Parable of the Talents
16th Sunday after Pentecost
2 Corinthians 6:1-10; Matthew 25:14-30
In the parable told by Jesus Christ, talents are monetary units, but, of course, the Lord was not concerned about money, material prosperity for people, but about the development of spiritual and intellectual abilities, with which God gifts people. From the story told by Christ, it is clear to us that God gifts us differently: one is given five, another is given two, and still another has only one talent.
From life experience, we know that this is exactly what happens: some have many different useful abilities, others less, and some, as it seems, have nothing... Among the latter may be those who, either through their own fault or their parents-educators had their abilities diminished from what they initially had, because they "buried" and did not develop their God-given gifts. (Matthew 25:28-29)
Those who want to establish a realistic basis for everything say that those abilities-talents come from father or mother, grandfather or grandmother, and not from God. Such a position does not show much wisdom, for in the end all ancestors received those gifts from someone. The fact is that humankind, with all its development of science and civilization, cannot create any abilities, any biological or intellectual differences.
But even in life, we observe that there are children who although physically are almost exact copies of their parents, yet they possess differing abilities. For instance, father and mother did not draw, whereas, their children have a distinct talent to be an artist, or similarly, a singer, or extraordinary speaker, etc. Those abilities cannot be seen in the study of the brain, in the most detailed study of the organism - those abilities are revealed in actions. But materially or physically, they are invisible.
Many talented people - singers, artists, musicians, conductors - have developed a sense of their own "I", their own dignity. What's more, the understanding of that personal dignity can be distorted, incorrect. People consider their exceptional abilities to be personal merits. Merit can be found only in work, in the effort to develop talents, but the abilities and talents themselves are gifts from the Creator.
A person who does not have a musical ear can never, even with the greatest effort, become either a singer or an outstanding musician, a statement that hardly needs proof. And the most educated person, but without the talent of an artist, cannot draw the simplest subject, while even an uneducated person with artistic talent can depict and draw complex things.
As life experience shows, people are born even with the ability to get along well with other people. One’s upbringing in that regard can be very helpful in that it can develop innate ability, but it cannot be created for people. That is why we are saddened when a person acquires the right to a practise a certain profession, having acquired the knowledge, but who is very callous in dealings with people (in business, for example).
But we should all be aware that a person, although he/she must have certain abilities (for example, to study medicine), but this person needs to show great vigilance and put in much work in order to acquire the profession of a doctor, teacher, engineer, architect, lawyer or any other.
We must keep in mind when we turn to those professionals that we are paying not just for 10-15 minutes of their time, but to some extent for the long years they spent learning and acquiring that profession, especially since they may be paying off debts, loans, for a long time, which they were forced to accumulate while studying. When we lack such an understanding, we can inadvertently offend certain people, their dignity. We can create within ourselves a faulty attitude toward professionals who worked hard and developed their talents in order to gain a certain profession and position.
In this democratic country, we can sometimes hear complaints about social injustice, fostering of hate, but the reasons for this are often narrow-mindedness, human limitations.
I would like to draw the attention of parents to the necessity of learning about their children's abilities and talents. Teachers, in view of their professional position, pay particular attention to this important area. We should not direct our children to professions which will bring great material profit. It is necessary for a profession to bring satisfaction to a person, for the person to have natural abilities for it, and that their chosen profession benefit human society.
In our country, it still happens that a man or woman studies to be a lawyer, because that is what the father and mother want, and the child wants to please his or her parents... We know teachers who fulfill their teaching duties, but are only happy when they disassemble or assemble (car) engines ...
There are known classic cases of parents misdirecting their children or cases in which young people themselves chose wrong professions. We all are familiar with the famous artist P.P. Rubens; however, his parents wanted their son to be a military man and reach the rank of general...
The famous Noel... His parents wanted him to be a doctor, and he obtained a doctor's degree. But he became famous as an artist playing the common flute, because he had a musical talent, not a medical one.
Anton Chekhov also received a doctor's degree, but he was a very weak doctor, and his works had little to do with medicine: he became famous as a talented writer.
Our Stepan Rudanskyi obtained a doctor's diploma and was apparently a good doctor, but at the same time he revealed himself as a talented poet.
Taras Shevchenko was a wonderful artist, but he was an even greater poet and fighter for the freedom of his people. He had several talents, and he did not bury them, but developed them for the glory of God and for the good of our people. He was one who multiplied his talents. Each of us must develop and multiply our abilities, then the Lord will ensure that “For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have abundance” (Matthew 25, 29).
Amen.
Very Rev. Fr. Taras Slavchenko
Taras Slavchenko was born on March 8, 1918 in Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk region in Ukraine. After graduating from school and the Pedagogical College, he entered the language and literature faculty of the Scientific Pedagogical Institute. Having successfully completed it in 1938, he served as a teacher in a secondary school.