The Critique

The gospel according to Matthew offers us the peculiar yet popular parable of Jesus viz. the parable of the ten virgins (Mt 25:1-13). I believe this parable has wonderful insights to offer us as we enter the season of Advent. A Time for Stocktaking “…ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom”. The mention of a bridegroom presupposes an imminent marriage and Advent is a call to all of us (virgins), to prepare ourselves for the coming of that Bridegroom who will  soon be wedded to the humanity we all share (cf. Jn 1:14). The preparation of the physical space for the bridegroom is necessary and important but it must never substitute or overshadow a personal preparation of one’s heart and mind. All of us are susceptible of falling into the trap of conjuring up ostentatious celebrations which will demand elaborate preparation and involve much time. In a society awash with consumerism and materialism, it is possible that we will be tempted to adopt a flip

1. Life, Influences and Works: Simone de Beauvoir was born on 9 th January, 1908, in Paris , France . She received a Catholic education in her student years. While in college she met Jean-Paul Sartre, with whom she entered into a life-long intellectual and physical companionship. They never married and had no kids together. In the 1930’s, she studied the phenomenology of Husserl and Heidegger, along with the existential philosophy of Kierkegaard. During and after World War II, she developed an interest in the philosophies of Hegel and Marx. Her thought was largely influenced by Sartre and Merleau-Ponty, a contemporary and friend of hers. She was acknowledged as an inspiration to the Feminist Movement which sprung up in the 1970’s and 1980’s. She is better known as a novelist than as a philosopher. Some of her books are: Ethics of Ambiguity (1947), The Second Sex (1949)-which is considered to be one of the most influential books of the 20 th century. Two of her novels are: