In the parable of the talents (Mt 25:14-30) three men receive large sums of money from their master who then departs on a long journey. When he returns he calls each of the men to give an account of their stewardship over his gifts to them. While two of the men have invested the money and can show a return on the investment, the third has done nothing, in fear of losing what his master had given him. And therein lies a lesson for us.
The parable is about man accounting for Himself before God. It is also about our purpose in life and how we use the gifts God has given us. The master did not divide His possessions equally among His three servants. He gave to each according to his ability. Each gift was given with thought and compassion for the individual. And none was given more than he could handle.
At first look this seems another example of God being unfair in our eyes. After all, the servant gave back to the master exactly what he had been given. Wasn’t he the most cautious with what was not even his? Why did he receive such harsh punishment?
Remember that God’s ways are not our ways. But if we have eyes, we will see. According to scripture the servant knew what the master expected. His own words condemn him. He knew the master was a demanding person, one who harvested where he did not plant and gathered where he did not scatter. And out of fear, he buried his talent in the ground where it did nothing.
God is a God of the living, not of the dead. He gives living things to the living, living things that need to grow. To bury them in the ground makes no sense. In that case we could not even return to God the living thing that he gave us.
The gift of creative ability, like all gifts, is only the seed. It is up to us to nurture and grow our gifts from that seed. For artists this means to take our God-given talent and develop it through study and training and practice. The parable reminds us that we too will one day stand before God and have to account for how we served Him, for what we have given over for the Kingdom of God; did we have a generous spirit that sought to do great things for God and His Church, or a mediocre response to His generous gifts, focusing on ourselves and our own selfish desires?
As in all things we are motivated by love for God and for our brothers and sisters. Certainly there is risk involved. Love always means risk.
“There is no safe investment. To love at all is to be vulnerable.”
“The only place outside of heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is hell.” C. S. Lewis The Four Loves
On the Feastday of the Epiphany of the Lord, we remember the magi and the honor they paid to Our Lord and the gifts they brought to Him. He has already given all of us gifts beyond measure, what gifts do we bring to Him?