In today’s readings one can draw from them the desire of God to have His creation—us—fulfill His likeness and image by adopting a concern for those who are less fortunate, without regard for our own personal status in the world. The phrase Noblesse Oblige, literally French for nobility obligates, was first used in 1837, though the concept of “caring and sharing” one’s good fortune with those less fortunate predates its linguistic usage.

Good and benevolent royals of Europe, particularly the English Aristocracy, practiced this virtue as do modern and powerful families of good fortune in Democracies and Republics (the Roosevelt’s, Clay’s, and Vanderbilt’s to name a few). But Christ is extending this call of “duty and obligation, of generosity and love,” to the most common among us.

In the first reading from the Book of Proverbs, the idea of a “good wife” extends from one who has great concern—and unselfish love—for her husband and children to all those around her in need. This concern for the needy highlights the brotherly and sisterly relationship that we all share in Christ. Our blood relatives are not the only ones for whom we are to be concerned, but rather human love and hope is meant for all of God’s creation. The husband, we are told by the author of Proverbs, has such trust in the goodness of his wife that he can place all his hope—his very life—in his wife because she thinks and lives outside of herself completely. Here the woman is being highlighted as the fullness of God’s creation of humanity. In the second reading the idea given to us is that the “thief of death” will come at an unknown time and place—and God expects us to “be prepared” by practicing the virtues of His love and compassion without end. We “put on our Christianity” from time-to-time or only when “God is looking,” but rather Christianity is to be “our way of life”.

In our Gospel this weekend, (MT 25:14-30), the master goes off on a trip entrusting his fortune to his servants and expects of them to continue his “good works and investments.” He becomes angry at the one servant who rather than taking his talents and fortune to produce more good in the community simply does nothing, “allowing the want of others to be left unmet.”

What does God expect of us when it comes to the needs of the less fortunate? First, He expects us to care—and this requires the grace of unselfishness. Second, He expects us to act—not to turn our eyes away from someone’s need and to “think it’s up to someone else or some government agency.” God expects us to see in the face of need our own faces—our image—which is seen in our commonality of being human beings—one family—united in the image and likeness of God.

How are we to respond to this “obligation” to every need we come across when we ourselves are limited in resources or time, or are overwhelmed by our own family
concerns? God does not expect of us to respond with every ounce of our money or time to every existing human need. That would not only be impossible, but also illogical—and God does not do what is not logical. Rather, the Lord does expect us to hold all in need in our prayers—for prayer should be the first way in which we respond to the needs of others; and then, with our resources, we are called to help where we can. We are not all called to do everything, but everyone is called to do something! The key point here is that we are all called to care. To lack concern, to ignore the plight of another, to consider that we have no human duty or obligation for the less fortunate is to dilute our Christian character and essence. Christ calls us all to a sense of Noblesse Oblige—the obligation of honorable, generous, and responsible behavior, no matter our social rank, for the good of another.

Another key point to remember is that we do not know when or at what hour the Lord will call us home to Him—and it’s not just a Boy Scout habit to be prepared…rather as St. Thomas Aquinas would educate us, habitus in the practice of virtues and in the doing of righteous things for the building up of the Christian soul which happens in an ongoing conversion of faith. Christ calls us to continuously practice our faith; for it is the practice of

Christianity that we become Christian!