Day 40: The Parable of the Talents

This blog is a continuation of:
Day 30: Goodness as Positivity,
Day 31: You're My HERO!!!
Day 32: Consistency and
Day 33: Wanting to be the Star Pupil 
Day 34: Make a Happy Family 
Day 35:Don't Act like Lady Gaga - Act like a Real Lady!
Day 36: Join JESUS on The CROSS -What?! WHY?!? Day 37: The Secret to a Successful Life!
Day 37: Be Good, Little Human
Day 38: Richness, Compliments and Validation

- continuing to purify the word 'Good'.

In my mind, I have connected the word 'good' to:


The Parable of the Talents

Before applying self-forgiveness on this point, I would like to expand on it.

With the parable of the talents I’m referring to the Christian parable that I was taught about in school when I was 12. Here it is:

13 “Therefore stay alert, because you do not know the day or the hour. 14 For it is like a man going on a journey, who summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The one who had received five talents went off right away and put his money to work270 and gained five more. 17 In the same way, the one who had two gained two more. 18 But the one who had received one talent went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money in it. 19 After a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled his accounts with them. 20 The one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, ‘Sir, you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 The one with the two talents also came and said, ‘Sir, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.’ 23 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered, ‘Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest! 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten. 29 For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’” (Matthew 25:13-30). 271

Source: http://bible.org/seriespage/parable-talents-matthew-2514-30-luke-1912-28

I remember being very confused about the outcome of the story. Because as I heard that the first two slaves were going to invest money that wasn’t theirs, I was like ‘wow, don’t do that – it’s not yours to spend’. And I thought ‘well, yeah – dig it in the ground, then you’re sure you won’t be tempted to spend it’. And then, afterwards, the lord apparently was proud of the servants who had invested his money and multiplied it and was pissed off with the one that had done what it had asked: safeguarded the money and given it back.

Then the teacher went on explaining that even though ‘talents’ was a currency in that time, that the story was a parable about talents in terms of skills – that you can’t burry your talents into the ground but that you have to go and develop them. But reading the story again now – there is really no metaphor going on here – this story is just about money and how to treat another’s money. And, it’s interesting, because I’ve been writing about the banking system in the Economist’s Journey to Life blogs recently and discussing how banks use money that isn’t theirs to make more money out of it, just like in this story – lol. So – that is what is being justified here by God: the entire banking and capitalistic system.

Check out specifically this statement:

“For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”

That is exactly what we’re doing within the current capitalistic system and this one seemingly morally important story, which they teach children about in school – is the divine justification for it. God teaches children: take from those who don’t have anything and give it to those who have plenty. People – that’s how the world works. What do you think the relationship is between the developed and the developing countries in the world? Exactly this: Resources are taken from those who don’t have and mostly live in poverty and are given to those who are already living comfortable lives.

No wonder this story never ‘sat right’ with me!

To be continued.