He loves us very much and would rather we not be locked out. Those who strive to keep their hearts open will always be welcome, and their minds will be at ease, because of the peace that surrounds the Lord.

The wedding feast is a participation in divine delights, and the wedding night is for the enjoyment of the Bridegroom and the Bride. The bride knows there is light whether she can see it or not, for the privations and griefs that have gone before have purified her to receive the Groom. She has known of the coming of a great darkness, but she knows it is preparation for union, and is not unduly disturbed. It is penitential to be unable to participate sensibly in the presence of the Lord, but one can grow used to it and because of faith, unconcerned, because there is a certainty of His mastery of our existence that instills peace in us, in other words, the presence of God. And when it comes, the soul has been prepared and it is not painful anymore, and suddenly the light awakens the soul that has waited so long and so anxiously for union.

Yet, that is not the perfection of His charity toward us, since Heaven is the perfect presence and possession of the beloved. Thus, even though the possession of the bliss of His presence is immense, it is not the utmost degree, and the soul gladly waits for the gift of that union in heaven which surpasses anything the soul has encountered before.

Thus, the soul deals with deprivations for a greater good it cannot see but of which it is convinced and is happy to anticipate. The anticipation is sufficient for the soul that loves perfectly; it does not thirst for something unobtainable any more.

Now is the time to prepare. Now is the time to sacrifice what will please the Lord to forsake in order to possess Him. The soul is restless until it is finally fulfilled, and that moment is when the soul enters heaven.

St. John of the Cross spoke about the union he experienced which was overwhelming, so that in order to attend to earthly business, he was wont to rap his knuckles hard enough to distract himself so he could devote attention to those with whom he had to deal. And still, there was more, and he knew it was better, and he was anxious to consummate the union completely. 

Wise people are not rattled by the threat of wars and invasions and mass destruction, for God is present to those He loves and who love Him, and for them the love is enough and more than enough to put up with a little unpleasantness, for they are not the ones going to perdition.

Life is our preparation grounds. Let us make the most of that gift to prepare ourselves to belong to God and to be in union with Him. We may be unprepared at the moment, but if we make a start, it will be enough to become prepared. 

I have pain enough to remember the cross and the passion of a Lord who loved me enough the allow Himself to be stripped naked and be fastened to a piece of wood with nails. He loved me enough so that I can deny myself; He has not yet asked me to die, but I die for Him every day in a thousand ways, all of which are sufficient so that I may merit some of His pain and suffering. He does not ask the overwhelming, but He frequently overwhelms because He is good and He is love. I have no doubt the source of the pain, for the cross is plain enough, surrounded by such love as surrounds it and washes us thoroughly of sin and unites us in a pristine way to become one by He who must unite us. The end is not in doubt, and the ends are the means of becoming ready, so that the brutality of the nails is not lost on me and can satisfy my love of Him.