The Vineyard

                   Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  A cycle

 

 

In both today’s first reading from the Prophet Isaiah, and the gospel account from Matthew, we hear about a vineyard. In particular, it is a vineyard that is not bearing much fruit. Isaiah makes it clear that the vineyard is a metaphor for the House of Israel.

 

The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel,

And the people of Judah are his cherished plant…

 

Nevertheless, even though all was done to make the vineyard productive, something went wrong. The Lord expected justice and harmony to grow among his people but only found bloodshed and dissension. Jesus was well aware of this passage from Isaiah. Even today’s Psalm, which any good Rabbi would have memorized, echoes the vineyard theme. 

 

In today’s gospel Jesus refers to the tenants who had been put in charge of the landowner’s vineyard. When it was time for the vintage or harvest, the tenants manhandled the landlord’s servants or agents who had come to collect what was due. The greedy tenants, anxious to keep all for themselves, beat, mis-treated, and even killed one of the servants. They even killed the landlord’s son when he was sent to them.

 

It seems obvious that, like Isaiah, Jesus used the vineyard as a metaphor for the House of Israel. The servants represent the prophets who were often ignored, scorned, and beaten. The son represents Himself who would shortly be arrested, subjected to a mock trial, beaten, and crucified.

 

Jesus directs this parable to the leaders of the Jews of his time, the chief priests and elders. Perhaps some have used the harsh words of Jesus against the Jewish leaders as an excuse for anti-Semitism or hatred directed against the Jews. I believe that this would be a great mistake. Jesus was a Jew. He was a Rabbi intimately connected with the Jewish people. Jesus was not critical of the Jewish leaders because they were Jews; he was critical of them because they had failed to live as true sons of Abraham. They were not Jewish enough. By their words and deeds they had fallen away from the covenant, and lost sight of their mission. 

 

No one ever accused Isaiah of being anti-Semitic but he castigated his own people severely for their failure to be true to their Jewish beliefs. In the same way, Jesus criticizes the Jewish leaders because they had substituted slavish following of rites, rituals, and laws for the true spirit of the Law. Just before this passage Jesus had driven the moneychangers from the Temple because they had profaned his Father’s house.

 

I believe that whenever we can we should put ourselves in the gospel scene. So, when Jesus is talking to the Jews, we must take his words to heart, not as an indictment of someone else, but as directed to us. We may believe today that we Christians are the heirs of the Kingdom, but we are always in danger of losing it. 

 

Sometimes, we, our families, our friends, and neighbors reject their heritage suddenly and dramatically but more often there is a slow and gradual erosion of faith and commitment. We live in a society that regards Christianity as either irrelevant or pernicious. It is so easy to go along rather than rock the boat. We read the same news, watch the same TV shows, listen to the same music, and go to the same movies together. 

 

Holy Scripture is not about some far off time and place. We are the vineyard and the Kingdom has been given to all those who believe whether Jew or Gentile. No one understood this better than St. Paul. In today’s passage from his letter to the community of Philippi he states that by their conversion, they have been given a great gift but that they must be careful to treasure it.

 

Finally, brothers and sisters,

Whatever is true, whatever is honorable,

Whatever is just, whatever is pure,

Whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious,

If there is any excellence

And if there is anything worthy of praise,

Think about these things.

 

Isn’t this the life we want? A life of truth, honor, justice, purity, loveliness, and graciousness. Why would we exchange it for lies, dishonor, injustice, impurity, and ugliness? None of these things will bring us real happiness and peace.

 

Paul urges the Philippians and us to keep on working in the vineyard.

 

Keep on doing what you have learned and received

And heard and seen in me.

Then the God of peace will be with you.

 

###

Reading 1. Isaiah 5:1-7

Reading II. Philippians 4:6-9

Gospel. Matthew 21: 33-43 (the stone that the builders rejected)

Rich Man, Poor Man

 

                  26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  C cycle

 

 

 

Just like last week, today's first reading is from the Book of the prophet Amos. We must remember that for the most part, prophecy is not about foretelling the future but about calling attention to the wrongs in the present. Amos is no exception. His criticism of the idleness and greed of the well-to-do in his own time seems to ring true in our time as well. 

 

He says, "Woe to the complacent in Zion!" What accusations does he bring? Their homes are furnished luxuriously. They eat the choicest foods and drink the finest wines. They sing and dance with abandon. Today, we have cable channels devoted to each of those subjects. We have food channels, fashion channels, music channels, and home improvement channels.

 

One of the key messages of the Hebrew scriptures is the obligation to care for the lowly and the poor. All were expected to act as good stewards on behalf of those in need. In today's first reading the Prophet Amos claims that his people have failed to come to the aid of the needy, and that they will suffer the consequences.

 

This same theme is the subject of today's gospel where Jesus tells the famous parable of the rich man and the poor beggar, Lazarus. This parable is the third famous story in the sixteenth chapter of Luke’s gospel. Two weeks ago we heard the story of the Prodigal Son, and last week it was the story of the unjust steward who cheated his master. Jesus tells the  stories to a group of Pharisees who were known for their strict, even rigid observance of every aspect of the Law. Jesus complains that while they make an outward show of goodness, they fail to abide by the true spirit of the Law. 

 

Isn’t it obvious that the stories are directed to us as well. We live in the richest country in the history of the world. Even in economic hard times the poor in our country are more well off than most of the rest of the people on the globe. A few years ago I heard a priest say that there are 7 million street boys in Brazil alone. These abandoned street children are ill-clothed, ill-fed, ill-housed, and ill-educated. Most are already involved in criminal activity and will surely not even live to manhood. Efforts to help often seem fruitless and counter-productive. It breaks your heart.

 

What can we do? Frankly, I think it would take a great saint like Mother Teresa to deal with such a problem. But she started out by reaching out to heal one single child. From that point, through prayer and self sacrifice she built a world wide order of sisters devoted to caring for the poor. Most of us cannot match the zeal and skill of this great woman but maybe we could profit by looking closely at today’s gospel.

 

First, Jesus makes the care of the needy a personal thing. He does not talk about curing world hunger and bringing about world peace. He focuses on two men: one is incredibly rich and the other incredibly poor. The poor man does not live far away on another continent. He lives (maybe it’s more accurate to say dies) right outside the rich man’s palace. Jesus is saying that the Pharisees could have used the excuse that the beggar was unclean according to the Law, and not touchable by any self-respecting person. But Jesus is saying that this excuse in not available to us. The spirit of the law requires us to help.

 

Thank goodness most of us do. St. Paul certainly understood the message of today’s gospel. He tells the young priest, Timothy, that he has the obligation to see Christ in all those entrusted to his care, and urges him to follow the example of Jesus and “pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness.” In another letter, he told Timothy, 

 

if we deny Him

He will deny us. 

 

###

Reading 1. Amos 6: 1a, 4-7

Reading II. 1 Timothy 6: 11-16

Gospel. Luke 16: 19-31( Dives and Lazurus). 

The Unjust Steward

                   25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  C cycle

 

 

One of the key messages of the Hebrew Scriptures is the obligation to care for the lowly and the poor. All were expected to act as good stewards on behalf of those in need. In today's first reading the Prophet Amos claims that his people have not only failed to come to the aid of the needy, but that they are actually cheating those they are supposed to help.

 

For these oppressors the service of God and their neighbor is of no value. The unscrupulous business practices that Amos points out in his own time have their counterparts in our time. It was common in ancient times to debase the coinage or medium of exchange used in business dealings. To diminish the ephah or add to the shekel was a way of cheating the unwary. In the same way adjusting scales to give false readings was a way to give less value for the money. 

 

Today, most forms of cheating in business seem far removed from our ordinary lives. Most of us will never be involved in nefarious Wall St. scandals that will see us led off to jail in handcuffs. Most of us will never be in a position to embezzle thousands from our employer. Most of us will never be like illegitimate building contractors who take money but never complete the job.

 

Today’s gospel is about another crook, the unjust steward. He was cheating his own master or employer. You may recall that last week’s gospel was also about someone who squandered his master’s wealth. Last week it was the Prodigal Son. Today’s gospel follows immediately after that famous parable in St. Luke’s gospel and there is good reason. While there are similarities in the two stories, there is a profound difference.

 

In last week’s gospel the Prodigal Son, after squandering his father’s inheritance, realized what he had done, repented, confessed, and begged for forgiveness. In today’s account the unjust steward, after squandering his master’s wealth, neither repents nor asks for forgiveness. He just seeks a way out but only gets deeper and deeper into crime. He goes to his master’s debtors and does them favors by cheating his employer further. He’s hoping that these debtors will remember and reward him. After all, he admits that he dislikes hard work, and is too ashamed to beg.

 

People have wondered why the master seems to “commend” the unjust steward for his criminal behavior. “And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently.” Personally, I detect sarcasm here. It’s as if the master was saying, “Sure, hang out with those bums. Just wait and see what happens. Why would any of those debtors ever trust the steward when they know that he has cheated his own master? Even crooks understand the words of today’s gospel.

 

 

The person who is trustworthy in very small matters

Is also trustworthy in great ones;

And the person who is dishonest in very small matters

Is also dishonest in great ones.

 

Politicians like to tell us today that there is a difference between private and public morality. They think that they can cheat on their spouses but serve their constituents faithfully. Nevertheless, deep down we all know that if they are unfaithful to their own spouses, why should they be faithful to us?

 

In today’s second reading St. Paul asks us to pray for those in authority. He must have known how difficult it would be for people in power to be faithful and just stewards. Still, it is clear that it is not just political leaders who are called to be stewards. We are all called to stewardship. We must follow the example of Jesus “who gave himself as a ransom for all.”

 

We have all been entrusted with the responsibility to care for others. Husbands and wives have the responsibility to care for each other. It’s amazing to me how often people in business will treat their clients with the greatest care and respect, but ignore the needs of their spouses. In another place, St. Paul tells us that single people have an even greater responsibility to care for others. Speaking of responsibility, don’t we make a great mistake when we give our children little or no responsibility? 

 

Even though most of us are just ordinary people, we are all called to be stewards. In the eyes of those who have been entrusted to our care we are the biggest shots of all. Why on earth would we turn our backs on our loved ones to make friends with the “mammon of iniquity” ?

 

###

Reading 1. Amos 8: 4-7

Reading II. 1 Timothy 2: 1-8

Gospel. Luke 16: 1-13 (the unjust steward).

The Prodigal Son

                  24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  C cycle

 

 

All three readings today deal with those who have strayed away from the true path to happiness. In the first reading from the Book of Exodus, the whole people of Israel have lost faith in their God who had rescued them from captivity in Egypt, that land where they had become shamefully depraved. 

 

The most famous story in the Bible is the parable of the Prodigal Son. This story is so moving and powerful that the Church returns to it over and over again. We have already heard it this year in the 4th Sunday of Lent, at the onset of Springtime. Now we have it as the Liturgical year is drawing to a close.

 

It is hard to mistake the meaning of this parable. The Scribes and Pharisees had been complaining that Jesus, "welcomes sinners and eats with them." Before giving us the story of the Prodigal Son, Luke gives us two other short stories. Jesus asked his critics which of them would not behave like a man who left his flock in search of one lost sheep out of a hundred. "When he has found it, he lays it upon his shoulders rejoicing." He calls his friends to rejoice with him "because I have found my sheep that was lost." In the same way, He asks, "what woman, having ten drachmas, if she loses one drachma, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?" The lesson is clear. "There will be joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, more than over ninety-nine just who have no need of repentance."

 

Only after these stories does our Lord relate the story of the man and his two sons that we heard today. The story is so familiar that  I would just like to make two points. First, the compassion of a father or mother toward a child is a reflection of the love that God has for all of us. Like God's love it never fails even after the child has grown and become independent. Secondly, the road home begins when the son who had squandered his inheritance accepts responsibility for his actions and places the blame squarely upon himself. "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son."

 

Many of us will find it difficult to accept the message of this parable. Is it possible to live in a family and not regard your siblings as rivals for your parents love and affection? How often are the parents' efforts directed toward the child who causes the most trouble? Who can't sympathize with the other son in today's story? 

 

      Look, all these years I served you

      and not once did I disobey your orders;

      yet you never gave me even a young goat 

      to feast on with my friends.

      But when your son returns

      who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,

      to him you slaughter the fatted calf."

 

Our Lord knows what goes on in our own families. He even knows how when we are angry or hurt we will say "your son" and not "my brother." Notice the father's answer. He says, "we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life."

 

Today's second reading from St. Paul's letter to Timothy tells of another who strayed. It is Paul himself. "I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and arrogant." Paul never tires of calling himself the least of the Apostles. 

 

      Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.

      Of these I am the foremost.

 

Paul believes that his own life is an example of the way God acts as a loving parent who is always ready to welcome us home.

 

God is Love. We can turn our backs on Him and go astray but He can never turn His back on us. Too often we think of God as an angry old dictator ready to zap us whenever we step out of line. Today's reading from the Book of Exodus gives us the image of such an angry God but there is also a hint that even in those early days Moses believed in a God of mercy and forgiveness. Certainly, we can never think of God as an angry patriarch after reading our Lord's parable of the Prodigal Son. 

 

The real sin of the Prodigal Son was that he squandered his inheritance in a foreign land. Rather than converting the foreigners, he was led astray and converted by them. Isn't this tragic story true today? How many of our children have squandered their spiritual inheritance upon leaving home. Isn't it sad that so many will discontinue their religious education once they go to High school? Many will cease attending Mass right after receiving the sacrament of Confirmation. By the time they graduate from college, so many will be confirmed agnostics or atheists. As someone once said, "When people cease to believe in God, they will believe in anything." They have given up the beauty, the wisdom, and the inheritance of 2000 years. 

 

We can only hope and pray that when they come to their senses in some foreign land, we will be ready to receive them back without bitterness or rancor, and with open arms. 

 

###

Reading 1. Exodus 32: 7-11, 13-14

Reading II. 1 Timothy 1: 12-17

Gospel. Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32 (The Prodigal Son). 

Parable of the Prodigal Son

                   4th Sunday of Lent

                  C cycle

 

Now that we are more than half way through the penitential season of Lent, the Church interjects a moment of joy into the season. Today is traditionally called "Laetare" Sunday from the Latin word for joy. Just as he does on the third Sunday in Advent the priest will put aside his purple vestments signifying sorrow and penance and put on the pink or rose vestments which symbolize joy. Today we get a glimpse of the joy that will be experienced when we reach our final goal.

 

The first reading from the book of Joshua indicates that the people of God after 40 years of wandering in the desert have finally reached the promised land. Slavery in Egypt, that land of shame and depravity, has been left behind. The Lord tells Joshua, "I have removed the reproach of Egypt from you." 

 

The theme of reconciliation and joy is continued in today's gospel account of the Prodigal Son. Try to think of a story in all of human literature that is more famous or well-known than this one. Take a moment.... War and Peace? I don't think so. Little Red Riding Hood? No. Hamlet? Who? Harry Potter? I'm sorry but no one will remember or read it 20 years from now. The Good Samaritan? Close, but I still give the nod to the Prodigal Son. Here we are in the 4th Sunday of Lent, at the onset of another Springtime, and the Church pulls out of its seemingly inexhaustible treasure trove, the greatest story of them all.

 

It is hard to mistake the meaning of this parable. The Scribes and Pharisees had been complaining that Jesus, "welcomes sinners and eats with them." Before giving us the story of the Prodigal Son, Luke gives us two other short stories. Jesus asked which of them would not behave like a man who left his flock in search of one lost sheep out of a hundred. "When he has found it, he lays it upon his shoulders rejoicing." He calls his friends to rejoice with him "because I have found my sheep that was lost." In the same way, He asks about a woman who has lost a coin, "what woman, having ten drachmas, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?" The lesson is clear. "There will be joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, more than over ninety-nine just who have no need of repentance."

 

Only after these stories does our Lord relate the story of the man and his two sons that we heard today. The story is so familiar that  I would just like to make two points. First, the compassion of a father or mother toward a child is a reflection of the love that God has for all of us. Like God's love, it never fails even after the child has grown and become independent. Secondly, the road home begins when the son who had squandered his inheritance accepts responsibility for his actions and places the blame squarely upon himself. "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son."

 

Many of us will find it difficult to accept the message of this parable. Is it possible to live in a family and not regard your siblings as rivals for your parents love and affection? How often are the parents' efforts directed toward the child who causes the most trouble? Who can't sympathize with the other son in today's story? 

 

      Look, all these years I served you

      and not once did I disobey your orders;

      yet you never gave me even a young goat 

      to feast on with my friends.

      But when your son returns

      who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,

      to him you slaughter the fatted calf."

 

Our Lord knows what goes on in our own families. He even knows how when we are angry or hurt we will say "your son" and not "my brother." Notice the father's answer. He says, "we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life."

 

Today's second reading from St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians is also about reconciliation. In fact, Paul says that God has "given us a ministry of reconciliation," and that He is "entrusting to us the message of reconciliation." Paul calls us "ambassadors for Christ." 

 

Now in days gone by communication and transportation were no where near as quick or easy as they are today. In those days ambassadors played a much more important role than they do today. They stood in the place of the King or ruler who sent them. When they pled the case of the King in a foreign land, it was understood that it was the king himself who was speaking. An embassy was regarded then as it still is today as a part of the home country. That is why in diplomacy an attack on an American embassy abroad is the same as a direct attack on America. 

 

As ambassadors of God we have a really important role. We represent Christ to the world about us. The real sin of the Prodigal Son was that he squandered his inheritance in a foreign land. Rather than converting the foreigners, he was converted by them. Our inheritance is not money or wealth. It is the gifts or talents that have been given us by God. Lent is the time for us to be reconciled to the Father so that we can take our part in restoring all things to Christ. ###

Reading 1. Joshua 5: 9a

Reading II. 2 Corinthians 5: 17-21

Gospel. Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32 (The Prodigal Son).

Parable of the Mustard Seed

                       11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                    

 

Today’s first reading from the book of the prophet Ezekiel speaks of a tender shoot that the Lord plucks off a great cedar tree and plants it among his people. It will itself grow into a mighty tree offering sustenance and shelter to those who seek refuge in its branches. Of course, this botanical imagery is just meant to be a metaphor for how God calls upon all of us to grow and bear fruit in our lives.

 

Jesus uses the same imagery in today’s gospel when he says, “this is how it is with the Kingdom of God.”

 

       It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground,

       Is the smallest of all the seeds of the earth.

       But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants…

 

Like Ezekiel Jesus is calling on little, ordinary people like ourselves to put forth large branches and bear much fruit.

 

Today’s gospel reminded me of one such a person in my home parish who passed away a few years ago. His name was Theodore, which coincidentally means God’s gift, but everyone called him Ted. He was a small, unassuming, and quiet spoken man who rarely talked about himself, but he was one of the most giving men I have ever known.

 

At his funeral I saw an old black and white marriage photo. Ted, who served in World War II, was in uniform next to his young Italian war bride who had sewn her beautiful white wedding gown out of Ted’s parachute. I never met his wife because she died shortly before I met Ted, but I know that he loved her until the day he died. They had four or five children, and all were there at the funeral with a number of grandchildren. One of the grandchildren gave a brief eulogy in which he described all the things his grandfather had taught him. 

       

Ted was an avid gardener and wine maker but by profession he was a master electrician who worked at his trade right until his final illness struck. My wife and I originally met him in an Italian language class, but he subsequently became a friend as well as our electrician. I will never forget the night our electricity went out during a violent ice storm. Ted came to the house, climbed a ladder, and repaired a broken power line in the midst of the storm. 

 

The only problem we ever had with Ted was that he was always reluctant to accept payment from friends. There was a large crowd in the Church at his funeral and I’m sure that most had also been the recipients of Ted’s generosity. He will never be canonized but he was one of the multitude of ordinary men who loved their families, their church, and their country.

 

In today’s second reading St. Paul speaks of courage. He says that even though our real home is not here, we must live our lives as best we can here on earth. We must be courageous. Today’s readings about little, ordinary people provide an opportunity to give a brief mention of Fathers’ Day that we will celebrate next week. I know that we all have our different vocations in life, and I do not wish to slight anyone, but it takes real courage to be a father. It takes real courage to make a commitment to give up your own wants in order to live for your wife and children.

 

In today’s world when even the idea of Fatherhood is maligned, it is very important that we do all we can to support those who have accepted the challenge. Here is a prayer for fathers.

 

Our Father in Heaven, we thank you for all the fathers on earth who,

       like St. Joseph, accept the responsibility to care for and love their children.

       May you strengthen them with the kindness, patience and wisdom they need

       to encourage and guide their children.

 

       May they be supported by a steadfast wife, a caring family and good friends.

       Most of all, may they know that you and you alone are the source of all that is

       good and truly valuable in this world.

 

###

Reading 1.  Ezekiel 17: 22-24

Reading II. 2 Corinthians 5: 6-10

Gospel. Mark 4: 26-34 (a mustard seed).

Parable of the Talents

                                     33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

                                 

 

            

Today’s first reading is from the last section of the Book of Proverbs and is taken from a poem which some have called the “Poem of a Perfect Wife.” Our reading calls her a “worthy wife” from the famous opening:

 

            When one finds a worthy wife,

            Her value is far beyond pearls.

 

Most historians would agree that sexism was part and parcel of the ancient world. Whether we’re talking about Greeks, Romans, Arabs, or Jews it was all the same, a world dominated by men. The male had absolute authority in his own household and this power extended into all of their communities whether clans, tribes, or cities. 

 

In today’s reading, however, we get a chance to peek behind the scenes and see what actually went on in an ancient household. The picture that emerges, especially if we read the whole poem and not just the excerpts in our missal, is of a wife as business manager or chief executive. What are her duties? She gets up while it is still dark and gets the whole household moving. She feeds her employees and gives them their work for the day. She herself labors well into the night. With the household running smoothly she turns her attention to other matters of concern. For example,

 

            She sets her mind on a field, then she buys it;

            With what her hands have earned she plants a vineyard.

 

She doesn’t seem to need her husband’s advice or permission even when she deals in such business matters: 

 

            She weaves linen sheets and sells them,

            She supplies the merchant with sashes.

 

Finally, at the end of the day with her household and business prosperous and in good order, she can enjoy the fruit of her hard work:

 

            She is clothed in strength and dignity, 

            She can laugh at the days to come.

 

It is very interesting that the Church uses this account of a hard-working woman to introduce today’s gospel account of our Lord’s parable of the three servants and the talents. Anyone who reads of the works and teaching of Jesus has to realize that there is no hint of sexism there. St.Paul realized as much when he said that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free. We are all one in Christ.

 

How many times in the Gospels does our Lord refer to Himself as a servant and insist that we must be good and faithful servants? In other words, the role of the woman in the Book of Proverbs is now the work of all of us. After all, who benefitted from the hard work of the woman in the Book of Proverbs? It wasn’t just her husband, her children, and her entire household. She also benefitted for she found peace, prosperity, dignity and honor. 

 

Isn’t it strange that Jesus called us to be servants even though God has no need of our service? Jesus asked us to use our talents in the service of others. The servants in the Gospel parable were all given talents and asked to grow them. Don’t we admire the athletes who work the hardest to develop their God-given skills? Isn’t it a shame when we see people who bury their gifts in the ground and waste their lives in trivial pursuits?

 

People in business attend seminars where they learn how to treat or serve their clients. They learn how to provide good “service” not only by doing their job well but by giving recognition and rewards, especially to their best clients. If only we could apply these techniques in our own families. What if husbands and wives were to regard each other as their best clients or customers?

 

It is so sad when people, especially young people, take the easy way out. So many of our children refuse to take advantage of the education offered to them today. They often brag about skipping class or not doing assignments. Some even get through college without ever reading a book. 

 

Even if we have not been given the same gifts, it is still important for us to work with what we have been given. Wouldn’t our lives be happier and better if we worked hard to develop our God-given talents? Also, let’s not waste our time by wishing we had someone else’s gifts or underrating our own? It says in today’s Gospel that each servant was given an amount “according to his ability.”

 

If we work hard and spend our lives in the service of others, we will be able, like the worthy woman in Proverbs, to rest easy at night and laugh at the days to come. In today’s second reading St. Paul commended the Christians of Thessalonica for avoiding the “darkness” and being “children of the light.” Still, he urged them and us to keep up the good work: 

 

            Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do.

            But let us stay alert and sober.

 

###

Reading 1. Proverbs 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31

Reading II. 1 Thessalonians 5: 1-6

Gospel. Matthew 25: 14-30 (to each according to his ability).

The Sower and the Seed

                                    15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                                    

            

Today’s first reading is clearly an introduction to the famous parable recounted in today’s gospel account of the sower and the seed. Isaiah compares the word of God to the rain and snow that make everything blossom and grow. Without this moisture which comes down from above there would be no life on earth. Obviously Isaiah is talking about much more than rain and snow. For him the word of God is more real and more important than the rain and snow.

            My word shall not return to me void,

            But shall do my will,

            Achieving the end for which I sent it.

In today’s parable Jesus shares Isaiah’s view. He even quotes from Isaiah. The parable of the sower and the seed is one of the most famous but it is also the only one which Jesus bothers to explain to his puzzled disciples. In Matthew’s account the seed, that is, the word of God, falls in different places with different results. Some falls on the hardened, trodden down path and is quickly eaten by the birds. Some falls on rocky ground where there is little soil to nourish it. Some falls among thorns or weeds which choke it. Finally, the rest falls on good soil and produces a bountiful harvest.

What is the meaning of this parable? After telling His disciples why He uses parables, Jesus then explains to them the meaning of this one. Let’s try to put His explanation in our own words. In the first place, He equates the seed sown in the path with those who hear the word of God without understanding it. Who could that be?

How many people today have only the most rudimentary knowledge of their own faith? For how many of us does our religious education stop with the eighth grade? Is there any other field of endeavor in which we would be content to stay at the eighth grade level? What would we think of a job application where the candidate’s schooling stopped at the eighth grade? Why do we spend thousands of dollars trying to get a college degree? What professional athlete would be content with eighth grade skills? Even when they make the pros they have to keep acquiring new skills in order to remain competitive. Why should life be any different? 

The second case of the rocky ground is more difficult. We all know of people whose faith has been shaken and even lost by some setback, some sorrow, and even some tragedy. Our Lord speaks of tribulation. But today, how many people have lost their faith because of a bad marriage or a divorce? How many have lost it because of some word spoken by an insensitive priest or religious? How many have lost their faith because of the scandalous behavior of a few priests? Finally, it is so sad to see the death or illness of a loved one cause someone to question their beliefs.

We don’t have to work too hard to understand the third category. 

            The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word,

            But then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word

            And it bears no fruit.

Worldly anxiety is something we can all relate to. It requires no dramatic event or crisis. It creeps up on us slowly and before we know it we are in its grasp. Young people know how important it is to have friends, but often the desire to be popular and well-liked can take over and ruin their lives. We all know that it is important for us to work hard in order to provide for the basic needs of our families, but how often do we see men and women so consumed by their work that their families are seriously hurt in the process of getting ahead? Even the elderly can fall into a daily routine that chokes them like the thorns in today’s gospel.

Life is full of snares and traps. Maybe that is what St. Paul had in mind in today’s reading from the Letter to the Romans.

            for creation was made subject to futility,

            not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it. 

There is no denying that there is pain and suffering in the world. Paul continually urges his followers to remain steadfast in their beliefs and not to turn their backs on God, or ignore the teaching of his Son, Jesus. As in any endeavor there is a reward for perseverance.

            I consider that the sufferings of the present time are as nothing

            Compared with the glory to be revealed.

The seed, the grace of God, has been given to us all. It is not just the saints and martyrs who have borne fruit. They are just the tip of a huge iceberg. God’s grace is not a pious fiction. Despite all the pain and suffering in the world today, we just have to look around us to see in a multitude of acts of kindness, generosity, and unselfish charity the bountiful harvest that the seed of God is still producing.

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Reading 1. Isaiah 55: 10-11

Reading II. Romans 8:18-23

Gospel. Matthew 13: 1-23 (A sower went out to sow).

The Fig Tree

                                    3rd Sunday of Lent

                                   

In today's first reading from the Book of Exodus we have the famous story of Moses and the burning bush. The Lord calls Moses from the fiery bush and tells him that He intends to free the people from their slavery and bring them to the promised land. Moses, however, is afraid that the Israelites might reject this news as well as his own leadership for the people would want to know who is sending him to lead them on this perilous journey. He says to the Lord, "if they ask me, 'What is his name?' what am I to tell them?"

As we enter deeper into the holy season of Lent we should put ourselves into the place of the Israelites and ask the same question. First we must know that it was considered impious for an Israelite to even use the name of God. We find it easy today, for reasons we shall see later, but for the Jew it was a dangerous expression of familiarity. To ask the name of God was really to ask, Who or What are you? 

God's reply, "I am who am," is best left to the theologians for an explanation. We can only imagine that Moses must have felt that he had encountered something that he had never heard of before in the land of Egypt. He could no longer believe that there were many gods, or that God was a kind of nature god like Zeus or Neptune. Still less could he believe God could be some kind of idol. Even today we still have childish or hopelessly inadequate notions of who God is. For many of us the God of Moses and the Israelites is the Father, pictured by artists as an old man with a long white beard. It's hard to get this image out of our minds. Some even lose their faith because they can only imagine God as an angry, vengeful power ready to zap us as soon as we step out of line. 

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Some people like to take natural catastrophes or great human tragedies like 9/11 as signs that an angry God is punishing us. Our Lord specifically rejects this superstition in today's gospel. Our Lord says that the Galileans whose bodies were cruelly desecrated by the Roman governor were not necessarily sinners. Often the good will meet the same fate. In the same way our Lord (who seems well up on the news of the day) indicates that those poor people who were killed when a tower fell on them were by no means "more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem."

In other words when tragedy strikes, whether natural or man-made, we should be careful not to draw the wrong lesson. Our Lord knows that we live in a dangerous world and that bad things can happen to us. He is telling us to live each day or year as if it will be our last and to make the most of it.

To drive the point home, our Lord tells the parable of the fig tree that would bear no fruit. This story always reminds me of something that occurred in my own life. Years ago I had an elderly Italian man as a client. Periodically I would visit him and his wife at their home to go over their financial situation. Like many Italians he loved his garden. His prize possession was the largest chestnut tree that I have ever seen. One day I happened to tell him that I loved chestnuts or castagnas and he gave me two little shoots to plant in my own back yard. I did and within a few years they had both grown to a good height. As the years went by however they bore no fruit and so one day I mentioned it to my client and he offered to come up and have a look at them. After I showed him the shells with no fruit inside, he walked around the trees a bit and said practically the same thing that the gardener said in today's parable:

            "leave it for this year also,

            and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it;

            it may bear fruit in the future."                  

To make a long story short, it worked and the tree began to bear fruit. Unlike the people we read about in today's newspapers, we have been given another chance to bear fruit. The time of Lent coincides with the coming of Spring. How many of us will be  buying our lawn fertilizers, and getting out our spreaders in the next few weeks? What's the best kind of fertilizer to get for our souls? 

Being born Catholic is not enough. Reception of the sacraments in our youth is not enough. St. Paul tells us in the second reading of the Israelites who perished in the desert even though they had been baptized, and received the same spiritual food, and  the same spiritual drink. Just as we know that every year the lawn and the hedges are going to come up again, we know that life will present us with problems and opportunities each and every year. 

In sports, last year's champion often fails to even make the playoffs this year. In business, your sales goals are reset every year and it doesn't matter what you did last year. Children, you might have been a big shot in junior high but now you are a lowly freshman in high school. 

Therefore, let's take stock of our situation this Lent and start by being thankful that we have been granted another year to bear fruit. Because our Lord took flesh and died for our sins, we can now feel free to call Him by name. He is the gardener waiting to fertilize us with His grace. Let's follow St. Paul's advice:

            Therefore, whoever thinks he is standing secure

            should take care not to fall. 

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Reading 1. Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15

Reading II. 1 Corinthians 10: 1-6, 10-12

Gospel. Luke 13: 1-9. (the unfruitful fig tree).