Rev. George Miller
March 19, 2023
Matthew 25:1-13
Being an adult is not easy.
Bills. Morning aches and
pains. The infamous “Hurry Up and Wait.”
Hurry up to get to get to the dentist for your 9 am appointment but they
may not see you until 9:15. Hurry up to
get to Quest after 12 hours of fasting but you may have to wait an hour more.
Hurry up and wait is no fun.
It was no fun as a child when Mom rushed us out of the house so she could
get her favorite seat 45 minutes before worship began.
Hurry up and wait is no fun at Disney World where it make take 2 hours to
get on a ride.
Hurry up and wait is certainly no fun in today’s reading, perhaps my
least favorite of all parables.
Parables were Jesus’ preferred way of teaching. Short, confusing tales made to make us think about
God, faith, and the ways of heaven.
Well, I hate this story. I find it unfair, misogynistic, and abusive.
10 maidens with 10 lights on their way to attend an evening wedding.
Trouble is, the groom is nowhere to be found. He shows up when he shows up. Some women are referred to as foolish, some
of the women are called wise.
The groom has taken so long to make an appearance that the foolish women
have run out of oil, the wise women refuse to share.
Out into the cold dark night 5 of the women go searching for supplies and
when they get back the door is shut and the women are treated as nobodies.
“Keep awake,” is the moral of the story.
I’m sorry- what about “Show up when you’re supposed to show up!”
What a bunch of nonsense. The
women are punished because the groom couldn’t commit to a time?
Know what this reminds me of? Back before cell phones when women were expected
to sit by the phone waiting for it to ring.
Is this the image we want of God? Is
this the image we want of heaven?
That’s God’s going to make an appearance but we don’t know when but it’s our
job to be prepared and if you run out of supplies, tough?
Nope. Not me. So we’re going to tear this story apart. Jesus taught in parables to make us
think. So, we’re going to thank.
First, the misogyny. We have 10
women who are described in just 2 ways- the foolish and the wise.
Men may not realize it, but so often women must contend with being seen
as binary beings.
Either you’re old or young, virgin or whore, weak or a witch.
Why does Jesus have to label the women these 2 ways? Why does he set up a story in which women are
pitted against women?
Not to mention- why are 5 of the women called foolish? Are they foolish because they trusted the groom
to show up when he was supposed to show up and they brought just enough?
Were they really foolish or were they trusting? Were they wrong to assume that an adult man
would be a grown up and arrive at his own wedding at the set time?
Were the other 5 really wise?
Did bringing extra oil mean that deep down they didn’t trust the groom, nor
did they expect the groom to show up on time?
And what does it say about the groom if he can’t be trusted by the bridesmaids?
Talk about major red flags.
Then we have these 10 women being made to sleep outside at night. You mean there was no one there to let them
in?
Did no one look outside the banquet window and say “Hey! We got 10 women
sleeping outside in matching bridesmaid outfits and their lamps have one out!”
Didn’t the groom think ahead and explain to the staff that just in case he runs late, let the guests in, especially
of they are 10 women in the middle of the night?
And what about the 5 supposedly “wise” women refusing to share their oil
with the other women?
Didn’t Jesus just spend all this time teaching and preaching and turning little into much and making miracles
happen?
Wouldn’t Jesus want the women to share the oil they have?
Since when did Jesus teach us to hoard it all and only think of ourselves?
This whole entire parable is just a mess.
Misogynistic, mean spirited.
Is this what being a Christian is meant to look like? Waiting for some absent man to show up when
he chooses to show up?
Is that what Church is meant to look like? Stay outside in the cold and only the ones
who are smart and with resources are allowed in?
Is this what the Kingdom of Heaven is meant to look like? That after waiting hours upon hours, going
out into the cold dark to get more supplies, you come to a locked door and a voice
saying “I do not know you?”
Nope, nope, nope. This is not what
I envision…and maybe that’s the point.
Maybe Jesus is once again making us uncomfortable so we can figure out
for ourself how do we view God, how do we view God’s kingdom, and how do we
view our relationships with one another.
What if Jesus told us this fractured fairy tale so that we can in try to
create our own?
So here it goes- what if the Kingdom of Heaven is like this…
10 bridesmaids of all shapes, ages, abilities, skin tones, economic and
educational backgrounds walked together carrying 10 lamps.
Though the bridegroom was delayed because he was finding a lost sheep, he
arranged for them to be warmly greeted into the banquet hall.
While waiting, the women fell asleep, and upon waking up 5 women discovered
their lamps had burned out.
Before they could even ask for assistance the other 5 women said “No
worries, we will gladly share some of ours as we wait together.”
When the groom finally appeared, the banquet hall was full of guests from
all nations, places and times and he greeted each and every person by name.
Now- that’s a story I could get behind, but it’s not the story we
have.
So once again, Jesus leaves us feeling uncomfortable, Jesus leaves us
feeling unsure.
And once again, isn’t that what being an adult is about?
Facing that which is uneasy, facing that which is difficult, living with
so much that is unknown.
Jesus is trying to tell us to be prepared, to let our light shine.
And he’s telling us in a world that is more fractured than it is a fairy
tale; he’s telling us in a world that is more disjointed than it is Disney.
So we listen to what Jesus has to say, we wrestle, we wonder, and we
continue with Jesus on the way.
On the path to Cross, and on the path with God.
Amen.
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