“Seek the Lord while he may be found, call him while he is
near. Let the scoundrel forsake his way,
and the wicked his thoughts; let him turn to the Lord for mercy; to our God,
who is generous in forgiving. For my
thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. As high as the heavens are above the earth,
so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts.”
Second reading: Phil. 1: 20c-24, 27a
“Brothers and sisters: Christ will be magnified in my body,
whether by life or by death. For to me
life is Christ, and death is gain. If I
go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose. I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with
Christ, for that is far better. Yet that
I remain in the flesh is more necessary for your benefit.
“Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of
Christ.”
Gospel reading: Mt. 20: 1-16a
“Jesus told his disciples this parable: ‘The kingdom of
heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his
vineyard. After agreeing with them for
the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. Going out about nine o’clock, the landowner
saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and he said to them, ‘You too go
into my vineyard, and I will give you what is just.’ So they went off. And he went out again around noon, and around
three o’clock, and did likewise. Going
out about five o’clock, the landowner found others standing around, and said to
them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’
They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my
vineyard.’ When it was evening the owner
of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their
pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ When those who had started about five o’clock
came, each received the usual daily wage.
So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but
each of them also got the usual wage.
And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying, ‘These
last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore
the day’s burden and the heat.’ He said
to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily
wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same
as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish
with my own money? Are you envious
because I am generous?’ Thus, the last
will be first, and the first will be last.”
Introductory theme summary:
The common theme from today’s readings points to the need
for us to conform ourselves to God’s ways.
In the first reading we have an admonishing for everyone to leave their
sinful ways. While the second reading
gives us a glimpse of Paul’s conflict with his realization of the great
difference between how things are hear and how things will be in heaven, he
also admonishes us all to live our lives in a manner that is worthy of that
reward. Finally, the gospel gives us a
very important lesson in respecting the absolute supreme righteousness of God’s
judgment that may actually be very different from what we expect.
Reflection:
The answer is for us to always be
humble in our relationship with God. As
described in the first reading, God’s thoughts and ways are as far above our
thoughts and ways as the heavens are above earth. We are simply incapable of traversing that
void. Whatever someone might believe
his/her standing with God is, he/she can still be wrong. That is why we Catholics “trust in our hope”
of salvation, rather than presuming to “know” we are saved.
This principal doesn’t just apply
to our dealings with God. This principle
demands our humility at all times and in all circumstances of life. No matter how certain of our rightness we
might believe ourselves to be concerning any specific issue, we can still be
wrong because our capacity for knowing will always be limited. While
God’s capacity is infinite.
This is especially important when
dealing with the so called, “Things of the world.” As the Creator of all things, nothing is
outside the jurisdiction of God’s judgment.
Whether dealing with the issues of industry or any other aspect of the
business world (just two examples of many), we must always remain humble in our
decisions so as to avoid a just consequence for defying God’s authority by
ignoring His condition for justice.
Finally, the most precarious of
all situations is representing God’s will as He desires it to be communicated
to His people. It is truly by committee
that these “Truths” can be ascertained, which is why we have the apostolic succession. Acting outside the community by contradicting
orthodoxy earns one the distrust appropriate for excommunication. This does not condemn the person, for those
who do not understand. It just
designates that person’s theology as “outside the community” and those who
follow their teachings, also follow them outside the community.
Unfortunately, today’s society
revels in arrogance. Their saying is,
“It’s not bragging whey you can do it.”
Uh . . . yes it is!!! But what
makes it arrogant is the exaggeration a person makes by attributing to their
personal being a merit their capabilities deserve. A person may have an extremely rare
capability, such as star athletes and various entertainers, but those
capabilities do not make them good people.
Consider the assortment of controversies among professional football
players as a perfect example.
Humility, the lost virtue. Oh how beautiful you are to those of us who labor,
tirelessly, to actually BE good; for
there is no greater example of humility than God’s – by being hidden.
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