In the Light of the Fathers of the Church
As we pass through the quiet days following the great octave of Pentecost, the Church in her ancient wisdom turns our gaze toward the faithful stewards of God’s mysteries: the patriarchs, priests, and servants who lived and labored in righteousness. The texts given for reflection this Tuesday within the first week after the Octave of Pentecost draw us into a meditation on faithful service, divine election, and the noble legacy of the just.
I. The Praise of the Just (Sirach 44:16–27; 45:3–20)
The reading from Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) sings a solemn hymn in honor of the patriarchs—Enoch, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron—and by extension, all those whose lives bore witness to God’s covenantal fidelity. It is an inspired litany of remembrance, echoing the ancient Jewish tradition of zikaron, the sacred act of remembering the works of the Lord through His chosen ones.
Sirach 44:16 opens with a striking declaration:
“Enoch pleased God, and was translated into paradise, that he may give repentance to the nations.”
St. Ambrose, in De Paradiso, sees in Enoch a figure of the contemplative life: “Enoch walked with God,” he writes, “and so was not found, for God took him… not by death, but by a hidden transition, that the righteous may know that there is another reward than that of the grave.” Enoch is thus an early type of the resurrected and ascended Christ, prefiguring the destiny of those who walk in friendship with God.
The lineage of Abraham, recounted in Sirach 44:19–27, points us to the unwavering fidelity of God to His promises. St. John Chrysostom, preaching on Abraham, exclaims:
“When God promises, He does not forget. Look at Abraham: though his body was as good as dead, he believed, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” (Homilies on Genesis)
This succession from Abraham to Moses is not mere genealogy—it is a holy procession of faith and obedience.
In chapter 45, we are given a focused exaltation of Moses and Aaron, particularly Aaron’s priesthood, described as clothed in glory and beauty, adorned with sacred vestments, and appointed to offer sacrifice and incense. This deeply sacramental imagery connects to the dignity of the priestly office in the Old Covenant, which the Fathers often reflect upon in terms of its fulfillment in Christ and His Church.
St. Gregory the Great writes in his Moral Reflections on Job (Book XX):
“Aaron’s vestments signify the virtues with which a priest should be adorned: the wisdom of the mitre, the doctrine of the breastplate, the purity of the linen… for without interior sanctity, exterior rites are of no value.”
Thus, Aaron’s calling foreshadows the dignity and burden of every priest of the New Covenant, whose office must be clothed not only in outward signs, but in the inward life of sanctity.
II. The Faithful Servant (Matthew 25:14–23)
The Gospel from St. Matthew presents the familiar Parable of the Talents. Each servant receives a portion, “according to his ability.” The master returns to find two of them have multiplied their talents through labor; the third, paralyzed by fear, has buried his trust.
St. Jerome comments:
“A talent of silver is not a trifling thing. He who received one, received much; let him not say, ‘I have little and can do nothing.’ The very fact that we have reason, soul, speech—these are talents, and we must not bury them in sloth.” (Commentary on Matthew)
This parable ties profoundly to our earlier reading. Just as Aaron was chosen and anointed not for his own glory but for the service of the sanctuary, so each Christian is entrusted with a portion of grace to be employed for the glory of God and the edification of the Church. The man who received five talents and gained five more hears those glorious words:
“Well done, good and faithful servant… enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”
This echoes the divine commendation found throughout the Sirach reading: Enoch, Abraham, Moses—all “well-pleasing to God,” and their names remembered in blessing.
St. Augustine interprets this parable spiritually, seeing in the talents “the gifts of grace distributed variously among the faithful.” He adds:
“Let none say, ‘I am of no use.’ Even the least of you has been entrusted with something. Use it well, and you shall not be cast out.” (Sermon 86)
Indeed, the third servant is condemned not for theft or rebellion, but for cowardice and idleness—a spiritual negligence that fails to trust in the generosity of the Master.
Conclusion: A Call to Holy Stewardship
On this feria within the week after Pentecost, the Church invites us to continue living the outpouring of the Holy Ghost by remembering the saints of old and taking up the labor entrusted to each of us. We are inheritors of a sacred lineage—from Enoch to Aaron, from the Apostles to us—called to serve with fidelity and courage.
Let us take to heart the words of St. Paul:
“It is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” (1 Cor. 4:2)
Whether we bear the mitre, the cassock, or the baptismal robe, the principle is the same: we are not our own. Our life, our grace, our time, even our sufferings—these are the “talents” entrusted to us.
As we return to the quiet rhythm of the Time after Pentecost, may we, by the intercession of the just patriarchs and by the strength of the Spirit poured out at Pentecost, be found faithful unto the end.
“He that is faithful in little, is also faithful in much.”
— Luke 16:10
Prayer:
O Lord, who hast called Thy servants to be stewards of Thy mysteries, grant us the grace to labor with diligence, to serve with humility, and to rejoice in Thy coming. May we, like Thy saints of old, be found pleasing in Thy sight, and enter into the joy of our Lord. Amen.