Fr. Simi’s Reflection (8 November 2026)

At midnight, a cry rang out: "Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’(Matthew 25:6)

As we draw closer to the end of the liturgical year, our Lord directs our reflections to His coming at the end of time. By this parable of the ten virgins, our Lord warns us that we must stay awake for, while we know not the day nor the hour, we do know for certain that He will come back at the end of time and to destroy death forever.

Since His ascension to His Father in heaven, all of humanity has longed to see His return. All hearts are restless for Him since He created all humans for Himself. The ten virgins in the parable represent all humanity longing to be wedded to the single Bridegroom. How do we prepare for this wedding? Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the Bridegroom whose wedding banquet God the Father has prepared.

We are all called to become members of His Church, His Bride. He Himself prepares us now for our marital union to Him as His Church.

The Blessed Virgin Mary is our template. Mary is the virgin in whom Christ the Lamp was conceived with the oil of the Holy Spirit. The Blessed Virgin Mary is the perfect example for staying awake.

By the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit, the Son of God was conceived in her, born from her, raised by her, followed by her, listened to by her, obeyed by her, and willingly united herself to the self-sacrifice of her own Son on the Cross for our sins and the sins of all the world.

At the end of her time on earth, Jesus Christ, her own Son, took her to the heavenly banquet in heaven that God the Father prepares for all those who are led to Him by His Son with the love of the Holy Spirit.

The Son and the Holy Spirit make us pure as the Virgin Mary through Baptism, overshadow us at Confirmation, enter into us through Holy Communion, forgive us through Reconciliation, anoint us when we are sick, ordain us to be His priests, and unite us to our spouses in Holy Matrimony. With Him and the Holy Spirit in the Sacraments, we stay awake.