Story Starters: From Fr. Tony Kadavil’s Collection
Gospel text : Matthew 21:33-43
1) Wild Vines in the Lord’s Vineyard
In his book From Scandal to Hope, Fr. Benedict Groeschel (EWTN), examines the roots of the clergy sex-abuse scandal. He details how disloyalty spread through seminaries, universities, chanceries and parishes. The most notorious case was that of Fr. Paul Shanley who helped found the North American Man-Boy Love Association in 1979. He lectured in seminaries, once with a bishop in attendance, maintaining that “homosexuality is a gift of God and should be celebrated,” and that there was no sexual activity that could cause psychic damage-- “not even incest or bestiality.” No wonder Fr. Charles Curran had little trouble getting seventy-seven theologians to sign a protest against Humanae Vitae, an encyclical which reaffirmed marital chastity! A few years later the Catholic Theological Society (CTS), published Human Sexuality: New Directions in American Catholic Thought, a study which accepted cohabitation, adultery and homosexuality. Now, however, all these chickens have come home to roost. We are paying the price – in lawsuits, public humiliation and loss of credibility. The media gave us a glimpse of the enormous destruction in the Lord’s vineyard done by those wicked tenants. They did so with great relish because the scandals discredit a teaching authority they, by and large, find annoying. But this attention by the media has had consequences the media probably did not intend. It has alerted Catholics to the widespread pillaging of the vineyard, which ultimately means the damnation of souls. Fr. Groeschel asks, “Does all this scandal shake your faith in the Church?” He answers, “I hope so, because ultimately your faith should not be in the Church. Ultimately your faith is in Jesus Christ. It is because of him that we accept and support the Church. We believe in and belong to the Church because Christ established it on his apostles." We see in today’s Gospel that the owner of the vineyard is God. He will care for his Church, not by committees or document, but by raising up saints who will properly tend the vineyard.
A girl named Kristi Yamaguchi was born to a young couple whose parents had emigrated to the U.S. from Japan in the early twentieth century. Unfortunately, one of her feet was twisted. Her parents tried to heal her by means of physical therapy. To strengthen her legs further they enrolled her in an ice-skating class. Kristi had to get up at four a.m. on school days to do her practice in the ice rink before she went to school. This helped her to develop into a world-class figure-skater. Believe it or not, in 1992 Kristi won the gold medal for the United States in women's figure-skating at the XVI Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, 1992. Kristi thus became one of the several examples of “the stone rejected by the builders becoming a cornerstone” of the U.S. Women’s Olympic team. Kristi is very passionate about making a positive difference in the lives of children. In 1996, Kristi established the Always Dream Foundation whose mission is to encourage, support and embrace the hopes and dreams of children. In today’s gospel, after telling the parable of the wicked tenants, Jesus prophesies that, rejected by the Jewish nation, he will become the cornerstone of the Kingdom of God.
a) 25th Sunday: Mt 20/1-16: Hired laborers in the vineyard: Willingness to work, find work, invest yourself and the Lord rewards it regardless of the length of time or the period in one's life. He is merciful to the efforts people make to make a living.
b) 26th Sunday: Mt `21/28-32: 2 sons: Now it's the family. You can only be requested and not forced. As the children grow up, they have their freedom, opinions and choices in life. God respects that. We are not judged by some ideologies or philosophies we may take fancy upon, but by our real actions. Our final choices.
c) 27th Sunday: Mt 21/33-43: Tenants of the vineyard and our Stewardship: As parents entrust their property or business to their children, so God entrusts talents, faith, Church, the world, care of nature/environment into human hands. How we look after and nurture our faith, our commitment to our families, to our elected office in the civil society are all become the foci of this stewardship.
-Tony Kayala, c.s.c.
Michel DeVerteuil
General Comments
Today’s passage is complex. Several different strands have been woven into it, all with their own main characters, their own movement and their own atmosphere. In our meditation we need to look at each strand individually and then, if we are so inclined, to see a link between them.
It is first of all the story of the “landowner”, deeply grieved at the conduct of his tenants. His story is in four stages:
– he cares lovingly for the vineyard (verse 33a);
– he “leases” it (vs. 33b);
– the tenants reject his messengers (vs. 34-38)
– his angry response (vs. 40-41).
The landowner represents us when we give our all as parents, teachers, church or other community leaders. He also represents the founders of religious orders, social movements or political parties. A time comes when we must all let go of our authority (“go abroad”) and entrust to others the people or causes we have served. The parable reminds us of the shock we experience when we learn that our trust has been betrayed.
The landowner’s final response is told in a very significant way. Jesus invites his audience to finish the story for him, agrees with their verdict (implicitly) and so (also implicitly) invites us to agree with them both. The landowner’s response therefore is the model of what our spiritual tradition has called “righteous anger”.The landowner also represents God so that the parable invites us to enter into God’s feelings when he sees how we human beings treat his precious sons and daughters and his beautiful nature. As always the God of the Bible (Old and New Testaments) is not calm and “detached” as a false spirituality has depicted him – and encouraged us to imitate. “Righteous anger” is a virtue we often fail to practice, especially in the light of the great crimes of our time: world poverty, racism and sexism, the sexual abuse of minors. Jesus is the person in our lives who invites us to repent of our false “detachment” and enter into the anger of God.
The parable is also the story of the “tenants” and here again we are invited to feel with them. We must however understand their frame of mind correctly. In many cultures today “tenants” are poor people who are harshly treated by their landowners – the historical Jesus would have been on their side. The tenants in the parable are quite different. In the original context (as verse 43 shows) the tenants represent “the chief priests and elders of the people”. Today they represent us to the extent that we belong to an oppressor group – individuals and civilizations – and lose the sense of being stewards of all we possess.In the parable the “tenants” become angry when they are reminded that the vineyard has been leased to them and they must be accountable for what they have done with it. Their anger grows ever more violent (vs. 35-39). As the story develops, the root of their anger is revealed – they want to own the vineyard (vs. 38b).
The parable then gives us the key to understanding abuse of authority in its many forms. Its root is always that we feel our higher status being threatened in some way and lash out against the people or events we perceive as threats:
– one of our children rebels or befriends someone we don’t approve of;
– sickness or old age forces us to change our lifestyle;
– a dear friend betrays our trust;
– a project fails which we had put a lot into.
The violence of the tenants in the parable may seem exaggerated on a first reading, but they are a dramatic reminder of the violence which is so much a part of our modern Western culture – against nature, minorities, men against women, adults against children. In each case it is a matter of “tenants” being angry at being reminded that they are accountable.
The parable reminds us too that the sense of stewardship should be fostered by our religious faith. The fact is however that we religious people, “chief priests and elders of our people,” can forget our dependence on God and no longer thank him for his gifts.
The parable is the story of the new tenants – ourselves when we become members of a Church or religious community, a social movement, or political party. We too can become arrogant and complacent. Jesus is the person (or event) reminding us of two humbling realities:
a) we did not earn the right to be where we find ourselves; it was a free gift of God. The lesson is taught imaginatively as always in the bible. We must be as humble as tenants who were hired only because others proved unworthy and the landowner was looking for someone to take their place;
b) we too must produce fruit. A warning must be sounded here: we must be careful not to interpret this as pandering to our culture’s insistence that we human beings prove our worth by being “producers”. That would be a gross misinterpretation of the image. The parable is inviting us to see the potential in all those entrusted to our care and approach them with corresponding reverence. This is of course applicable to our relationship with nature.
Finally the parable is the story of the landowner’ son, ill-treated and killed but eventually become the cornerstone of a new era. We “landowners” have been deeply hurt but we do not allow ourselves to despair, we know that if God’s providence triumphs goodness will prevail.Scripture reflection
Lord, we praise and we bless you for your gifts to us:
– our country with its mountains and valleys, its rivers and beaches, its trees and animals;
– our homes and all our possessions;
– our families, children, spouses and parents;
– our friends and spiritual guides;
– the communities in which we work and pray;
– our talents and the education we have received.
Truly you have planted a beautiful vineyard, fenced it round,
dug a winepress in it and built a tower,
and then you leased it to us.
We thank you for the privilege of being tenants of your vineyard.
Forgive us, Lord, if we are resentful or angry when we experience our frailty:
– ill health or the signs of old age,
– failure or ingratitude,
– criticism, especially when it is undeserved.
Yet these are your servants that you send
to remind us that we are only your tenants in this world,
and the season will soon arrive
when we will have to hand over the produce to you.
Lord, we thank you that not all tenants are like those in the parable.
We remember with great gratitude those who have loved us
without being possessive – parents, teachers, community leaders.
When the time came they were able to let go,
as calmly as any tenant-farmer delivering his produce when the season arrives.
Lord, we thank you for the great prophets of our time:
– church leaders like Archbishop Romero and Dom Helder Camara;
– national leaders like Gandhi and Martin Luther King;
– many others in our countries and villages.
You sent them as your servants to the great ones of the world,
calling them to account for their tenancy.
They were seized and thrashed,
some were thrown out of the vineyard and killed.
But you have made them the key-stones of a new age,truly a wonderful thing to see.
Lord, you have called us to be members of your Church;
forgive us that we so easily become arrogant,
as if we have earned the right to membership by our own efforts.
Forgive us that we look on our wealth or the wealth of our country
as our own – to do with what we like.
Help us to be humble about our spiritual as well as temporal gifts,
to be like people to whom land has been leased only because others proved unfaithful,
and who know that at any moment it can be taken from them just as easily,
to be given to others who will produce better fruit.
*********************************************************
Thomas O’Loughlin
Introduction to the Celebration
Christ Jesus came among us to invite us to become part of a new people, to gather scattered individuals and transform them into his new community, the kingdom. Let us pause and reflect that we are members of this community, this communion, this body, this priestly people, this kingdom. And, as such, we have now assembled to celebrate with one another and with the Lord.
Homily notes
1. How do we learn to be Christians? Listen carefully to this question: how do we learn to be Christians? A stock answer might be: ‘What’s with this WE stuff?’ I might want to learn to be a Christian, to find out what it means to live as a Christian, I might want to build up the habits of thought and action that would mean my life would have a Christian character, but that is my concern – I do not want others interfering with me, and I do not want to interfere with others! This is not only a possible answer to the question, it is one that is consistent with the dominant social trend in contemporary Western society: we are individual consumers. I take from any heap just what I want, leave the rest; and in everything to do with religion there must be a strict code of non-interference – it (religion) is my business and no one else’s!2. The unfortunate thing about the notion of isolated individual unit is that it just does not fit the facts of humanity!
3. First, if we lived consistently on this isolationist model of having a meaningful life we would have to abandon love, the notion of family, the notion of caring for others, and become Robinson Crusoe figures (except that we would not welcome the arrival of man Friday!). Indeed, many who do live lives that are truly individualistic, do find having stable relationships a problem, they fear love as commitment and their first thought about others is that they are potential threats.
4. Second, Jesus did not come to offer ideas to individuals which they might pick up or reject; rather he came to form a community. This was to be a new type of community that would live with love towards one another, they would view everyone (men/ women; masters / slaves; Jews / Gentiles; rich/ poor; posh people/’not our sort’ people; neighbours/foreigners) in the community as ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’. This community would be an expression on earth of the love of the Father and the Son in the Spirit; and the love that community would show to others who do not belong to the Christian community would be an expression of the love that God has for all humans. You can only learn to be a Christian by belonging to a Christian community. And you cannot be an isolated individual and be part of a community.5. You can only learn to be a Christian when you live and collaborate as a Christian with others in a community; then we all learn to be Christians together. We are not always very successful in becoming Christians, and it is difficult to share the life of a community, but that is the only way we will grow as disciples and move along our pilgrimage of faith.
6. So how is this community working together? What are we doing to break down the individualism that keeps us from growing more like Jesus? How are we collectively expressing care and love for the larger society, thereby manifesting the love of God for humanity? These are painful questions.
Are poor people being helped by our work?
Do people caring for the planet know that they have support from us as a group?
Would people suffering from injustice realise that we will be their allies?
Would people who are victimised or excluded in our society know that Christians will stand up for them?
Have we become so individualistic and so consumerist in our attitudes that we imagine we can be Christians and ignore such questions?
7. If we are failing in our answers to this question, then we are the wretched and corrupt tenants who have rejected God’s servants, the prophets, and; indeed, the Son.
8. We should pause and consider this before we decide to stand and profess our faith.
****************************************************************
John Litteton
Gospel Reflection
The gospel parable about the landowner and the tenants of his vineyard is very challenging. On reading it, we may initially be shocked by the disrespect and aggression of the tenants who treated appallingly several messengers from the landowner. Indeed, we are reminded of the cliché: Don’t shoot the messenger just because you don’t like the message! In addition, we are all aware of instances where a person who is a key person in a team or on a project has been unfairly rejected and unjustly despised by other people. Sometimes rejection happens when those people simply do not understand how necessary and vital the person being rejected is for the success of the team or the completion of the project. However, more often and more sinfully, rejection is the result of jealousy and vindictiveness. We all know such instances from work but, even more so, from sport and politics — locally, nationally and internationally.
The parable advises us about the extent to which some people will go to further their own interests. They will do anything to have their own way. They will compromise their principles. They will blatantly disregard the reputations of friends and colleagues. They will intimidate and frighten them. In their ruthlessness, they will even shoot the messenger because they do not like the message.
Ironically, the messenger is often the only person who can help them or redeem the situation, if only they would have the good sense to recognise this. In the words of the parable: ‘It was the stone rejected by the builders that became the keystone’ (Mt 21:42).
While this is true in our human relationships, it is particularly true in our relationships with God. Frequently, we may reject the challenging message of the gospel. We may despise those who live good and wholesome lives because their goodness is a rebuke to our conscience and we are jealous and resentful. We may fail to realise that when we reject other people and treat them harshly, we do the same to Christ who lives in them and who is their brother.
Likewise, when we reject Christ’s teaching spoken to us by family and others, we also reject Christ speaking to us through them. In rejecting Christ, we reject the eternal life that he has won for us through his suffering, death and resurrection. Christ is the keystone, so often rejected, yet so necessary for our salvation and the salvation of all people. Without Christ we cannot have life with God.
The parable invites us to turn to Christ again. It urges us not to reject Christ in our lives simply because we dislike the challenge of his message. He is the keystone who establishes and maintains our relationships with God.Fewer things are more disappointing for any of us than discovering that our efforts and love go unaccepted or unappreciated by others. The same is true about God. Let us, therefore, allow Christ to become and remain the keystone in our lives so that, through us, he may once more become the keystone in the lives of those who have rejected and despised him because they do not accept the challenging but life-giving message of his word.
who will deliver the produce to him when the season arrives. (Mt 21:41)
Fr Donal Neary, S.J
The vineyard is ourselves!
God is all the time caring for his people and thinking of us, making sure we’re not endangered when he can help it. His care for his people goes into the heart of the Trinity, one of whom becomes one of us, for our sake.
He wants us to bear fruit, as in the second reading. He will give these fruits – and wants us to value them.
In our society today, we could say that in many countries child protection and care is better, We are more inclusive of people who differ from us and the church is open to the whole human family. In Ireland we have more peace now than we had, but maybe not more justice, especially for our migrant people. These are some fruits. We miss out on some issues – the value of faith and community is low and sometimes in public or political life we go for the temporary and the illusory and the dramatic. The gap between rich and poor is wider than ever. We have had bad experiences of greed and financial abuse, even in the charities sector. Our care of the elderly leaves much to be demanded.Looking at the gospel vision, we can ask how the vineyard is nourished. We find that the cornerstone of the Christian way of life is love, and the love is a person in Jesus. He is the one who will invigorate the vine … Some will ignore him, some will follow. All of us are probably a bit in between. God sent his own Son into the vineyard of human life, not because life is perfect, but because love is. Jesus comes among us because we need him.
****
From The Connections:
Like the tenants in today’s parable, we are too quick to reject whatever scares us or threatens us, whatever we don’t understand, whatever challenges us and the safe little worlds we have created for ourselves. In Christ, God calls us to look beyond the “stones” of our fears and welcome Christ (in whatever guise he may appear) into this vineyard of ours, aware that he calls us to the demanding conversion of the Gospel but determined to sow and reap the blessings of God’s reign.
Christ the Messiah comes with a new, transforming vision for our “vineyard”: a vision of love rather than greed, of peace rather than hostility, of forgiveness rather than vengeance, a vision that enables us to reconcile even the ugliest and smelliest dragon among us.
Some time later, another traveler to same village found himself confronted by the same “monster.” But instead of offering to “kill” the monster, he told the villagers that it must be dangerous and tiptoed away from it. Gaining the confidence of the villagers, the second traveler was able to teach the villagers some elementary horticultural facts about the “monster” in their midst. The villagers lost their fear of the melons and began to cultivate them for food.
The first traveler, while trying to help the villagers, only intensified their fear; his knowledge became even more powerful and terrifying to the villagers.
But the second traveler was a man of compassion: he entered into their fears, suffered with them, and then was able to help them rise above their fears.
****
From Fr. Jude Botelho:
Reflection
*****
1) Warnings ignored: Recently the New
York Times Magazine showed a series of photographs of a rock formation
in Yosemite National Park near Bridal Veil Falls. A prominent sign in yellow
plastic was attached to the rocks which clearly said: “Danger. Climbing or
scrambling on rocks and cliffs is extremely dangerous. They are slippery when
dry or wet. Many injuries and even fatalities have occurred.” One picture
showed a woman walking on the rocks in a tight dress and high heels. Another
showed a couple walking on the rocks. The man was carrying his dog apparently
because he thought it was too slippery for the dog. Another showed a man
carrying a month-old baby in his arms while walking on the rocks. (“Slippery
Slope in Yosemite” New York Times Magazine, September 9, 1994,
p. 14.) What causes us to ignore clear warnings? Why do folks rip the plastic
cover off a pack of cigarettes when all of us know the surgeon general’s
warning by heart? Why do people remove the safety shield from power saws? Why
do people ignore their doctor’s warnings about being overweight and under
exercised? Why do entire civilizations ignore warnings about pollution, or the
revolutionary pressures that economic and political injustice creates? Today’s
Gospel tells us how the Jewish religious leadership ignored the even the final
warning given by Jesus after Palm Sunday. (https://youtu.be/kAvhslwxMPU)
(Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
2) Wild vines in the Lord’s vineyard. In
his book From Scandal to Hope, Fr. Benedict Groeschel (EWTN),
examines the roots of the clergy sex-abuse scandal. He details how disloyalty
spread through seminaries, universities, chanceries and parishes. The most
notorious case was that of Fr. Paul Shanley who helped found the North
American Man-Boy Love Association in 1979. He lectured in
seminaries, once with a bishop in attendance, maintaining that “homosexuality
is a gift of God and should be celebrated,” and that there was no sexual
activity that could cause psychic damage– “not even incest or bestiality.” No
wonder Fr. Charles Curran had little trouble getting seventy-seven
theologians to sign a protest against Humanae Vitae, an encyclical
which reaffirmed marital chastity! A few years later the Catholic Theological
Society (CTS), published Human Sexuality: New Directions in American
Catholic Thought, a study which accepted cohabitation, adultery and
homosexuality. Now, however, all these chickens have come home to roost.
We are paying the price – in lawsuits, public humiliation and loss of
credibility. The media gave us a glimpse of the enormous
destruction in the Lord’s vineyard done by those wicked tenants. They did
so with great relish because the scandals discredit a teaching authority, they,
by and large, find annoying. But this attention by the media has
had consequences the media probably did not intend. It has alerted
Catholics to the widespread pillaging of the vineyard, which ultimately means
the damnation of souls. Fr. Groeschel asks, “Does all this scandal shake
your faith in the Church?” He answers, “I hope so, because ultimately your
Faith should not be in the Church. Ultimately your Faith is in Jesus
Christ. It is because of him that we accept and support the Church.
We believe in and belong to the Church because Christ established it on his
apostles.” — We see in today’s Gospel that the owner of the
vineyard is God. He will care for his Church, not by committees or
documents, but by raising up saints who will properly tend the vineyard. (Fr.
Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
3) Rejected stone becoming the cornerstone: A
girl named Kristi Yamaguchi was born to a young couple whose parents had emigrated
to the U.S. from Japan in the early twentieth century. Unfortunately, one
of her feet was twisted. Her parents tried to heal her by means of
physical therapy. To strengthen her legs further they enrolled her in an
ice-skating class. Kristi had to get up at four AM on school days to do
her practice in the ice rink before she went to school. This helped her to
develop into a world-class figure-skater. Believe it or not, in 1992 Kristi won
the gold medal for the United States in women’s figure-skating at the XVI
Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, 1992. Kristi thus became one of the
several examples of “the stone rejected by the builders becoming a
cornerstone,” in this case, of the U.S. Women’s Olympic team. Kristi
is very passionate about making a positive difference in the lives of children.
In 1996, Kristi established the Always Dream Foundation whose
mission is to encourage, support and, embrace the hopes and dreams of children.
— In today’s Gospel, after telling the parable of the wicked tenants, Jesus
prophesies that, rejected by the Jewish nation, he will become the cornerstone
of the Kingdom of God. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
24 Additional anecdotes:
1) The rejected cornerstone: There was a legend,
well-known in New Testament times, that in the building of God’s Temple by
Solomon, most of the stones were of the same size and shape. One stone arrived,
however, that was different from the others. The builders took one look at it and
said, “This will not do,” and sent it rolling down into the valley of Kedron
below. The years passed and the great Temple was nearing completion, and the
builders sent a message to the stonecutters to send the chief cornerstone that
the structure might be complete. The cutters replied that they had sent the
stone years before. Then someone remembered the stone that was so different
from all the rest that it somehow did not seem to belong. They realized that
they had thrown away the cornerstone. They hurried into the valley to retrieve
it. Finally, from under vines and debris, they recovered it and with great
effort rolled it up the hill and put it in place so that the great Temple would
be complete. The stone that had been rejected had become the chief cornerstone.
Jesus, who had been rejected now reigns at the right hand of the Father. (Fr.
Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
2) Black ingratitude and cold indifference: Andrew
Carnegie, a multimillionaire, left one million dollars to one of his relatives,
who in return cursed Carnegie bitterly because he had left $365 million to
public charities and had cut the relatives off with one million
each. Samuel Leibowitz, criminal lawyer and judge, saved 78 men from the
electric chair. Not one of them ever bothered to thank him. Many years
ago, as the story is told, a devout king was disturbed by the ingratitude of
his royal court. He prepared a large banquet for them. When the king and his
royal guests were seated, a beggar shuffled into the hall, sat down at the
king’s table, and gorged himself with food. Without saying a word, the beggar
then left the room. The guests were furious and asked permission to seize the
tramp and tear him limb from limb for his ingratitude. The king replied, “That
beggar has done only once to an earthly king what each of you does three times
each day to God. You sit there at the table and eat until you are satisfied.
Then you walk away without recognizing God or expressing one word of thanks to
Him.” The parable in today’s Gospel is about the gross ingratitude of God’s
chosen people who persecuted and killed all the prophets sent to them by God to
correct them and finally crucified their long-awaited Messiah. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
3) The stone the builders rejected became the
cornerstone: South Africa is a country blessed by God in a great many
ways. But the country which should have been a haven for all the peoples of
Southern Africa became instead a heaven for a privileged white minority. Many
people tried in vain to change South Africa’s apartheid system. Finally, Nelson
Mandela appeared on the scene. He too tried to bring about reforms. But like
reformers before him, he was rejected. Worse, he was hounded by the government,
and ended up spending twenty-seven years in prison. However, he not only
survived prison, but came out of it with the respect of his enemies and of the
entire world. Furthermore, he came out without bitterness. He immediately
sought reconciliation with the leaders of the regime that kept him, in prison.
But even greater things were to follow. The man once rejected was to become the
President of a new multi-racial South Africa. The stone which the builders rejected
became the cornerstone of a new and better building. (Flor McCarthy in New
Sunday and Holy Day Liturgies; quoted by Fr. Botelho). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
4) “Send me one line back.” The former British
Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, had proposed marriage to Muriel Wilson, the
daughter of a wealthy shipping tycoon. Soon after Wilson rejected him,
Churchill sent a handwritten letter asking to see her again. “Don’t slam the
door,” Churchill, then 30, begged Wilson, a year younger. “I can wait; perhaps
I shall improve with waiting,” he wrote. “Why shouldn’t you care about me
someday?” Pleading in a postscript, Churchill added, “Send me one line back.”
Later he wrote her again. “Of course, you do not love me a scrap,” he wrote. At
the same time, he insisted on the existence of “a key if I could only find it,
if you would only let me look for it which would unlock both our hearts.” (Cox
News Service)) The man who would one day provide a strong voice for the
aspirations of the British people was once rejected just as many of us may have
been rejected. Few things hurt as much as rejection. In today’s Gospel, Jesus
tells us a story of his painful rejection by the Chosen People. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
5) Rejection – what a terrible, terrible word! Elizabeth
Barrett married the poet Robert Browning against her parents’ wishes. In fact,
they objected so strenuously to her marriage that they disowned her. As
everyone knows, her marriage was a beautiful, happy relationship for both
Elizabeth and Robert. In spite of the hurt of being rejected by her family,
however, Elizabeth Barrett Browning continued to write regularly to them. In
each letter, she told her father and mother how much she continued to love
them. She received no response. Then, after total silence for ten years from
her parents, a large package arrived. Elizabeth Barrett Browning eagerly opened
it. The box contained all of the letters that she had written them since her
marriage to Robert. Not one had been opened. (Dr. William P. Barker, Tarbell’s
Teacher’s Guide (Elgin, Illinois: David C. Cook, 1994).) Parents can
be vindictive at times as can children. And the pain that can result is
devastating. Rejected – is there a more painful word? In today’s Gospel, Jesus
tells us a story of his painful rejection by the Chosen People. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
6) “It’s the only thing!” When Vince Lombardi
was hired as head coach of the Green Bay Packers in 1958, the team was in
dismal shape. A single win in season play the year before had socked the club
solidly into the basement of the NFL, and sportscasters everywhere used it as the
butt of loser jokes. But Lombardi picked and pulled and prodded and trained and
discipled the players into become a winning team. They were NFL champions in
three consecutive seasons and took the game honors for the first two Super
Bowls. Lombardi was a drill sergeant and a strategist, finding and developing
the best in each of his players individually and then crafting a team community
that could visualize the prize. “Winning isn’t everything,” he was often quoted
as saying, “It’s the only thing!” His Packers proved him true, time and again.
Where’s the Team? This is the problem Jesus pointedly identifies in today’s
parable. God is the greatest coach, but the team is unwilling to follow Him.
(Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
7) “Do you mean suicide?” There was a story in
the newspapers sometime back about an 11-year-old boy in Los Angeles who hanged
himself with a bathrobe belt because his girlfriend broke up with him in an
E-Mail message. The boy left no suicide note but told the 12-year-old girl in
an E-Mail that she “wasn’t going to hear from him anymore.” She sent back a
message asking, “Do you mean suicide?” but he did not respond. The boy’s father
found his son hanging from a shower frame. The children had met at a summer
camp about a month before. (The Associated Press). Eleven years old. You and I
would dismiss it as puppy love, but still there is pain. Actually, rejection is
particularly hard on us when we are young. This is when we are still forming
opinions about our own self-worth. Are we acceptable, lovable, worthy of our
place in the sun? In today’s Gospel Jesus tells us a parable of rejection by
the Chosen people of God. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
8) “Yes, Honey. That’s the way life goes
sometimes.” There was a heart-breaking story in the Girl Scouts
magazine, American Girl, several years ago. Listen to these words
from a young woman: “When I was ten, my parents got a divorce. Naturally, my
father told me about it, because he was my favorite. ‘Honey, I know it’s been
kind of bad for you these past few days, and I don’t want to make it worse. But
there’s something I have to tell you. Honey, your mother and I got a divorce .
. . I know you don’t want this, but it has to be done. Your mother and I just
don’t get along like we used to. I’m already packed, and my plane is leaving in
half an hour.’ ‘But, Daddy, why do you have to leave?’ ‘Well, honey, your
mother and I can’t live together anymore.’ ‘I know that, but I mean why do you
have to leave town?’ ‘Oh. Well, I’ve got someone waiting for me in New Jersey.’
‘But, Daddy, will I ever see you again?’ ‘Sure, you will, honey. We’ll work
something out.’ ‘But what? I mean, you’ll be living in New Jersey, and I’ll be
living here in Washington.’ ‘Maybe your mother will agree to you spending two
weeks in the summer and two weeks in the winter with me.’ ‘Why not more often?’
‘I don’t think she’ll agree to two weeks in the summer and two in the winter,
much less more.’ ‘Well, it can’t hurt to try.’ ‘I know, honey, but we’ll have
to work it out later. My plane leaves in twenty minutes and I’ve got to get to
the airport. Now I’m going to get my luggage, and I want you to go to your
room, so you don’t have to watch me. And no long goodbyes either.’ ‘Okay,
Daddy. Goodbye. Don’t forget to write.’ ‘I won’t. Goodbye. Now go to your
room.’ ‘Okay. ‘Daddy, I don’t want you to go!’ ‘I know, honey. But I have to.’
‘Why?’ ‘You wouldn’t understand, honey.’ ‘Yes, I would.’ ‘No, you wouldn’t.’
‘Oh well, Goodbye.’ ‘Goodbye. Now go to your room. Hurry up.’ ‘Okay. Well I
guess that’s the way life goes sometimes.’ ‘Yes, honey. That’s the way life
goes sometimes.'” Would it surprise you to know that after that young woman’s father
walked out the door, she never heard from him again? [James C. Dobson, Straight
Talk to Men and Their Wives (Waco: Word Books, 1980), pp. 44-45. Cited
in Patrick M. Morley, The Rest of Your Life (Nashville: Thomas
Nelson Publishers, Inc, 1992).] It is a terrible thing to feel rejected. Jesus
tells such a painful story how their long-awaited Messiah was rejected by God’s
Chosen people. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
9) “…that God loved me totally, unconditionally, and
that he had a purpose for my life.” One of the most respected and
best-liked persons in Hollywood is Kathie Lee Gifford. There was an article
about her in USA Today in 1999. Like everyone, Kathie Lee has
had her share of heartaches–particularly in her marriage, as the tabloids have
pointed out to us repeatedly over the last few years. Kathie Lee was recognized
recently as Mother of the Year at a charity luncheon. The Gifford’s children,
Cody, 9, and Cassidy, 5, got a day off from private school to support Mom. They
took to the podium, introduced by ABC’s Claudia Cohen. “I get an award for
this?” asked Kathie Lee, standing with the kids after her introduction by New
York first lady, Libby Pataki. “I am so blessed!” Then Kathie Lee thanked her
parents, who were present. And here is what Kathie Lee Gifford said about her
parents. It explains why Kathie Lee’s life has been such a success: They
“taught me,” she said, “that God loved me totally, unconditionally, and that He
had a purpose for my life.” (USA Today, March 2, 1999). No wonder Kathie
Lee was successful, not only in her career, but as a mother. She knew she was
loved. They “taught me,” she said, “that God loved me totally, unconditionally,
and that he had a purpose for my life.” One who knows the unconditional love of
God in one’s heart will allow the world to make them feel one rejected for
long. When we have the love of God in our hearts, we carry a sense of security
that the world cannot take away. Today’s Gospel tells us how God continues to
love us in spite of our history of rejecting him. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
10) “You’re sitting in my chair.” A story was
making the rounds during the American presidential campaign a few years ago. An
asteroid hits the speaker’s platform at a Seattle conference center, and Al
Gore, George W. Bush and Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and one of the
richest men on earth, all arrive in Heaven at the same time. They are greeted
by the Almighty, Who is sitting on His golden throne. First, the Lord speaks to
Gore, asking what he believes in. “I believe in the Internet and a clean
environment,” Gore replies. “Very good,” the Almighty says. “Come sit near me.
“Then he asks George W. Bush the same question. “I believe in cutting taxes and
taking good care of the military,” Bush replies. “Excellent,” says the
Almighty. “Come sit near me. “Then God asks Bill Gates what he believes. “I
believe,” Gates replies, “you’re sitting in my chair.” There are times when all
of us try to put ourselves in God’s seat. There are times when all of us act as
if the world is our fiefdom and we are supreme over all we survey. We forget
that everything we have is on loan to us from God. We are temporary tenants. We
don’t own anything, even though we sometimes act as if we own it all.
Everything ultimately belongs to God. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
11) Jesus Calls Us to Good Stewardship. William White
once told of visiting his 98-year-old mother-in-law in a nursing home. He
remembers her quietly saying, “Think of the lilies and how they grow.” Long ago
this frail, blind woman made the discovery that all of life is a blessing from
God. She spent much of her time repeating Scripture verses that she had learned
throughout her life. The Scriptures gave her both strength and comfort during
many lonely hours. She was an active woman right up until she entered the
nursing home, walking a mile a day, though her eyesight was gradually
worsening. She loved people and was always helping them. Even in the nursing
home she used a walker to spread her joyful faith. “Facing each day is not easy
for her,” White reflected, “but she keeps her spirits up.” How? She felt that
even at ninety-eight she had a mission. There in the nursing home she was able
to touch the lives of other residents as well as some employees. In fact, some
former employees who changed jobs still returned to the nursing home to spend
time with this remarkable woman. William White was inspired when his
mother-in-law told him how thankful she was to have memorized so many
Scriptures before she lost her eyesight. Those Scriptures filled her heart with
the Lord. (3) This dear 98-year-old lady did not have much left in this world,
but she had the only thing we ever really own, her Faith in God. Everything
else that we have is on loan. Someday it will be passed on to someone else.
Don’t you see? No matter how rich we are, if we are not rich toward God, we
don’t have anything! The vineyard belongs to Him. Happiness is found in
recognizing our place as His tenants His stewards. But there is one thing more
to be said. Jesus Calls Us to Good Stewardship. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
12) “I dare you to do it again.” Once at a
Church meeting a wealthy member of the church rose to tell the rest of those
present about his Christian Faith. “I’m a millionaire,” he said, “and I
attribute my wealth to the blessings of God in my life.” He went on to recall
the turning point in his relationship with God. As a young man, he had just
earned his first dollar, and he went to a Church meeting that night. The
speaker at that meeting was a missionary who told about his work in the mission
field. Before the offering plate was passed around, the preacher told everyone
that everything that was collected that night would be given to this missionary
to help fund his work on behalf of the Church. The wealthy man wanted to give
to support mission work, but he knew he couldn’t make change from the offering
plate. He knew he either had to give all he had or nothing at all. At that
moment, he decided to give all that he had to God. Looking back, he said he
knew that God had blessed that decision and had made him wealthy. When he
finished, there was silence in the room. As he returned to the pew and sat
down, an elderly lady seated behind him leaned forward and said, “I dare you to
do it again!” — When we start out, it’s easy to remember that the gifts and
opportunities that come our way are from God. But something happens along the
way. We forget the Owner. We come to think of the vineyard and everything it
produces as something we own. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
13) “I knew I wasn’t a Christian.” Sociologist/Baptist
preacher Tony Campolo says he was once like that. He uses the word
Bible-thumper to describe himself as a youth — legalistic, self-righteous,
always trying to convert others to his personal brand of religion — until one
day he was shocked to discover that he didn’t know God at all. Super-religious,
but he didn’t know God! Can that happen? It happens all the time. In fact, if
you meet somebody who is both super-religious and smugly self-righteous, he/she
is probably using religion to hide from God. Here’s how Tony Campolo discovered
it was true of him. Tony was in high school. There was a kid named Roger in his
school. Roger was gay, and everybody made fun of him. They ridiculed him. They
made his life hell. You know how cruel kids in school can be. They mocked
Roger. When he would go into the shower after gym, they would wait until he
came out and then they would whip their towels at him and sting him. One day,
when Tony was absent, a group of five guys pushed Roger into the corner of the
shower and urinated all over him. That night Roger went to the attic in the
middle of the night and hanged himself. And Tony Campolo, still suffering over
this incident, writes, “I knew I wasn’t a Christian because if I had been a
Christian, I would have stood up for my friend Roger. Even if they ridiculed me
for doing it, I would have been his friend. I knew [then] that I didn’t know
Jesus.” (http://www.csec.org/csec/sermon/campolo_4104.htm.)
(Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
14) Unconditional Love: In 1978 a man
travelled to Cincinnati to attend the funeral of Max Ellerbusch. Max had been
like a father to this man for twenty years. Nothing unusual, except that as a
15-year-old this man had taken his mother’s car and struck and killed Max’s
5-year-old son. This was a week before Christmas in 1958. Soon after the
accident, a surprised court heard Max ask that charges be dropped. Instead he
wanted to give the death-car driver a job and help toward his education. Max did
all that and more, virtually adopting the 15-year-old boy into his family. Max
shared his home, time and understanding with the troubled youth. We might
wonder, “How could Max do that? I could never befriend a wild teenager who had
just killed my 5-year-old son. Max must have been a little crazy to go out of
his way that much to become like a father for that boy.” But if Max Ellerbusch
was a little crazy, so is God. The parable in today’s Gospel describes God as a
Landowner Who prepared a beautiful vineyard and gave it to His people to tend.
However, His people wanted not just their share of the harvest, but the whole
thing. They even abused and killed the prophets God sent to help them. Finally,
in a desperate attempt to save His vineyard and His people, God sent His own
Son, hoping they would respect and honour Him. Nonetheless, they abused and
killed Him too in an effort to seize His inheritance. “ — What a silly story,”
we might say. “No landowner in his right mind would risk sending his own son
among rebels who had already murdered his messengers. How crazy can you get?
Who can believe in a God so dumb?” But that is precisely the point of the
parable. Where we would cry for vengeance on the tenants, God chose an
alternative – the alternative of unconditional love. (Albert Cylwicki in His
Word Resounds; quoted by Fr. Botelho). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
15) What We Owe Others: An American
soldier, wounded on a battlefield in the Far East, owes his life to a Japanese
scientist, Kitasato, who isolated the bacillus for tetanus. A Russian soldier
saved by a blood transfusion is indebted to Landsteiner, an Austrian. A German
is shielded from typhoid fever with the help of a Russian, Metchinikoff. A
Dutch marine in the East Indies is protected from malaria because of the
experiments of an Italian, Grassi; while a British aviator in North Africa
escapes death from surgical infection because of a Frenchman, Pasteur, and a
German, Koch who elaborated new techniques. In peace as in war, we are
beneficiaries of knowledge contributed by every nation of the world. Our
children are guarded from diphtheria by what a Japanese and a German did; they
are protected from small pox by the work of an Englishman; they are saved from
rabies because of a Frenchman; they are cured from pellagra through the
research of an Austrian. From birth to death we are surrounded by invisible
hosts–the spirit of people who never thought in terms of flags or boundary
lines, and who never served a lesser loyalty than the welfare of mankind. God
has done and is doing so much for us through his people. Are we grateful or
take it all for granted? (Raymond R. Fosdick in ‘1000 Inspiring Stories’ quoted
by Fr. Botelho). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
16) Film: The Killing Fields: In 1973, Dith
Pran, a well-educated interpreter, helps U.S. journalist Sidney Schanberg to
get into Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In 1975, the Khmer Rouge is advancing on the
capital and Pran’s family is evacuated while Pran stays with Schanberg. While
the people rejoice and welcome the Khmer Rouge, Schanberg and other journalists
are interned. They watch as the Khmer Rouge carries out executions. Pran argues
for the journalist’s release. They take refuge in the French Embassy and are
then expelled from the country. Schanberg tries to get Pran out as well but the
Khmer Rouge send him to a re-education labour camp. Back in New York, Schanberg
wins awards, but his associates criticize him for not finding a way to get his
friend out of Cambodia. Schanberg commences efforts through the agency of the
U.S. government and the Red Cross. Finally, Pran escapes and endures a long
trek through the killings fields and is reunited with Schanberg in Thailand. –
In terms of justice, this part of Matthew’s Gospel can be applied to
contemporary Killing Fields such as those in Kosovo or of East Timor
in the late 1990s. Prosperous lands were invaded and their owners and heirs
were tortured and killed by those who wanted the inheritance for themselves.
The Pol Pot regime, portrayed in the Killing Fields, took over Cambodia
and destroyed all its servants and heirs in a massive genocide. Ultimately, the
rightful citizens and owners of the land obtained the opportunity of self-rule
and were able to build up again. — The savage behaviour that turned Cambodia
into killing fields is like today’s Gospel parable about evil tenants who
refuse to give the owner his due. Those they murder, the servants and the
owner’s son, are like the innocent victims of the despotic regime of the Khmer
Rouge. The unjust persecutors were ousted and condemned. Like Jesus and the
kingdom, ultimately, the survivors became the cornerstones of a new society.
(Peter Malone in ‘Lights Camera…. Faith’; quoted by Fr. Botelho). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
17) “…and now you know the rest of the story!” Paul
Harvey, the noted radio personality is probably best known for his segments
entitled, “The Rest of the Story.” This long-running staple of talk radio
usually begins with some well-known person or event and then continues to
reveal additional, lesser known but very poignant information. At the
conclusion of his feature, Harvey’s pleasant voice intones the familiar phrase:
“…and now you know the rest of the story!” When the Matthean Jesus in today’s
Gospel began the familiar story about a vineyard owner, who planted vines,
hedged them in, dug a vat and erected a tower, his listeners, no doubt,
recognized the centuries old familiar ballad of Isaiah (first reading). But
then, in a style not unlike Paul Harvey’s, the parable went on to tell the rest
of the story. (Patricia Datchuck Sánchez). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
18) The movie, Life of
Pi (Trailer: https://youtu.be/mZEZ35Fhvuc?list=PLwxuHMFXnXZ1Sc0XHCLVTbA8mzCnwl9AL)
: Life of Pi is a 2012 American survival drama film based on Yann Martel’s 2001
novel of the same name. Some of you might have seen this movie. The storyline
revolves around an Indian man named “Pi” Patel, telling a novelist about his
life story, and how at 16 he survives a shipwreck in which his family dies, and
is adrift in the Pacific
Ocean on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. The others
who came on his boat, an injured zebra and an orangutan, were killed by the
hyena, which was later killed by the Tiger. When Pi ends the story, he offers
another version of his survival story that simply replaces the animals with
human characters. An injured person-zebra, his mother-orangutan, a
cannibalistic cook-hyena, and himself-the tiger. Despite early reluctance, the
listeners in the story chose to go with the Animal version rather than the
brutal human version, which seems to be the real one, but we would never know.
However, allegorizing is sometimes needed in life, in our story telling,
especially to explain life’s reality. One such story that has two layers is the
one that we read today, the parable of the wicked tenants. It is heavily
allegorized by the Evangelists themselves and the history of interpretation.
(Rev. Paul Lawrence). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
19) “…Dismiss all anxiety from your minds.” (Philippians,
4:6. Today’s second reading). “He was one of Columbia University’s history
superstars,” a writer said recently of the late Professor Carlton J. H. Hayes
(1882-1964). As an historian, Carlton Hayes was a lifetime seeker of truth.
This quest not only brought him into the Catholic Church; it also brought him
into genial but firm controversy with those of divergent opinions, even his
fellow-Catholics. His special field of study was the current growth and dangers
of excessive nationalism throughout the world. Fully acquainted with the threat
of modern totalitarianism, he warned of the evils it could produce if not
countered. Yet he never allowed himself to worry unduly about tomorrow. “If we
are occupied with thoughts immortal or divine … or, for the matter of that, in
doing anything that we feel is worth doing, we have neither time nor
inclination to brood over our personal future.” Professor Hayes gave his
students at Columbia the same sort of calm advice in the last lecture he
delivered before his retirement in 1950. “The world,” he said, “is pretty badly
off. But I don’t want you to lose any sleep over it.” Pope Pius XI had said
much the same thing two decades before: “The future is in God’s hands, and
therefore in good hands.” “…Dismiss all anxiety from your minds.” (Philippians,
4:6. Today’s second reading). -Father Robert F. McNamara. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
20) “THE STONE THAT THE BUILDERS REJECTED HAS BECOME THE
CORNERSTONE!”
George Campbell Morgan, a renowned English preacher
and a Bible scholar, was one of 150 young men who sought entrance to the
Wesleyan ministry in 1888. He easily passed the doctrinal examinations, but
then had to face the trial sermon. In a cavernous auditorium that could seat
more than 1,000 sat three ministers and 75 others who came to listen. When
Morgan stepped into the pulpit, the vast room and the searching, critical eyes
caught him up short. Two weeks later Morgan’s name appeared among the l05 REJECTED
for the ministry that year. He wired to his father the one word, ‘Rejected,’ and
sat down to write in his diary: ‘Very dark everything seems. Still,
He knoweth best.‘ Quickly came the reply from his dad: ‘Rejected
on earth. Accepted in heaven.’ In later years, Morgan said: “God
said to me, in the weeks of loneliness and darkness that followed, ‘I want
you to cease making plans for yourself and let Me plan your life.’” Rejection
is rarely permanent, as Morgan went on to prove. Even in this life, circumstances
change, and ultimately, there is no rejection of those accepted by Christ. (Fr.
Lakra). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
21) If Max was a little bit crazy, so is God. In
1978, a man traveled to Cincinnati in USA to attend the funeral of Max
Ellenbusch. Max had been like a father to this man for 20 years. Nothing
unusual except that, as 15-year-old, this man had taken his mother’s car and
struck and killed Max’s five-year old son. This was a week before Christmas in
1978. Soon after the accident, a surprised court heard Max asked that charges
be dropped. Instead, he wanted to give the death-car driver a job and help
toward his education. Max did all that and more virtually adopting the 15-year
old boy into his family. Max shared his home, time and understanding with the
troubled youth. We might wonder, “How could Max do that? I could never befriend
with a teenager who had just killed my five-year old son. Max must have been a
little crazy to go out of his way that much to become like a father for that
way.” If Max was a little bit crazy, so is God, as described by Jesus in
today’s parable. (Fr. Bennett). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
22) Paid in full: The following story gives
insight into the drama of the Lord of the vineyard and his unrequited
benevolence (cf. M. Adams, “No Charge” in A 3rd Serving of
Chicken Soup for the Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al., Deerfield: Health
Communications, Inc., 1996, p. 100-101). Our little boy came up to his mother
in the kitchen one
evening while she was fixing supper, and he handed her a piece of paper that he
had been writing on. After his mother dried her hands on an apron, she read it,
and this is what it said:
For cutting the grass=$5.00
For cleaning up my room this week=$1.00
For going to the store for you=0.50
Baby-sitting my kid brother while you went shopping=0.25
Taking out the garbage =$1.00
For getting a good report card=$5.00
For cleaning up and raking the yard =$2.00
Total owed
=$14.75
Well, I’ll tell you, his mother looked at him standing there
expectantly, and boy, could I see the memories flashing through her mind. So
she picked up the pen, turned over the paper he’d written on, and this is what
she wrote:
“For the nine months, I carried you as you grew inside me,
No charge. For all the nights that I’ve sat up with you, doctored, and prayed
for you, No Charge. For all the trying times and all the tears that you’ve
caused through the years, there’s No Charge. For all the nights that were
filled with dread, and for the worries I knew were ahead, No Charge. For the
toys, food, clothes, and even wiping your nose, there’s No Charge, Son. And
when you add it all up, the full cost of real love is No Charge.”
Well, friends, when our son finished reading what his mother
had written, there were great big old tears in his eyes, and he looked straight
up at his mother and said, “Mom, I sure do love you.” And then he took the pen
and in great big letters he wrote: “PAID IN FULL.” (Lectio Divina).
23) How unfortunate it is to waste the graces and
opportunities showered upon us by God! The following story of the
tragic end of Clark gives us an inkling of how unfortunate it is to waste the
graces and opportunities showered upon us by God (cf. Mike McGarvin, Papa
Mike, Fresno, 2003, p. 102-105). Life at Poverello House is always
interesting. You never knew who might be coming through the door. I think it’s
safe to say that the majority of homeless people we’ve met had been born into
poverty; often the addicts and alcoholics were products of homes in which their
parents abused booze and drugs. Sometimes, though, we’d run across someone who
had fallen from great heights. Clark showed up somewhere around 1987 or 1988.
Although dishevelled like a typical homeless person, he possessed a sort of
faded elegance. He piqued my curiosity; I didn’t need to strike up a
conversation, however, because he buttonholed me and started talking. Once he
started, he rarely stopped. Clark claimed that he came from an upper-class Arizona
family, that he had hobnobbed with Barry Goldwater and other prominent people,
and that he had been C.E.O. of a local hospital. Yeah, sure, I thought. I was
shocked to find out it was all true. It got stranger. My wife brought out her
birth certificate one day, and there was Clark’s signature. It turned out that
he was one of the most successful leaders in the hospital’s history. On top of
that, he had been appointed to a special health care commission by
then-Governor Ronald Reagan. He had been a hero in the Pacific Theater of World
War II, a well-loved commander of a PT boat. He had at one time been a dashing,
handsome member of Fresno’s elite, written about in society’s columns.
What had happened? As time went on, I got to know his
ex-wife and one of his sons. At its simplest level, Clark had a booze problem.
When he hit the streets, he was drinking prodigious amounts of alcohol. On an
average day, he’d have a fifth or more of hard liquor, as well as several
bottles of beer and wine. His drinking had been going on for years, and I don’t
know when it started getting out of control. What I do know is that his descent
was gradual. After leaving as C.E.O. of the hospital, he had several lesser
jobs in the health care industry, each one a step down from the last.
He had many friends, often ex-employees, and they cushioned his fall for years.
Finally, however, his life was so unmanageable that he hit the skids. (…).
Clark continued to live on the streets and drink. Amazingly,
he kept going, even though he was now in his eighties and could barely walk
because of edema in his ankles. He got around all over town with his shopping
cart full of rotting food and junk. His looks and behavior got more bizarre as
time went on. (…).
He gradually came less and less to Poverello. I got a call
from his ex-wife one day; he was in the V.A. Hospital, and didn’t look good. I
went up to visit him. It had been a while since I’d seen him, and he couldn’t
talk because of all the tubes hooked up to him. It was the first conversation I
had with him in which I was able to get a word in edgewise. I talked
uninterrupted for a long time; I knew he’d be checking out soon, and I wanted
to leave him with some words of comfort. I told him I’d pray for him. He could
hear me, and he formed his eyes into a squint, but I’m not sure what he was
trying to convey. The next day I got a call – Clark had died. He was a unique,
talented man who had once had it all. He left behind broken family members who
are still, to this day, trying to make sense of his life.(Lectio
Divina). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
24) “Irish Blessing.” The following story, “Irish Blessing”, circulated through the Internet, gives us an idea of the things we must do and of the fruitfulness that our actions and attitude must produce in order that the peace of God may reign in the world. His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying to make a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog. There mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have been a slow and terrifying death. The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman’s sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved. “I want to repay you”, said the nobleman. “You saved my son’s life. ”No, I can’t accept payment for what I did”, the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer. At that moment, the farmer’s own son came to the door of the family hovel. “Is that your son?” the nobleman asked. “Yes”, the farmer replied proudly. “I’ll make you a deal. Let me provide him with the level of education my own son will enjoy. If the lad is anything like the father, he’ll no doubt grow to be a man we both will be proud of.” And that he did. Farmer Fleming’s son attended the best schools and, in time, graduated from St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin. Years afterward, the same nobleman’s son who was saved from the bog was stricken with pneumonia. What saved his life this time? Penicillin. The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill. His son’s name? Sir Winston Churchill. (Lectio Divina). (Fr. Tony’s comment: It is a false rumor: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/what-goes-around/ ). (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/). L/20
Since most taxi drivers do not speak English, someone suggested that it might be a good idea to carry with him something bearing the name of the hotel at which he would be staying written in Japanese. That was exactly what he did. As soon as he arrived in Japan he picked up a box of matches bearing the name and address of his hotel. Then he went sight-seeing.
Afterwards he got into a taxi and did as the friend suggested, he took the box of matches out of his pocket to show the driver where he wanted to go. There were a few awkward moments before the driver understood. Finally his face lit up. Quickly they sped away. Half an hour later, the taxi came to a screeching halt. The driver turned and beamed at his passenger, pointing out the window. There was only one problem. They had stopped, not in front of a hotel, but a match factory!
Have you ever had an experience like that? Someone will say something and for whatever reason you do not understand. It's as if they were speaking a foreign language. You want to go back to the hotel and instead find yourself in front of a match factory.
There were times when Jesus tried to communicate profound truths to those around him and they acted as if he were from Mars...
Is Service Over?
With keen insight, Jesus portrays us sinners as God's tenants of his vineyard. We see what a great privilege it is to be a tenant of God, and have all this given to us. The vineyard was a great one. They had everything they needed - hedge, winepress, the tower - which would have made it comparatively easy for those tenants and could have made possible their doing a very good job. It's good to know that God not only gives us certain tasks to accomplish in our life-time, but he also provides for us the means to get them done. In what a generous vineyard our lives are set!
One particular year the weather did not cooperate and the vineyards did not produce an abundance of grapes. One of the wine makers decided that since things would be tight that year he would sell his wine elsewhere. He then filled his barrel with water and poured it into the town keg, thinking that one barrel of water in the gigantic keg would go unnoticed and not impact the outcome of the wine.
The wine in the keg aged for seven years. At the end of seven years the villagers all gathered around that particular keg to sell their wine to merchants who had come from all over the world. The entire community depended on the sale of their wine to provide for them until the next season. The villagers gathered around the giant keg and it was tapped. A pitcher was placed at the tap and out came nothing but pure water. It seemed that everyone in the village that year had the same idea and none had put in wine. Since everyone held back there was no wine to sell.
The villagers refused to share their wine with their neighbors and consequently no one ended up with anything. The parable of the vineyard is not unlike the villagers in Italy. The servants were to reap the fruits of the vineyard for the landowner but were denied that opportunity by the tenants. The tenants refused to share their grapes with others. They even went so far as to mistreat the servants and even kill the landowner's son.
Jesus uses the parable of the vineyard to describe the kingdom of God. It reminds us that we are here temporarily on earth and that we are God's guests. God wants us to be grateful for all that we have and to share what we have been given.
There was a legend that was well known in New Testament times that in the building of the temple of Solomon most of the stones were of the same size and shape. One stone arrived, however, that was different from the others. The builders took one look at it and said, "This will not do," and sent it rolling down into the valley of Kedron below. The years passed and the great temple was nearing completion, and the builders sent a message to the stonecutters to send the chief cornerstone that the structure might be complete. The cutters replied that they had sent the stone years before. Then someone remembered the stone that was different than all the rest that somehow did not seem to belong. They realized that they had thrown away the cornerstone. They hurried into the valley to retrieve it. Finally under vines and debris they recovered it and with great effort rolled it up the hill and put it in place so that the great temple would be complete. The stone that had been rejected had become the chief cornerstone. Jesus, who had been rejected now reigns at the right hand of the Father. From rejection to rejoicing.
Sometimes the agreement comes to be seen as unfair. Talk to the workers at Firestone or Titan Tire. Sometimes it simply becomes impossible to honor the terms of an agreement you've made. You want to, but you do not have the means - bankruptcy.
Or you may identify with the servants or with the son - you know, the go-betweens or intermediaries who always seem to get the main lumps trying to patch things up between two other people.
You may even identify with the tenants - feeling oppressed, taken advantage of; a sense that "We do all the work, why should he get all the benefits?"
Or you may identify with the others - the ones who come in after the storm and find themselves on trial because of the previous troublemakers. You know, you can't keep a dog in your apartment because the tenant before you let his dog rip up the carpet.
And God said, "No, Gabriel! No, not just yet. I know you are right, but I keep thinking if I just give them a little more time they'll quit acting like they own the place!"
