TIME, TALENTS, AND TREASURE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A -  is, “Time, Talents and Treasure.”

One of the titles of this Sunday is, “Stewardship Sunday.”

How are we using all 3: our time, our talents and our money?

Obviously, the Church wants all three. Obviously others want all three from us. Obviously, we want all three: Time, talents and treasure.

All three can tax us. All three can wear us out. All three can worry us.

Then in today’s gospel – the stress is that God wants us to use all three well – our time, our talents and what we have and what we treasure.

HOW MUCH TIME DO I HAVE?

We can guess, we can estimate, but we don’t know how much time we have left. However, we can figure out how well we use the time we have.

I remember a job I had for 9 years: that of being a novice master.

I would have a class of young men hoping to become Redemptorists.

I would have them for a year and a day. Then they moved on or moved out.

Looking backwards … looking into the rear view mirror … looking at where we’ve been … we learn much of life.  And then we use what we saw – as we drive into our future.

Looking back on my job or role as novice master, I learned that some novices could do 30 things in a week and think they did nothing; others could do 3 things in a week – and they thought they were overworked.

Obviously, working with others, we learn how others work – or don’t work.

Sometimes we might be surprised.

Eric Hofer – a practical philosopher and down to earth writer about life – talks about brick layers. He discovered that sometimes the young guy who looks like he laid 1000 times more bricks in a day than older brick layers – actually did less. Some people are all about motion and commotion.

That triggers for me a years and years ago comment and life lesson that Jimmy Brown the football player said live on TV at a half time – of a pre-season game.  “Watch the young players who tackle me? They tackle me. Then they struggle to get off me. Then they run fast back to  play defense – to get ready for the next play. Watch me. I learned to just rest there on the ground till everyone gets off me. Then I slowly walk back to be just in time for the next huddle and next play. Then watch me move on the next play.”

Question: how well do I use the time I have?

Question: am I having the time of my life?

Question: do I know how to run a smart game, a balanced life.

Question: what have I learned and noticed about time in my lifetime so far?

TALENTS?

The English word “talent” comes from today’s gospel – from this story Jesus told about 3 types of people.

The Greek and Latin words were talentum [Latin] and talanton [Greek]. They were the words used for a unit of money in New Testament times. A talentum or talenton was worth 3000 shekels in Palestine or 6000 drachmas in Greek areas. The English word chosen to translate these words into our English New Testament text was “talent”.

The key message is not what a talent was worth – but the question: how well am I using the talents I have?

Before texting that text into our brain, a key life question is: what are my talents, skills, and gifts?

Remember that book that was popular a few years back, What Color Is My Parachute.  People out of work – looking for a job – or a career shift - would take the surveys and tests in that book – then  try to name their gifts – and then look at  job possibilities that need those gifts and skills.

One of the values of school is that we learn our gifts and skills – our talents – in comparison to others.

Is there such a thing as a math gene? If there is one, I didn’t get it – or at least the algebra gene.

Of course teachers help. Stick-to-it-tive-ness helps – but in the long run we discover in classrooms and in schools – by marks and others – the other gal or guy is better in sports or writing or drawing or music than I am. I also learn that I am better than others in history or hop scotch in the playground.

May we all have teachers and coaches – in our life – who spotted talents – and gifts in us that we didn’t know we had. And looking back may we  look them up and if we can locate them, call them or send a note of thanks.

Then there are those like that third person in today’s gospel story. They are the ones  who buried their heads and their talents in the sand and life passes them by.

Sometimes they are the ones who grind their teeth – as today’s gospel puts it – because they feel teachers and coaches were unfair. And God is unfair. And life is unfair – because they think they are getting the short end of the stick – whatever that means.

In the early 60’s when I was in the major seminary – we had well over 100 students for the priesthood. We had some great professors. One prof pushed for a major building renovation. Looking back I learned I didn’t know electricity or plumbing. Others did – and did big time work that saved lots of money. I was a painter – and I liked best doing trim work. It’s slower. It called for precision and patience.  It was me. I learned that not in the classroom – but painting classrooms and doorways – and wood work.

I also took care of horses for six years – and I learned that job called not for talents – but for time – and it gave me the joke – that I learned how to shovel horse manure in the seminary and that skill has helped me ever since – especially at meetings and in the pulpit. In time I also got to kiss the Blarney Stone.

TREASURE

Treasure is money.

In today’s gospel - talents refer to amounts of money.

Question: what have I learned about money and its use from life so far?

We grew up poor – but we didn’t know it. My sister Mary told me that she was talking to her kids once and she said that our dad in his whole job life at Nabisco – never earned more than $100 a week. A grandson heard that and said, “What?” I often wonder if he ever thought about that after that. Next time I see him, I’ll ask.

We learn a lot about money from our parents – without knowing we are learning. It’s the first anniversary of my sister Peggy’s death. I was just up to her grave near Scranton Pennsylvania with my sister Mary. We decided when we got back to her house, we’d look at the funeral service on CD or DVD that they made of the funeral – a wonderful idea. In the eulogy my sister gave, she said that in the late 1930’s my dad was making $9 dollars a week. At the same time, my mother said to my dad when he came home from work that day, that she just bought our house. My sister Mary then said, “You do the math.”  She said that our mom knew how to work with money and make money work.

What are kids learning when their parents get them to put the envelope or a dollar in the collection basket?

What are kids learning when they hear from their parents one of life’s most important words to hear and learn, “No!” – especially when it comes to things they want – because someone else has one.

What are kids learning when they see their parents give a good tip to a waiter or waitress along with a personal thanks? 

What are kids learning when they experience their parents splurging and taking them for ice cream as a family on a summer night?

What is our take on money?

I once learned a key message about money from a lady named Tessie Hoffmeister. It was on my first assignment as a priest – at Most Holy Redeemer Parish – Lower East Side of New York. Tessie had a great New York accent. Bird was “boid” and her boid’s name was Tippie. Bathroom was pronounced “toil-let”.  I was in charge of Bingo and Tessie did the books and the money counting on Wednesday night bingo. During the day she worked for the newspaper – The New York Daily Mirror. Doing what? Of course woirking in the money counting room.

She said, “Andrew watch out for money. It’s funny. It does tricks on lots of people – from big shots to little shots.”  She said, “I woirk in this big gigantic caged room with about 50 desks. Money from newspaper stands from all over the city would come into that room.”  Then she said, “From time to time the suits would come into the room and walk to a certain desk. They would tap a poirson on the shoulder – whisper something in their ear. They would turn red. Then they would clean out their desk. Never to be seen again.

Question: what about you and money.

The New York Daily News once had someone say, “The Three Biggest Problems in Marriage are: ‘Money, Sex, and In-Laws.”

What’s your take on money?

CONCLUSION

The Church, this parish, along with the organizations, and family we  belong to, need our “time, talents and treasure.”

We need ushers and money counters, Religious Ed teachers, Eucharistic Ministers, readers, singers, people to visit the hospital and shut ins – and a lot of other jobs that take time, talents and gas money. We are grateful for those who have done these jobs in the past as well as the present.

We also need money – your money. It seems always. I’m glad I was never a pastor.

Thank you for your generosity – and if there is anything parishes have to talk about from time to time it’s that: money.

Check the bulletin and our Web site for more information on Faith Direct – and all kinds of other requests.

Someone complained once about a parish to a pastor: “All I hear about here is give, give, give.” And the pastor said, “Wow what a great definition of Christianity.”

Taken rightly, it is.

If it gives ammunition to stop going to church, “Money, Money, Money. All they ever talk about money.” That has to be looked at as well.

Amen. A few comments about “Time, Talents and Treasure.”