'In ancient Mediterranean culture, seeking to gain more was seen as morally wrong because it meant that others got less.' Photo: Parable of the Talents, by Annette Gandy Fortt (1987)
Talent contest: Wendy Pattinson interprets a parable
‘This character clearly doesn’t represent God!’
When I first encountered the Parable of the Talents, I was troubled by its apparent message, advocating capitalism. On delving deeper I realised my error, an error that’s deeply ingrained in our culture.
Two versions of the story appear in the Gospels, Matthew 25 and Luke 19. They tell of a rich man who goes on a journey, leaving a quantity of money with his servants. On his return, the first two servants bring him his money, and the considerable profit they’ve made in their dealings with the money; they receive a great deal of praise and reward. The third simply returns the money entrusted to him, which he has kept safe. ‘“Master,” he said, “I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you”’ (NIV). This servant is rebuked and thrown out.
In the King James Version the servants refer to the rich man as ‘Lord’, the same term used to describe God, which suggests that capitalism is Godly. The verse ‘For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them’ (Matthew 25:29) is mistakenly taken as God’s law, and wealth seen as a reward for righteousness.
If we look at Luke we might more easily realise our error. Here, the rich man is a foreign nobleman, hated by his own people, who don’t want him as their king. At the end of this version, the rich man adds, ‘But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them – bring them here and kill them in front of me.’ This character clearly doesn’t represent God!
We are also helped if we consider the cultural context. In ancient Mediterranean culture, seeking to gain more was seen as morally wrong because it meant that others got less. Thus, it was understood that the first two servants had profited at the expense of others. It’s worth noting, too, that the servants (or slaves) weren’t free to act in a moral way. The rich man could distance himself from their actions while still profiting from them. The third servant spoke truth to power, despite being vulnerable, and paid dearly. He is the Christ-like hero of the story.
The interpretation of the parable goes through another twist when we consider the word ‘talent’ used in the King James Version: a measure of weight, used to denote currency. Our understanding of the word comes from interpreting the story as being about God, who gives various skills that each of us should use, develop, and profit from. The third servant, who doesn’t use his talent, is therefore lazy. This interpretation promotes a work ethic.
We acquire culture through the stories we hear and how they’re interpreted in our community. What stories bring us closer to God, and to ‘that of God’ in fellow humans and the rest of creation? What stories drive us apart? What stories do we need to heal ourselves and the world?
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