By
Obododimma Oha
This is not a "religious" article as such. I am not out to preach. I am not even qualified to preach. Maybe out to teach one or two things. The article happens to borrow a paradigm from Jesus the Christ, a great thinker. He was fond of using parables in his preaching and in one talked about a master giving talents (maybe money) to his servants before embarking on a trip. While some invested theirs, the person who received one talent did not. He went and buried his own in the sand, not wanting to enrich his master in any way. In fact, he had the guts to tell his master bluntly later: "Lord, I knew you that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter. I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours." (Matt. 25: 14-30,KJV). We are told that his master was furious and commanded that that impudent servant's one talent should be taken away from him and given to the wise servant who made great gains from his investment, while the rude one-talent servant was to be put in jail. So, the lesson is clear: no matter how little the resources, one needs to invest.
Don't we all have something to offer in life? Don't we all have something to contribute or are we just spectators? So, others have to lead and we just follow?
It is important that we understand that every person matters and is not there to be merely used. Others are not useless to society and we are the only important ones. Others are not mere blockheads while we are awesome knowers. Every person is important. Every talent counts and needs to be allowed to grow.
But when we bury talents in the sand, are we not cheating ourselves? Are we not punishing ourselves? Maybe we hardly think of the loss in burying talents and preventing those who would ask questions from doing so. But the punishment shall surely come. It is a matter of time.
Is the punishment restricted to single individuals? What of large groups? No. Not only single individuals. Large groups, too. In fact, it is in large groups that we often see the burial of talent fully at work! Some people in large groups may not know that they have something to offer, while some think that their many talents have greater value.
Who says that knowledge in that large group is not beneficial? Who says that there are no other thinkers in that group? Who says that thinkers in that large group only have to recite and recycle knowledge packaged in that other privileged group?
Some large groups, too, may just relax, thinking that they don't need to find ways of moving up, or even that they don't need to. But the master will surely return and look at the account books. Large groups that only make noise and trouble would regret it. Countries that think that they do not need a presence at the International Space Station, for instance, would find that they are nowhere. It is a terrible thing to be left behind!
That some people received more talents than others or are more naturally endowed does not mean that they would outshine others at the end. They may not know how well to manage their resources. So, some people with well-managed single talent may carry the day. They are those steering this vehicle called "Earth." The point is that being endowed with numerous resources does not translate into progress. Proper management is the way.
This is where we return to the idea of burying the talent in the sand. How does the receiver handle or manage it? The master had in his rage said he would not have cared for its being put in the bank and attracting interest, instead of it being buried. The easiest way to invest that talent to attract gain would be in people, to develop people. People are actually the land, not an empty space. The skills of humans can be developed and enhanced with the talent. Next, physical facilities that would make life meaningful can be provided to support human skills.
The talent buried in the sand will not germinate and grow. It will rot away. It is itself a sign of heartlessness. One is not surprised at the master's anger. The better choice is to invest it. Let us dig it up and use it, however insufficient it appears.
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