The opening verse of our gospel today actually begins with a word that is not included in our reading: “then”. It is a transition word that Jesus uses between this parable and the stories and parables in the previous chapter. Why would he need that transition?
These are the phrases that he concludes the previous three stories with: “heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” “So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” “The servant’s master… [will] assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” Do these sound familiar? I hope so.
Today we have the story of the ten virgins. And what was the closing line of this parable? “Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”
Do you think maybe, just maybe, Jesus and the church are trying to tell us something specific? Our opening reading talks about wisdom, while in neighboring chapters of the Book of Wisdom there is also talk of lady folly. The comparison is not very flattering to folly. But if we are pursuing God’s ways …read more

Source:: Fr. Frank Jindra’s Homily Podcasts