Hachiko
(Prov.31:10-13,19-20,30-31; 1Thess.5:1-6; Mt.25:14-30)
In the 1920s, Professor Ueno of Tokyo University adopted a golden Akita puppy named Hachiko. Every morning, Hachiko walked with his master to Shibuya station and watched him take the train to work.
At three o’clock every afternoon, Hachiko returned to that station, waiting for his return. But one day in 1925, the train returned with no professor. He had died at work. But Hachiko kept returning to that station every day, hoping his master would return. In fact, he kept going there at 3 o’clock every day for the next nine years, nine months, and fifteen days, until he died.
When people saw Hachiko, they saw more than a dog. They saw the very model of loyalty and devotion.
This is what St. Paul is urging in us in today’s second reading. The Day of the Lord will arrive like a thief in the night, he says, and he warns us not to fall asleep while we’re waiting. We must stay alert, just like Hachiko who spent his entire life waiting for his master.
As Christians, Jesus Christ is our Master. He has gone to prepare a place for us in heaven, and we await his return. But here’s the question: When Jesus returns, will he find us asleep? Or will we be waiting for him, alert and alive in our faith?
If you’re not sure how to keep your faith alert and alive, then take note of Jesus’ Parable of the Talents in today’s Gospel.
In ancient times, talents were not the natural abilities we think of today. A talent was a measure of silver or gold. A man goes away, leaving three servants to look after his wealth. The first and second servants use their talents well; they both double their investment. But the third servant is fearful of his master and buries his talent in a hole. When the owner returns, he praises and rewards the first two. But he’s unhappy with the third man and confiscates his talent.
The lesson for us here is that you must use whatever gifts God has given you, or you will lose them. But what are these talents Jesus is talking about? They are everything we have ever received from God: our lives, our faith, our strengths and our many other blessings. Because they are gifts from God, they are not meant to be hoarded. Gifts should always be used to benefit others.
But if you cling to them, as the third servant did, your talents won’t grow. They’ll simply wither away and die.
The third servant represents the tragedy of a life lived in fear. He saw his master’s absence as a threat and locked up his gifts, wasting them. He had ignored his mission.
So, how do we avoid this problem? How might we await the Lord without letting our faith grow cold? One answer is in the poem of the ‘Worthy Wife’ in today’s first reading. It describes a faithful servant who does not sit idly, waiting for the future. She collects what she needs and starts making cloth for her husband. She puts her hands to good use, while her arms reach out to the poor and needy.
She takes her talents and uses them to give others joy. She knows that true beauty is not simply about charm or superficial looks, but honouring God by nurturing the gifts he has given us.
Like this Worthy Wife, and like the dog Hachiko, Christian waiting is not passive. It’s dynamic. We wait for Jesus by doing what he wants us to do. We double our talents when we truly love our families, when we patiently raise our children in the faith, when we open our hands for the poor, and when we live the Gospel in our workplaces.
Every act of hidden, daily charity is an investment in the Kingdom of God.
In 1934, a bronze statue of Hachiko was placed on a stone pedestal outside Shibuya Station in Tokyo. It was a monument to a long and lonely wait. Our waiting for God can sometimes feel like that.
But in 2015, a new statue appeared at Tokyo University. It depicts Professor Ueno finally arriving home with open arms, with Hachiko leaping into the air in joy, his wait finally over.[i]
As we await Jesus’ return, let’s use the talents he has given us to benefit others. Like Hachiko, let’s also remain fiercely loyal, never hiding our gifts in laziness or fear.
If we do faithfully await our Master, when he finally does return, we will hear him say: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. Come and share your master’s happiness!’