What do you fear about your vocation?
- Fr Raphael Ma, CR
- Matthew 25: 14 - 30
A Resurrectionist Vocation Minute for November 19, 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
What do you fear about your vocation?
In today’s Gospel, we hear the familiar parable of the talents, where the two slaves who applied themselves and made a profit with what they were given are praised – while the slave who did not, but buried what was given to him, is punished.
And if we look a little closer as to why the third slave did what he did – the slave tells the master it was because he was afraid. And from the master’s point of view, it was also because he was wicked and lazy.
One of the biggest fears of young people today is the fear of commitment. We can be afraid of commitment for many reasons – the fear of missed opportunities, the fear that it won’t work out, the fear of being trapped, etc.
Real discernment involves sorting through your fears. Some “fears”, like the gift of the Holy Spirit we call the fear of the Lord – as we heard in our first reading – are actually a source of tremendous good. Other fears – like the distorted impression the third slave has of his master – can paralyze us and ironically result in the very things we were afraid of. Have you ever had an honest conversation with God about the things you are afraid of?
“As Resurrectionists we will strive to witness to this transforming power of God's love, not only in our own personal lives, but also in community life. We will allow this love to overcome the fears and heal the wounds that keep us isolated from one another, so that we can become a true community of disciples united in mind and heart.”