“Well that’s why I married you” my husband said “I’ll never get in to heaven on my own”, it was a bit tongue in cheek and I commented “that’s both of us in trouble then” I had the image of me bluffing my way through the gates with David holding my coat tails with a “oh, yeah, what she said” but in reality we both know that’s not how it works.
Today’s Gospel is about the ten wise and foolish virgins. I’ve heard a lot of commentaries on this parable which have never sat well. Not because I’m short on oil or I think Jesus won’t recognise me, but because this seems to contradict so many of His other parables, the workers in the vineyard, and the lost sheep, the lost son, the lost coin. The God I worship is good, and He doesn’t disown you for being dumb or for shopping when you should be waiting. He doesn’t arbitrarily shut a door in your face for being late to the party. So what is He actually telling us here ? How do We understand this?
Wise and foolish alike, everyone had a lantern and everyone took a nap. The only thing that set the wise ones apart was a container of extra oil. As the Grooms arrival is delayed the foolish ones burn out, dry up.
The oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, and wisdom is a gift of the Holy Spirit. The lantern represents your soul. The place from where Gods presence in you shines out, a light in the darkness…..so far so good.
Here’s where I needed some clarity.
So why not share your fuel? This is what I think … the foolish virgins had been sat comfortable in the light of the wise virgins and never invested in their own oil, You see, there are somethings we can only own individually and our relationship with God is one of them. Jesus died for you personally and you have to respond personally to that.
The oil has been paid for by the groom already, you just have to claim it. It can’t be bought.
What if at that particular time those places to access oil were closed due to a pandemic, perhaps a virus meant that the places that supplied soul fuel were not considered vital by the ruling authority. I think they would have returned with unlit and empty lanterns. They were in the dark
How about you, do you have your own interior light or have you been surviving on an external source? I’m hoping I have enough internal reserves, I’m praying you do too.
If the foolish virgins had been filled with the light of the Holy Spirit, perhaps they would have known the door always opens inwards. They would have known, Jesus, the groom, standing the other side of that door was just waiting for the invitation to know them and invite them to the feast.
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