Dear Friends,

What distinguishes the first two servants who go out and trade with the talents that the master entrusts to them in this Sunday's Gospel is that they are adventurous and live life to the full. By way of contrast, the third servant who buries his talent is fearful and shrinks in within his shell and does the prudent thing, the safe thing. He is faithful to the master in that he respects the worth of the talent (a coin worth about $250) and does not want to lose or waste his master's money.

The faithful wife in the first reading, industrious like the first two servants, spends herself in the service of her family. Then, in addition, she reaches out and serves the poor around her. Our God is calling us be lavish in using what we have in the service of others—to be large-hearted like God is in reaching out to others. The Scribes and Pharisees tried to keep the law exactly as it was written, "to fence in the Law" as one of the bible commentaries says: "any change, any development, any alteration, anything new was to them anathema." The problem with that is that life is not black and white. Life demands that we adapt to the unexpected that comes our way. In the early Church, Paul was faithful to Jesus in a creative way. For instance, when converts to Christianity (or the Way, as it was called then) were not allowed to practice their new religion by the spouses to whom they were married, Paul creatively decided (in what has come to be called the Pauline Privilege) that the marriage of these new Christians was null and void and they were free to marry. So too, in our world today, many people have divorced the partner to whom they made a life-long commitment of love, later find themselves wanting to marry another with whom they have fallen in love. The Church must find a creative, pastoral way of honoring the indissolubility of marriage and also, when that does not happen, blessing the second union of those who fall in love and want to commit themselves to another in marriage.

Our God is large-hearted and if we are going to embody God for our world, we must be large-hearted, too. Our God is constantly ready to give us the opportunity of making a new beginning and we are called to be likewise generous in affording ourselves and others the opportunity of making a new beginning.

Jesus says, "I come to bring life and bring it abundantly!" Jean and I see this week's readings challenging all of us to live life to the full.

Sometimes God is calling us beyond the prudent thing, the safe thing, to take a risk. Reaching out to someone who is a stranger and in need is taking a risk. Volunteering to do something that needs to be done, when we might feel more comfortable remaining uninvolved, means taking a risk. Speaking up when someone is being taken advantage of or bullied or ridiculed, when we might rather remain silent, means taking a risk and maintaining our integrity. Speaking up when we have something to say, even though we are not sure how others will receive it, means taking a risk. God is inviting us to live life full-heartedly, generously, responsively. Here at Spirit of Life Community we fortify each other with the support and care to be our best selves and take risks to embody God's love and peace for those each of us encounters in our little corner of the world.

If you are looking for a "spiritual home" to support as you deepen your relationship with your God, we invite you to join us at the Spirit of Life. As a community, we try wholeheartedly to "be Christ" to one another, to tend to the needs of one another and to those in need in our world. Together, we celebrate our belief that we are being transformed by God's grace as we gather together in prayer. We warmly invite you to come and gather with us at our Table and join in our experience of the 'kin-dom' of God. We are an inclusive, open, affirming and interactive community, deeply committed to being a people of 'justice and joy'.

Loving blessings to you!

Find more about past weekly reflections and podcasts in our ARCHIVE PAGE.