You’ve probably never heard of St. Bernard’s Mission in Greutli-Laager Tennessee.  You’ve probably never heard of Greutli-Laager, which is actually including two separate cities, Greutli and Laager, much as we might refer to Minneapolis-St. Paul, except as far as I know Minneapolis-St. Paul doesn’t share just one convenience store between them, which I believe is in Greutli so you can’t actually buy a laager in Laager.

But that’s not the point of the story.

St. Bernard’s had a very unique pattern of worship.  Their congregation of about 20 was famous in the region because everyone sat on the right-hand side of the church.  Only visitors sat on the left.  No one really knew why or when it happened, it just did - a quirky little tradition.  Everybody was on the right. We tend to sit where we sit, don’t we. I know I do.

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Today’s parable teaching about the Kingdom of God is rooted in economics. Economy is an interesting word.  It comes from the Greek word oikonomia. Oikos means house.  Oikonomia is the management of the household. That means someone somehow is generating income and providing for the needs of the entire household including the servants if there are any. It includes the cooking, cleaning, laundry and general care for the land, buildings, people, livestock and pets.

In other words, it encompasses the fullness of everything involved with living together. We cannot control everything, but we are to manage our households as best we can, whatever our circumstances.

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Today’s parable comes to us at a fitting time. Our days are getting steadily shorter as we approach winter – on the calendar if not on the thermometer. This despite our futile attempt to “save” daylight – it should be called daylight shifting time, no savings occur.

On first pass, the point of the parable seems clear enough. The bridesmaids represent those who follow Jesus, be it his 12 leading disciples, his disciples in general or extended all the way out to all who follow him or are seeking him. Jesus said, “Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” No matter who you are, be prepared because he is coming at an unexpected hour.

Most often when we think about Jesus coming, we have in mind The Second Coming, which we heard Paul describe to the Thessalonians. The Lord will descend from heaven, the dead in Christ will rise first (which will be very interesting) and then the living get caught up to be with the Lord forever.

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