Thursday, November 16 : Saint Gregory the Great

“The five foolish ones took no oil with them, but the wise ones took oil in their flasks with their lamps.” The brightness of glory is signified by the oil, and the small containers are our hearts, in which we carry all that we think. The wise virgins have oil in their flasks, because they keep the brightness of glory within their consciences. So Paul testified when he said: “Our glory is this, the witness of our conscience” (2Cor 1,12). But the five foolish virgins take no oil with them, because when they seek glory from the mouths of their neighbors they do not have it within their consciences… “At midnight a cry arose: ‘See, the bridegroom is coming; go forth to meet him’”… Then all the virgins arise… The lamps of the foolish virgins go out, because their works, which appeared outwardly evident to people at the judge’s coming, are hidden within; and they find no recompense from God, because they have received from men the praises which they loved.

Roman Extraordinary (Tridentine) Daily Readings – rosary,team