It is NOT the Day or Hour that Matters, What Matters is BEING with God/Bridegroom!
Wisdom 6:12–16 • 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 • Matthew 25:1–13
What is the point of today’s Gospel, given the roles assigned to its different characters and symbols—the virgins, the bridegroom, and the olive oil or lamp oil? Today’s Gospel comes on the heels of Jesus’ discourse on time and its proper utilization, which begins with these words: “But concerning that DAY and HOUR no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36). Today’s Gospel is followed by another beautiful parable that recalls the division of labour and the responsibility entrusted to each person: “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property” (Matthew 25:14).
One point is clear from the context of today’s Gospel: there is a distinctly Christian understanding of “time,” and every consideration of time must, of necessity, factor in Christ or make reference to him if it is to remain a Christian understanding of time. Time is not simply the succession of days, months, and years. It is also the opportunity given to human beings to encounter God, recognize his presence, and prepare themselves for eternal communion with him.
The very first sentence of today’s Gospel situates the relationship between the virgins and the bridegroom within the context of a journey, probably a nuptial journey, since the parable speaks of virgins and a bridegroom: “The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom” (Matthew 25:1). In contemporary language, we might compare this journey to a period of fiançailles, or engagement, during which two people get to know each other and discern whether they are suited to one another.
However, contemporary engagement ordinarily includes frequent visits, telephone calls, and other forms of communication, which are quite different from the image presented in today’s Gospel. A significant difference between the contemporary understanding of engagement and the nuptial imagery of the Gospel is the question of recognition. The virgins must be prepared to identify and welcome the bridegroom, while the bridegroom must also acknowledge those who belong to the wedding celebration. Hence, the importance of the lamps, which symbolize readiness for the encounter rather than merely providing physical illumination.
The Greek expression used by the bridegroom at the conclusion of the parable is particularly revealing: οὐκ οἶδα ὑμᾶς (ouk oida hymas)—“I do not know you” (Matthew 25:12). The Greek verb οἶδα (oida) means “to know,” but within this particular context, it also carries the significance of recognition and acknowledgment. The issue is not that the bridegroom lacks information about the foolish virgins. Rather, his statement expresses the absence of the relationship necessary for admission to the wedding feast.
In other words, there are attributes and qualities by which a person is recognized. Every marital engagement involves a search for the qualities of a good wife or husband, as the case may be. In the context of our Gospel, the virgins set out to meet the bridegroom. At the end of the journey, however, the bridegroom refuses to acknowledge the foolish virgins, who cry out, “Lord, Lord, open to us!” The wise virgins, on the other hand, are prepared to welcome him and are admitted into the wedding banquet.
Consequently, the central question is not simply whether the virgins know who the bridegroom is, but whether they have prepared themselves sufficiently to be welcomed and acknowledged by him. Knowing about God is not necessarily the same as being known by God in the sense of belonging to him.
When the Gospel concludes with the saying, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Matthew 25:13), it redirects our attention from the ordinary human calculation of time to the importance of the presence of God, Christ, or the bridegroom in the life of a Christian.
Time, from this perspective, acquires its deepest meaning through the presence and intervention of God in human history. In fact, two conditions were satisfied by the so-called “wise virgins”: they possessed additional oil for their lamps, and they were ready for the wedding feast. Their readiness consisted not merely in having sufficient oil but in being prepared for the arrival of the bridegroom, regardless of how long he delayed.
Remember that all ten virgins became drowsy and fell asleep because of the bridegroom’s delay. This detail is important because it tells us that the distinction between wisdom and foolishness does not lie in the fact that some slept while others remained awake. All ten slept! The difference lies in their preparation before falling asleep.
At the decisive moment, when the bridegroom finally arrived, the five foolish virgins discovered that their preparations were inadequate. They turned to those who had prepared wisely, asking them to share their oil. However, the wise virgins could not provide what the foolish virgins had neglected to secure for themselves.
This detail suggests that certain dimensions of our relationship with God cannot simply be borrowed from another person. One may benefit from the prayers, examples, and encouragement of others, but no one can substitute another person’s faithfulness, conversion, or personal readiness for God.
The symbolism of the oil, therefore, goes far beyond the ordinary substance one puts into a lamp. The parable uses earthly realities to communicate heavenly truths. In heaven, we shall not need literal lamps, olive oil, or the social institution of marriage as we know it on earth.
Likewise, the reference to virgins belongs to the cultural and nuptial imagery of the parable. In the Jewish marriage customs reflected in this imagery, virginity was associated with the period before marriage, whereas Christian consecrated virginity may be embraced permanently for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Nevertheless, the point of the parable is not the physical virginity of the ten young women. Rather, it is their readiness to welcome the bridegroom.
The oil may therefore be understood as symbolizing the spiritual resources necessary for Christian readiness: wisdom, faith, perseverance, charity, and a living relationship with God. These are not commodities that can be purchased at the last minute. They are qualities cultivated throughout one’s earthly life.
The moment of truth for the ten virgins comes with the cry: “Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!” This statement, situated at the centre of the parable, invites us to reconsider its literary arrangement in order to decipher its deeper meaning.
Certain narrative questions help us to appreciate this approach:
1. The Gospel does not specify the exact point of departure of the virgins. Were they leaving their homes, a village square, or another gathering place?
2. How did all ten virgins fall asleep? Were they waiting somewhere along the route, resting in a house, or gathered at a designated meeting place?
3. Where precisely were they going? The Gospel gives us no geographical destination, apart from the wedding feast itself.
These questions do not necessarily reveal inconsistencies in the parable. Rather, they show that geographical precision is not the evangelist’s principal concern. The narrative concentrates on the bridegroom’s arrival and the readiness of those waiting for him.
When we rearrange the episodes thematically, without changing their essential meaning, the central message becomes even clearer: “It is NOT the Day or Hour that Matters, What Matters is BEING with God/Bridegroom!”
The centre and focus of the parable is the bridegroom and what he does. From the perspective of the bridegroom, he is the one whose coming determines the decisive moment of the wedding celebration. The virgins know that he is coming, but they do not know precisely when he will arrive.
The foolish virgins appear to have calculated their preparations according to an expected duration of waiting. They may have assumed that the oil already in their lamps would be sufficient. Consequently, obtaining additional oil was not part of their preparation.
The wise virgins, however, made provision for the unexpected. Their wisdom consisted in recognizing that the bridegroom’s arrival, rather than their own calculation of time, would determine the course of events.
To illustrate the difference between divine time and human expectations, the bridegroom arrives at midnight, the hour when ordinary human activity is generally suspended. His arrival transforms an apparently uneventful night into a decisive moment.
The “cry at midnight” tells us two important things. First, it signals the moment when the waiting virgins must rise and go out to meet the bridegroom. Second, it exposes the inadequacy of the foolish virgins’ preparation. Although they know that the bridegroom has arrived, they are not ready to accompany him into the wedding feast.
When they eventually return and ask to be admitted, the door is already shut. The bridegroom’s response—“I do not know you”—reveals the seriousness of their failure to prepare.
We can therefore recast our Gospel into the following thematic arrangement:
A — The Nuptial Journey
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.”
A′ — The Delay and the Midnight Cry
“As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’”
B — The Distinction Between Wisdom and Foolishness
“Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.”
B′ — The Revelation of Readiness and Unpreparedness
“Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’”
A″ — The Arrival of the Bridegroom and the Wedding Feast
“And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.”
B″ — The Final Judgment: Recognition or Rejection
“Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”
This thematic restructuring highlights two complementary movements: the coming of the bridegroom and the preparation of those who await him. The bridegroom’s arrival is certain, but its precise timing is unknown. The virgins’ responsibility is not to determine the hour of his arrival but to remain ready to accompany him whenever he comes.
Liturgically speaking, the first reading supplies the kind of preparation required and explains what makes a Christian wise rather than foolish. The remedy for foolishness is wisdom.
According to our first reading, Wisdom “makes her own rounds, seeking those worthy of her, and graciously appears to them in the ways, and meets them with all solicitude” (Wisdom 6:16).
Here, Wisdom is personified as one who actively seeks those who desire her. This image complements the nuptial journey of today’s Gospel. In both readings, the initiative of the divine and the response of human beings are brought together.
The personification of Wisdom in the first reading and the symbolic roles of the ten virgins in the Gospel invite us to look beyond the literal characters to the spiritual realities they represent.
Wisdom is not simply intellectual brilliance or the possession of information. Biblical wisdom is the ability to recognize God’s presence, discern his will, and order one’s life according to his commandments. The wise virgins represent those who have cultivated this disposition. The foolish virgins represent those who have failed to translate their knowledge of the bridegroom’s coming into adequate preparation.
The first reading also reminds us that God does not merely wait passively for human beings to discover him. Through the image of Wisdom, we encounter a God who takes the initiative, seeks out those who desire him, and makes himself available to those who search for him sincerely.
Consequently, the Christian life is not simply a human search for God; it is also the story of God seeking human beings and inviting them into communion with himself.
The eschatological perspective introduced by St. Paul in the second reading reinforces the message of the Gospel in two important ways.
First, Paul redirects our attention to the ultimate realities of Christian existence. The parable is not merely about a wedding celebration or the management of time. It concerns our final encounter with Christ and our readiness to participate in his eternal kingdom.
Second, Paul introduces the imagery of a commanding voice. Whereas the Gospel speaks of an unidentified voice announcing the bridegroom’s arrival, St. Paul speaks of the voice of an archangel and the trumpet of God announcing the coming of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:16).
These two images emphasize the decisive character of divine intervention in human history. In both readings, the announcement interrupts ordinary human expectations and directs attention to the coming of the Lord.
However, Paul’s message is also profoundly consoling. He reminds Christians that those who have died in Christ will not be excluded from the Lord’s coming. Indeed, his assurance culminates in the beautiful declaration: “And so we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
This statement brings us back to the title of our homily: It is NOT the Day or Hour that Matters, What Matters is BEING with God/Bridegroom!
Paul does not conclude his teaching by providing a timetable for the end of the world. Rather, he directs Christians toward the ultimate purpose of salvation: being with the Lord forever.
The activities of God in human history define the deepest meaning of time. As we approach the end of the liturgical year, the Church invites us to reflect on the traditional Four Last Things: death, judgment, heaven, and hell. These realities remind us that earthly existence is not an end in itself. Our lives are directed toward an ultimate encounter with God.
Every human activity on earth involves choices, and these choices either prepare us for or distance us from that final encounter. Through our decisions, the evidence of wisdom or foolishness gradually becomes visible.
The voice of the archangel in Paul’s teaching and the midnight cry in the Gospel symbolize the divine summons that calls us to take seriously the certainty of our final encounter with Christ and the need to remain alert and watchful.
The foolishness of the five virgins does not consist in their physical condition or in the loss of literal virginity. It consists in their failure to prepare adequately for the arrival of the bridegroom. Spiritually speaking, foolishness is manifested whenever we neglect our relationship with God, postpone conversion indefinitely, or assume that there will always be another opportunity to prepare.
The words of the bridegroom—“Amen, I say to you, I do not know you”—are therefore a solemn warning about the consequences of persistent spiritual unpreparedness.
The closed door represents the finality of judgment. While earthly life offers opportunities for repentance, conversion, and reconciliation, the parable reminds us that such opportunities must not be taken for granted.
The irreversibility associated with final judgment makes sense when earthly time has reached its appointed conclusion and the decisive encounter with God has arrived. The issue is no longer how much time remains but what we have done with the time entrusted to us.
Therefore, the focus of every human activity must gravitate around God and what he commands. Ultimately, Judgment Day is inevitable. On that day, those whose lamps contain sufficient oil—that is, those who have spent their lives cultivating wisdom, faith, charity, and readiness for God—will enter into eternal joy.
The meaning of time becomes especially important because time finds its ultimate purpose in communion with God. When we live in his company, the anxiety of calculating the day or hour loses its power over us. We no longer live in fear of an unknown date but in joyful expectation of the One whom we already know and love.
For the first decisive coming of Christ occurred within human history: “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son” (Galatians 4:4). God’s intervention in time brought about the mystery of our salvation through Jesus Christ.
His coming again will be equally decisive, bringing the history of salvation to its consummation. For those who have prepared themselves to welcome him, it will mean eternal communion with God. For those who definitively reject his invitation, it will mean separation from him.
The challenge of today’s Gospel, therefore, is not to discover the date of Christ’s return. It is to ask ourselves whether Christ would recognize us as his own if he came today.
Are our lamps burning with faith? Do we possess the oil of charity? Are we cultivating the wisdom that recognizes God’s presence in our daily lives? Are we living in such a way that the bridegroom will welcome us into his eternal banquet?
It is NOT the Day or Hour that Matters, What Matters is BEING with God/Bridegroom!
May the Lord grant us the wisdom of the five wise virgins, the perseverance to keep our lamps burning, and the grace to be ready whenever he comes, so that we may hear not the words “I do not know you,” but the joyful invitation to enter into his eternal wedding feast.
Amen.