Thursday– St. Augustine

Gospel – Matthew 24:42-51

Keep The Faith

Mount of the Beatitudes

 

His first 30 years of life were full of less than admirable qualities.  He was a very difficult child for his Christian mother and his pagan father.  In his teen years, he ran around with a not-so-savory crew who called themselves the ‘destructors’, full of mischief and hijinks. He tells the story that they once decided to steal the pears off a tree.  It had nothing to do with hunger; they just felt like doing it!  In fact, they took all the pears and threw them away to some pigs. 

He grew up to be an atheist and spent much of his early life in debauchery and misadventures.  At the age of 17, he began a long-term relationship with a young woman, living together and fathering a child.  He was always an extremely intelligent and educated young man.  Finally at the age of 31, he converted to Christianity His name is St. Augustine of Hippo, whose feast we celebrate today.

 All those years of immense talent wasted!  All those years spent like the servant in today’s Gospel – eating and drinking with drunkards.  And then he had that leap of faith and the rest, they say, is history!  And let’s not forget his mother, Saint Monica, whose feast we observed yesterday!  Despite his 17 long years of resistance, her constant witness to her Christian faith finally converted Augustine.  Talk about patience!  Talk about persistence!  Talk about faith! 

And so it is with today’s Gospel and the story of the faithful and unfaithful servant. The faithful servant (Monica) is always ready, always prepared for the return of the master. And the unfaithful one wastes his time and never looks to the future. Too late, he rushes at the last minute to make up for all the lost time and opportunities. We are all called to be ready for the return of the master; it is not a simple last-minute rush; it’s a lifelong preparation. It requires faith and dedication and yes, even love.  It is an unquestioning faith in the future and an unconditional love for each other and for the Master!  It requires the faith of a mother like Monica who never gave up hope for the return of her son!

Creator of all, keep us focused today and every day on our one true purpose – to serve You! Guide us; lead us to always be ready to answer the call to turn our faith in You into active love for each other.