“When Noah was five hundred years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.”

Genesis 5:32

Matthew 25:31-46

The sixth Sunday of Wisdom is the Feast of Christ the King. The previous weeks we have heard of the parable of the king, the bridegroom and the land owner. In this final wisdom story of the ultimate reward for service, the ultimate return on investment and the ultimate banquet, we find the teacher of wisdom giving the final examination. This reading is believed to be a lesson that Jesus learned while the Holy Family was in Egypt. The dramatic scene of the Last Judgment is more than 4,000 years old in its telling throughout cultures, and represents the wisdom of ages. The kingdom prepared from foundation of the world is for the wise who have tended to the least people in their society. Those excluded are those who did not see the value of service to the least among us. Salvation is depended on the ability to see the wisdom of extending mercy as we seek the mercy of God. Without the wisdom to give mercy in order to receive mercy, we are eternally lost.
Seeing each person as our brother and sister is our salvation. No matter where we find the least, we find Jesus there. Our ability to overcome our racial, gender and class dysfunctions become spiritual exercises when we take Jesus at His word. Embracing His wisdom of the ages yields for us His eternal mercy.