Things To Caesar and Persons To God!

 (Homily for the 29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A)

          Human history itself has been characterized by conflicts, oppositions and clashes. And one of the clashes is that between religion and the state, which is no longer new. Drawing the issue further, the history of Christianity especially in the West, was largely a history of conflicts. In the first few centuries of its existence, the Christian religion was strongly persecuted by the state. Even though, the persecutions gave birth to the martyrs and Christianity later became the religion of the state, however, the traces of that tension still linger today. Our readings today talk about these oppositions and tensions: Cyrus a pagan king as opposed to the Israelites, God chosen people and the tension between Caesar and God etc. The first reading from Deutero-Isaiah presents a remarkable story of the Persian King Cyrus, who did not know God, but all the same God used him to achieve his divine purpose, thus revealing that God is Supreme over all, all the rulers of the earth are subject to him. Cyrus was a pagan king but however was appointed by God (first reading). This episode in the first reading introduces a sort of Jewish teaching about the state, and the teaching culminates in the declaration of Jesus on the tribute to Caesar and to God (Gospel). In the second reading, the faith account of the community of Thessalonica is a manifestation of a community that has placed God in the first position; they have given to God what is God’s through their faith, charity and hope.

          The first reading (Is.45:1, 4-6) tells us that God used Cyrus, a pagan King of Persia, in order to realize his designs, the promise of liberation of the people of Israel. Isaiah envisaged God’s work in a pagan king, an unbeliever led by God and called by name and appointed by God. The word of God to Cyrus: “It is for the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen one, that I have called you by your name, I surname you, though you do not know me” (Is. 45:4). The chosen people were slaves in Babylon, and Cyrus won victory over Babylonians, and with his political astuteness he made the exiled Israelites to come back to their own country. Although, some scholars have it that the King did this not with the intention to liberate them, rather he did it because he wanted to dominate them better by sending them to their own land. But the overwhelming point here is that, Cyrus unknowingly became an instrument for the realization of God’s project on Israel: Their liberation from slavery.               

          Extrapolating from the above fact, we see two emergent considerations:

►God can use anyone to realize his divine plans, believers and non-believers alike. However, he will use us more if we are docile and disposed to the manifestations of His grace. ►We should not always consider whatever that happens to us or in our world purely from the point of view of human criterion and logic, sometimes behind the scenes of the happenings, negative or positive there is God at work, for our favor and good. God can make something good out of evil. More so, it serves as a reminder to all of us, that the mission of the Church is to bring to all unbelievers the Good News that it is God that guides their destiny, and through faith in Christ and baptism they too will be anointed by the Spirit and called by a new name. The Good News is that God knows us even when we do not know Him.

         In the Gospel (Mt. 22:15-21) Mathew presents the episode of the tension between Jesus and the two opposing groups: Pharisees and Romans over the issue of tribute to Caesar as a plot to trap Jesus. Latently, Mathew sets out to present the episode as part of the conflicts of Jesus and his opponents. And the fulcrum of this encounter is condensed in the words: “Give to Caesar the things that belong to Caesar, and to God the things that are God’s”. Doubtlessly, this pronouncement has been subjected to a number of interpretations in the course of the history of Christianity. However, all the three evangelists collocated the episode within the context of the happenings in the last days of Jesus in Jerusalem.

          In the context of today’s Gospel, we see an unusual occurrence of two opposing groups (Pharisees and Romans) coming together for a purpose, that is, to lay a snare for Jesus. In fact, with their initial eulogies they pretended to be on the side of Jesus. The fake tributes to Jesus by two groups of enemies that suddenly became friends, mention of his honesty, his fearlessness, his disregard for the status of those he encountered, all this flattery coming from people who normally were hostile to Christ merely exposes the hypocrisy of their praise. They wanted to get Jesus by incensing him with eulogies, “Master, we know that you are an honest man and teach the way of God in all honesty and that you are not afraid of anyone, because human rank means nothing to you” (v.16). Afterwards, they threw him the question “give us your opinion, then. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” (v.17). But Jesus “knowing their wickedness” (v.18), reacts immediately with a counterattack: “You hypocrites, why do you tempt me” (v.18). And he asks for a coin, saying “whose image is here?” (v.20), they couldn’t but reply “of Caesar”. And he told them “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar…” If Jesus were to answer, “Pay the tax,” he would have been accused of collaboration with the Roman oppressors, and would have incurred the scorn of the ordinary Jews, who pay tax. If he had advocated for non-payment of tax, he could have been arrested for sedition by the Roman authorities. So Jesus played his cards well. “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s”, these words left them confounded and they quietly went away. However, it could be said that the response of Jesus left the matter in suspense, for it neither touch on the right of the Romans to rule the Israelites, nor did it enumerate concretely the things of Caesar and those of God.

          However, the hot button phrase of today’s Gospel: “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God” (Mt.22:21), was reported not only by Mathew, but by the three synoptic. And in the account of the three synoptic we see the contending question to Jesus: “Is it lawful or not, to pay tribute to Caesar?” (v.15), this was indeed a hot button question because: ►If Jesus had responded that it was lawful, he would have become a friend of the Romans, and attracted the anger of the Jews. ►If he responded that it is not lawful, he would have fallen into the hands of the Romans. ►If he did not respond it would have been a big disappointment after that their initial eulogy.

          But with his well calculated response Jesus silenced them all, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar”. That is to say, if you accept the services of Caesar, pay also the tribute. This goes a long way to educate the Christians that they have their prescribed rights and duties before the State. Then, Jesus added “And to God what belongs to God”, this invariably reveals that before the duties one owes to the State comes the duties before God, who is the Supreme and Absolute Being. The State / Government cannot appropriate to herself absolute values. Be that as it may, if the State promulgates laws that are contrary to the laws of God, a Christian has to respond courageously like the apostles: “obedience to God comes before obedience to men” (At. 5:29).

          The saying of Jesus above has been interpreted in so many ways, some use it to justify the claim that religious leaders should not interfere in secular domains like politics and economics etc. But this could not possibly be the meaning. As a matter of fact, the whole teachings of Jesus reiterates the fact that the whole of creation belong to God, “his is the earth and the fullness thereof”. As such, there is no question of separate domains, for everything belongs to God. More than that, the saying is rather about maintaining priorities. The question was a trap because for the Pharisees paying taxes to Caesar is important, but for Jesus it is of a relative importance, little wonder he responded in such a wise manner. What belongs to God therefore, must be considered from a wider sense to mean what we can not compromise where and when it is concerned, for instance we can talk about: family, the sacrality of human life, justice etc. Jesus in this passage is pointing out that priorities have gone wrong, little wonder, his response took them by surprise and at the same time, very satisfying, for they left him alone and went away. Many a times, we fall into the same misplacement of priorities like the Pharisees, for we lay too much stress on things that are important but secondary, for instance: wealth, prestige and popularity.

          Symbolically, as the image of the emperor on the coin demonstrates that the coin belongs to him, so also, man as an image of God, with God’s imprint, belongs to God. For Genesis 1: 26-27 reminds us that man is a “creatio imago Dei”, made in the image and likeness of God. As such, if the coin is giving to Caesar because it bears his image, man bears the image of God and thus, belongs to God. Therefore, to Caesar things, to God Persons! Jesus responded to their question with a double edged answer. First, he substituted the verb “to pay” with the verb “to give back”, therefore to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s. Here, "give back" is a strong imperative, that has to do not only with money, but the whole life. The question we cannot but ask is this: who is Caesar? Caesar is not God, and Jesus removed from Caesar any divine pretence. Give back to God what is God’s: to God belongs man, made little less than the angels (Ps. 8) and at the same time on our hands we carry the inscription: “Yahweh’s” (Is. 44:5). No doubt, Jesus recognized the value and autonomy of political powers in the spheres of their competence, however, he reminds Caesar (political powers) that he also has “to give God what belongs to God”, to recognize the universal sovereignty of God, therefore, respecting God’s law on man and the human conscience.

          In the second reading (1Th. 1:1-5b), we read from the earliest written document of the New Testament, which was authored by Paul around 50 AD during his stay at Corinth. It happened that Paul founded the Church in Thessalonica not too long from the moment he wrote this epistle. He writes with preoccupation over his new converts that he left, not only that, he even sent Timothy to go and see how they were faring in the faith. And as God would have it, Timothy brought an encouraging report, and that triggered the warm tone of the opening of this epistle, thus, he began with thanksgiving. They tried to put God at the proper position in their lives, they put God first, and they did give to God what belongs to God. He compliments them for their commitment in the faith, industriousness in charity and for their constant hope in the Lord. Can this be said of our own Christian communities and parishes too?

          In all, the story of Cyrus in the first reading confirms the fact that all authority comes from God and belongs to Him too (cf. Romans 13:1), all the same, giving to Caesar and to God does not mean compromising our faith in God with the things of this world. There is a pressing need to put God at the proper position in our lives and society. Today we are in a society that on and on tends to relegate God to the background, a society where relative opinions that drag the human dignity to the mud are made laws. We cannot but talk about the latent and manifest legalization of abortion, violence on human life, the presages of injustice and the reification of the human person.  Above all, we cannot but reaffirm the belongingness of man to God. Heavenly Father, all power and authority in heaven and on earth belongs to and comes from you, give us the grace to understand that it is in your Son we have life, and may the light of the Holy Spirit enlighten our minds and our darkened world to acknowledge and place You at the first position in our lives, thus God above all else. As we celebrate World Mission Sunday today, may the Lord give us the grace always to respond to his invitation like Isaiah: “Here am I, send me” (Is. 6:8). May the Lord help us to participate in the Mission either by going or by giving! Amen!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC) 

God’s Banquet Is Open for All!

(Homily for the 28^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A)

          The predominant context of today’s readings is that of a feast, a banquet. Thus, the theme of banquet or feast serves as a bridge connecting our first reading and the Gospel passage. Indeed, by banquet here, the sacred authors do not allude merely to ordinary feasting; rather it is a symbol of the happiness and joy that are essential elements in God’s Kingdom. In the first reading and the Gospel we see a promise and the ratification of the promise respectively. In the first reading (Is. 25: 6-10) we see the promise of a change and transformation, from a situation of disgrace that the people of Israel were living in, to a life of happiness and joy, as symbolized in the imagery of the feast on Mount Zion, to which all nations were to participate. It is for all. Again, in the Gospel (Mt. 22: 1-14) we see the dramatic situation of the King whose guests did not honor his invitation and consequently, the exceptional condition of inviting all, to the banquet of his Son’s wedding feast without ifs and buts, no merit, no preference and no consideration of class. On the other hand, in the second reading (Phil. 4: 12-14.19-20) the apostle presents a Christian community living in authentic love, joy and sharing in one another’s trouble. The gifts they sent to St. Paul are eloquent manifestations of their participation in the eternal banquet.

          In the Gospel passage Jesus employed the use of imagery in the narration of the parable to teach about the different aspects of the Kingdom of God. As a matter of fact, the theme “Kingdom of God” occupied a very important place in the life and ministry of Jesus. For at the beginning of his ministry, he started with the imminent call: “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe the gospel” (Mk.1:15). And the Kingdom of God that Jesus has come to inaugurate on earth is not to be understood as a mere eschatological reality, but also as an experience of the love and peace that are parts and parcel of Jesus’ public ministry. It is a situation of inclusiveness where there is no discrimination and injustice. Drawing the issue further, the parable is full of symbolic personages: the King is God, his Son is Jesus, the invited guests are the chief priests and elders of the people and the messenger-servants are the prophets. The chief priests and elders refused to recognize God’s invitation to a call of holiness as delivered by His Son, but they rejected the Son and ignored his message out of stubbornness and hypocrisy. As such, the parable of this Sunday continues in the same direction of the previous ones, it does not matter who you are, where you come from and what your past has been, what matters is one’s readiness to respond to the Lord who calls. At the heart of that parable we see the theme of the universality of the Kingdom of God that Christ came to inaugurate.

          The Gospel periscope from Mathew presents the wedding feast of the Son of the King, and contrary from what is obtainable in the ordinary human existential context, none of the invitees seem interested, not even the rich and the wealthy wanted to come. But the King does not give up at the prime refusal of those invited, and he went ahead and launched another invitation, yet they did not honor it, but he did not give up. Afterwards, the third time, he said to his servants: “the wedding feast is ready, but those invited are not worthy”, then he sent them to call all, good and bad, and lastly, the wedding hall was filled with people. He asked his servants to invite all, without consideration of merits or formalities anymore. Here lies the central message of this parable: God is like one who organizes a feast, the best of all feasts, and He invites you and gives you the conditions for a good and joyful life. At this third time, he sent his servants to go out, this gesture cannot but remind us, of the invitation of the Church to be on the move, and not an immobile Church. They were sent out to call all, men and women of little importance, what is important is that they are thirsty for the feast and for life. Through this parable Jesus is telling us that God has opened the door of his heart for all men, no one and no race is excluded, likewise, we are expected to open the doors of our hearts to welcome his invitation. Therefore, this parable reveals the image of a God whose purpose is to share his life and blessing with all and the outright rejection of man does not reduce the intensity of the divine insistence. This loving and open-hearted persistence of God in inviting us to a joyful life in and with Him is a renewed Gospel that should reecho ceaselessly in our hearts and ears.

          An important aspect of the Kingdom of God is explained through the parable of the Wedding feast. As such, to belong to the Kingdom of God, is a personal choice of an individual, for therein all are invited, but each person has the freedom to choose to be or not to be a participant. And to become a participant of the Kingdom of God is both a Gift and a Responsibility; the responsibility to undergo a radical transformation and change, leaving behind the old man (cf. Rom. 6:6; Col. 3:9-10), in the Pauline parlance. We as followers of Christ are called to create an atmosphere of love, peace, sharing and passing from the logic of self-centeredness to that of God-centeredness, which depicts the reality of God’s Kingdom.

          In the same vein, the theme of universality was anticipated in the first reading from the prophecy of Isaiah, where he prophesized that the Lord: “will prepare a banquet for all the nations”. St. Mathew in the Gospel sees the parable of the banquet prepared by the King, as a summary of the history of Salvation of mankind. God sends on different times and occasions his servants to call the invited, there are those invited for the wedding banquet, particularly the Jewish people, and a good number of them did not honor the invitation. And their refusal served as an avenue to invite all. Interestingly, in the context of this parable, Mathew sets out to communicate to his readers that the true chosen people are made up of both Jews and Gentiles (pagans) alike, for Jesus has broken all the barriers of separation between peoples and nations. Meanwhile, in the person of Christ, the history of salvation reaches its culminating point: “everything is ready, come to the wedding” (v.4). The kingdom of God is present in Christ, for he is the “Autobasilea”, Kingdom personified. The Kingdom of God is realized through him and with Him the Kingdom of God is present. It is not just only an eschatological reality, for the Kingdom of God is present in our midst. Thus, there is no time to waste, man has to decide and make a choice. Are you honoring the invitation of the Great King or not?

          Secondly, we cannot but underline the gratuitous nature of this banquet; it is God that offers it. It is God that calls, and he expects us to accept the invitation. However, accepting the invitation entails accepting it with all its implications and consequences. It is surprising and astonishing that some of those invited to the banquet turned down the invitation, thus ungrateful of the generosity of the King. This is discouraging because the banquet is already ready, there are no serious reasons not to respond. For as we can see, the major reasons for turning down the invitation is because one prefers his own interest and personal work to the work and invitation of God.

           Consequently, others were invited “good and bad”, “Go on the streets, and call all you find there” (v.9). Here, once again the theme of last Sunday resurfaces, the people of Israel did not listen, and God turned towards all who are ready to welcome his Word. He does not ask about who they are, where they come from and what they have been doing before. Here, we see divine logic in action: from the Few invited to the All invited, from important persons to simple people of no worth. He says let them all enter. Interestingly, he says the bad before the good. The Gospel verily demonstrates that God is not in search of perfect people; rather he welcomes all who are ready to begin a journey of perfectibility and not of perfectionism. He does not want the wedding hall (Church) full of self-acclaimed saints, rather a Church full of pardoned sinners.

           Furthermore, the second part of the parable seems a little bit in contrast with the first one. The King calls all, good and bad, and then, when they are already at the banquet room, he pretends that those invited have the “wedding garment”, and sends away who does not have it (Mt. 20:11-14). In any case, above any exegetical discussion on the interpretation of the fact, it is certain that the parable is calling the attention of the disciples of Jesus, and all of us against the idea that the only thing important is to answer the call, and enter inside the banquet room, but that is not enough, there is also need to put on the “wedding garment”. The king enters the wedding hall and discovered that one of the invitees has not changed his garment, he has not put on the wedding garment, while all changed, he did not. He was still looking like those outside, the fact of his not changing and putting on the wedding garment is symbolic of one who remained in the old life, someone not ready to embark on the journey of conversion, a journey of perfectibility. He refused to enter into the dialectics of pardoned sinners. God’s banquet is open for all, but with the prospective of a spiritual and moral change, because man, and as such a Christian is in a constant becoming! It is indeed surprising that after inviting all, beggars and people of less importance, he now discovered one invited guest without the wedding dress. How come? What is this wedding garment that is necessary in order not to be sent away from the banquet? More than that, the wedding garment here does not refer to the one you wear on the body, it is a garment of the heart. It is a fervent heart, a heart desirous of an encounter with God in His eternal banquet. The wedding garment can be identified with promptness and readiness to begin anew, to start a new life, a state of mind in grace, and it has to do concretely with love (charity), the love of God and the love of neighbors poured on our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us (cf. Rom. 5:5). The wedding garment can also signify the “dazzling white linen” of the book of Apocalypses (19:8), which consists “in the work of the saints” or “in the works of justice” that Mathew talked about in the Gospel (5:20), and particularly in the great sermon on the Mount (5:1-7:29).

          The consideration above, invites each and every one of us to ask himself or herself the basic question: if he has the wedding garment? This is an important examination of conscience, we all have to do, because the parable ended emblematically with the phrase “many are called, but few are chosen”. The parable of the today’s Gospel is suggestive of four considerations:

►First, is that God continues to invite man to his banquet, even till today, but how do we respond? Sometimes like the invitees of the banquet in that Parable. The Eucharistic banquet is a sacramental sign of the biggest banquet of God, and it is the prefiguration of the eschatological banquet prepared for eternal life.

►Second, God calls each and every one of us to the banquet of friendship with him, to a life of communion with him. How do we respond to this? Do we always find excuses or we respond positively?

►Third, the parable admonishes us that it is not enough to enter in the Church, in order to be saved, there is need to live in accordance with the divine call. There is need of putting on the “wedding garment”, or to say it with St. Paul of putting on Christ (cf. Rom. 13:14).

►Fourth, it serves equally as an invitation to continue the work of evangelization to all: “All that you can find”. As such, in accordance with his invitation: “Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations” (Mt. 28:19).

          Above all else, however, our God is a God that does not sit unconcerned on his Divine throne; rather he comes close to his people, a God that organizes feast for His people. As a matter of fact, as emanating from our readings today, especially from the Gospel, we cannot but re-affirm that the invitation of God to holiness is an invitation of joy, joy that is likened to a great banquet. So, responding to the invitation of the Great King to embrace the life of holiness does not subject us to sadness, rather it yields the fruits of happiness and joy. It is happiness that links us to eternal celebration with the Great King. In fact, St. Paul captured it well when he re-affirmed the words of the Scriptures thus: “What no eye has seen and no ear has heard, what the mind of man cannot visualize; all that God has prepared for those who love him” (1Cor.2:9). Who can imagine how the great banquet will be? My prayer for us all is that when the Great King comes, we may be found with our wedding garment, for indeed “blessed are those invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb” (Rev. 19:9). Amen!!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC) 

Be Fruitful! Bloom Where God Has Planted You!

(Homily for the 27^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A)

     The unprecedented message of today revolves around the parable of rejected love, God’s kindness and the human ingratitude. The recurrent themes in today’s readings, especially the first reading and the Gospel are love and ingratitude, fidelity verses infidelity. God is coherent and faithful to his words, but man is not. The imagery of the vineyard was used to drive home the point. In the first reading prophet Isaiah presents the canticle on the vineyard of his friend, even in the responsorial psalm we heard the prayer on the vineyard: “God Sabaoth, come back, we pray, look down from heaven and see, visit this vine; protect what your own hand has planted” (Ps. 80:14-15). The first reading and the Gospel present the parable of a rejected love, while St. Paul in the second reading gives us clues on how to remain in this love and bear fruits.

          In the first reading (Is. 5:1-7) we are presented with the canticle of the vineyard, which was composed by Isaiah at the early part of his prophetic ministry. The prophet talks about a vineyard owned by his friend, the vineyard was situated on a fertile hillside. His friend for love of his vineyard, dug the soil, cleared it of stones, and planted the choicest vines. He even built traditional watchtower and installed the typical wine press. After all this, he naturally anticipated a rich and abundant harvest. Instead he got wild grapes. At the heart of this canticle we could feel the pain of a broken heart who breaks his silence in anger. More than that, it is an anthropomorphic illustration of the disappointment God feels in his people who have not acted justly and with compassion to the lowly and oppressed. Little wonder, towards the end of the canticle, the last stanza equates the aforementioned vineyard allegorically with Israel, and as an expression of God’s judgment on his people. The message of the first reading serves almost as the prophesy of the Gospel passage. God had his vineyard on a fertile hill, he cleaned and cleared it of stones, he even built watchtower in the midst of it (to ensure there is security), but instead of producing grapes, it produced wild grape. What a disappointment? Let us not be a disappointment to God. The underlining message is that God expects fruits from each vine in His Vineyard. We are called to yield a harvest of kind thoughts and good deeds.

           Equally in the Gospel passage (Mt. 21:33-43) allegory was used especially with particular reference to the Christological upgrading of the son, as Jesus Christ, and the murder as the crucifixion. The parable of the homicide tenants that is presented to us today from the version of Mathew is collocated in the context of the ministry of Jesus in Jerusalem, few days before his passion. And it is a strong warning to the people of Israel to be conscious of the grave responsibility for rejecting the salvation offered by God, through His Son, Jesus Christ. In the parable narrated in the Gospel, the tenants did not worry about the consequences of their actions. The landowner sends for his rent; and the tenants beat, stone and kill the messengers. They felt nothing will happen. In the story that Jesus narrated, the landowner represents God the Father; the tenants are the people of Israel and those who ignore God.

          The beginning of the parable is connected with the allegory of prophet Isaiah, about “the canticle of the vineyard”, in which the prophet emphasized on the love and the care that were shown to the beloved vineyard, the people of Israel, by the owner of the vineyard himself, God. In fact, to express the density of love and care He has demonstrated, He asked “What more was there to do for my vineyard that I have not done in it?” (Is.5:4). The prophecy of Isaiah presents the vineyard as a symbol of the people of God (Israel), a well cultivated and planted vineyard, from which God was expecting an abundant harvest, instead it produced sour grapes. The Parable of Jesus instead has as protagonist tenants, to whom the Landowner entrusted his vineyard, after planting and securing the vineyard he travelled to another country, this indeed, is a wonderful sign of love and trust, and that is what God does for us. But when that stipulated time came, the landowner sent his servants to get the fruits of the vineyard but the servants got an aggressive response from the tenants. They had one beaten, killed another and yet another was stoned. Afterwards, the landowner now decided to send his only son, hoping that they will respect him. Contrary to the thinking of the landowner, the tenants saw the killing of the son as an occasion and a possible means of having complete ownership of the vineyard. And the Jesus asks: “When the landowner comes what will he do to those tenants?”. He will “make them to die miserably and he will give the vineyard to other tenants that will give him the fruit of the harvest at the proper time”, this was the response of the listeners of Jesus, the chief priests and the elders of the people. And Jesus concludes saying, “Therefore I tell you, the Kingdom of heaven will be taking away from you and it will be given to a people that will make it to bear fruit” (Mt.21:43). Remember his words in John. 15:16: “I chose you from the world to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last”.

          The wicked tenants represent the people of Israel, who rejected the messengers of God (the prophets) and even killed the Son, and as such attracted upon themselves divine punishment, for “the vineyard will be taken and given to other tenants”. The chosen people will no longer be only the people of Israel, because she failed in her mission and calling. They are like those described by Jeremiah, “For my people have committed two crimes: they have abandoned me, the fountain of living water, and dug water-tanks for themselves, cracked water-tanks that hold no water” (Jer. 2:13). Secondly, the tenants represents all of us who are brought into this earth by God for the purpose of bearing fruits: “be fruitful, multiply and fill the earth” (Gen.1:28). This parable serves as a reminder to us that our stay here on earth is temporary. Are we bearing fruits in due season? When we do not work for the development of God’s Kingdom and when we do not live respecting the teachings of Christ, the values and the virtues he brought to us, we are like those wicked tenants.

           Who are the “other tenants”, that will “give the fruits at their proper time”, the new people that will fructify the Kingdom? It is the messianic people, the Church formed by Jews and pagans together. The true Israel, the true chosen people or people of God will be constituted by all those that truly obey God, that do his will and welcome his Son (cf. Jn. 1:11-12). God as the landowner has done everything to make this a wonderful world for us to live in. So we have to ask ourselves: How can we be good tenants? What do we do to show appreciation to this God that loves us so much? First and foremost, we are called to be custodians, good tenants of God’s vineyard.

          Furthermore, we can read the stories on the vineyard (first reading and Gospel) in two different ways, from the historical or narrative dimension and from the dimension of its actuality. Even though, the second approach is of more interest to us, but we need the first in order to grasp the second. Historically the vineyard that is being thought about is the Jewish people. God chose them, He liberated them from Egypt and led them to the Promised Land, he planted them in the Promised Land like a vine. He gave her all necessary cares, but instead of producing vine, it produced wild grapes. It paid God back with disobedience, infidelity and betrayal. This was the story the Psalmist revoked in the responsorial psalm. The chosen people abandoned the ways of the Lord, instead of producing the fruits of justice and faithfulness; they paid God back with disobedience, disappointment and infidelity. Indeed, as Isaiah affirmed in the first reading: “He expected justice, but found bloodshed”. Till today this bloodshed continues in variegated forms.

          In the parable of Jesus, the story of the vineyard becomes more transparent. In its actuality, it is the history of the people of Israel and our own history too, we are the new people the Lord has entrusted the vineyard to. The vine pressers (tenants) rebelled against the landowner, not the vineyard (like in the first reading). Here, men rebelled and not the land. What will God do? In the first reading, Isaiah says God will destroy the vineyard. The psalmist described God’s destruction of the vineyard, as manifested in the fall of Jerusalem and the exilic experience. But Jesus in the parable does not speak about destruction of the vineyard. It is not only the promises of God that will change, but also the recipients. The Kingdom of God, the vineyard remains but it will be given to another people. It is indeed an allusion to the destiny of the people of Israel: having rejected the prophets and killed “the Son”, they will be substituted with another people. And indeed, the Good News is that the new people that the Kingdom of God has been entrusted to are we Christians.

       We are now, in a particular sense, the vineyard of the Lord. Here begins the actual dimension of the parable. The deeper significance of the word of God for us today will be found in the Gospel of John thus: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty; for cut off from me you can do nothing” (Jn. 15:5). The condition of bearing fruit is remaining in Him. God has planted each and everyone of us where we are today, what type of fruit am I bearing? We can personalize the message of the parable and see ourselves as the vineyard of the Lord, and ask ourselves, what type of fruit do I produce? Or as tenants that God has placed in charge of his vineyard, are we like those wicked tenants or we are good tenants? We are sometimes like the wicked tenants who killed the only son of the landowner. We are like them when we hear the word of God and refuse to allow it to become relevant and fruitful in our lives. We kill the servants and the only son when we wilfully stifle the truth. How are we living as the new chosen people of God? If we do not live in faithfulness and justice before God, there is a risk for us Christians today, as individual and as a group, and that is the danger of losing the vineyard (God’s Kingdom). St. Paul one day after seeing the resistance of the Jews in accepting the message of Salvation exclaimed: “here and now we turn to the gentiles” (Acts 13:46). Are there not some tendencies of the rejection of the Son in us or in our society today? We too may lose the vineyard!

           For St. Mathew there is a precise time for producing fruits, and our Christian life implies also the ability to respect the quantity of time at our disposition, it is not unlimited, because we are journeying towards judgment, and the fruits expected of us will be that of Charity, on which the final judgment will be based (cf. Mt. 25:31-46). This in deed is an important admonition to the Church, to the Christian communities and to each and every one of us.

            In the second reading (Phil.4:6-9) St. Paul assures us that nothing can destroy the peace and joy of a Christian, if he remains united to God through prayer. He gives us a list of virtues that Christians must imbibe in their lives in order to bear good fruit, a vine planted by God that bears fruit at the proper time and season, and he says: “finally, brothers, let your minds be filled with everything that is true, everything that is honourable, everything that is upright and pure, everything that we love and admire – with whatever is good and praiseworthy” (v.8) but not only this, he invited them to the imitation of those virtues they have seen in him: “Keep doing everything you learnt from me and were told by me and have heard or seen me doing” (v.9). He presented himself as a real model for them. Again in 1Cor. 11:1 he courageously invites “be my imitators, as I am of Christ”. With our minds focused on God, we will be good tenants.

          The parable reveals that our God is a God who trusts his workers, he trusts us. He creates possibilities for us. But do we recognize and appreciate the opportunities and the resources God has placed in our hands or has used to bless us? Are we responding responsibly to God’s kindness or we are like the wicked tenants? Indeed, our God is a patient God, like the landowner who sent several servants to collect the produce from his vineyard, God also seemingly gives us chance after chance to respond to his unique call to us. Do we recognize and appreciate the patience of God? Or we take God’s patience for granted? Do we recognize the impending judgment of God? Jesus ended his parable with a warning thus: He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and lease his vineyard to other tenants.” The bad and wicked tenants will lose the Kingdom, for God will give His Kingdom to those who will produce fruits. We cannot but conclude with the words of the Psalmist in the responsorial Psalm thus: “We shall never forsake you again; give us life that we may call upon your name”. O Lord, help us to bear good fruits, fruits that will last and stand the test of time and eternity! Amen!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC) 

Sincere “No” Rather Than Insincere “Yes”!

(Homily for the 26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A)

     The conscience of personal responsibility seems to be central and predominant in the readings of today. To the Babylonian exiles who accused God of injustice, God says “Is what I do unjust? Is it not what you do that is unjust? When the upright abandons uprightness and does wrong and dies, he dies because of the wrong which he himself has done. Similarly, when the wicked abandons wickedness to become law-abiding and upright, he saves his life” (Ez. 18:25b-27). Everyone is responsible for his or her actions and inactions. Jesus teaches us in the Gospel, what true personal responsibility is, and it is manifested not merely in speaking (words), but majorly in action, as the parable reveals. In the second reading, St. Paul gives us the example of Christ, an example of responsibility and coherence, the Yes of Christ is an operative one, incarnated in actions (works) for the realization of His mission and our Redemption. The three readings set out to teach us that man is free in his choices and, therefore, he is accountable for his actions. So, the exiles of Babylon ought to have assumed responsibility and repented for their actions, instead they murmured and accused God of acting unjustly. So also, the chief priests and elders of the people because John came to show them the way of salvation, and they neither believed nor repented. Instead, the publicans and the prostitutes responded to the preaching of John with repentance and faith. For this Jesus said “the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the Kingdom of God ahead of you” (Mt. 21:31).  

     The first reading (Ez. 18:25-28) presents the intervention of Prophet Ezekiel in the bid to correct the erroneous conception of his contemporaries. Among the major prophets of the Old Testament, Ezekiel is known for his insistence on individual responsibility for sin. For as a matter of fact, in the history of Israel the value of communal living is a paramount cultural heritage, to the extent that a man is hardly distinguished from his community. At the heart of this cultural value was communal solidarity, and as such individual guilt was believed to have corporal consequences. For this prophet Ezekiel vehemently warned that “the soul that sins shall die” (Ez. 18:20). And speaking about individual responsibility the prophet equally foresaw the possibility of an individual turning from wickedness to righteousness and vice versa. In his words, “when the upright abandons uprightness and does wrong and dies, he dies because of the wrong which he himself has done” (Ez.18:26). However, a person is judged by the new life to which he has turned to, and no longer by the previous life. Be that as it may, the prophet opposed this erroneous idea vigorously: God does not punish the sons for the sins of the fathers or the fathers for the sins of the sons, everybody will be held responsible for his or her actions. Everyone has the possibility to be saved, if only the person wants, God’s continuous mercy and forgiveness to repentant sinners is a proof. The Good News of Ezekiel is that we are not slaves to our past sins. He affirms that we can shake off our past and form new habits; a change of life is possible: “when the wicked man abandons wickedness…Having chosen to renounce all his previous crimes, he will most certainly live, he will not die” (vv. 27-28).

     The responsorial psalm (Ps. 25) brings to light the consciousness of an individual aware of his own sins, but relying on God’s mercy. Interestingly, the first reading and the psalm view a man’s life divided into the past and the future in the present moment. While the past maybe characterized by sin, the future is filled with hope for spiritual maturity. Indeed, the refrain to the psalm “Remember your mercies, O Lord” (Ps. 25:6) calls our attention to an important biblical conception of “remembrance” (“ricordare”: bringing to heart), and when God brings to heart, when He remembers, it is not merely a recalling of an event of the past, rather He brings it out from the past and makes it effective in the present.

     In today’s Gospel (Mt.21:28-32) Jesus brought to the fore the need for the conscience of personal responsibility and responsible freedom, with the parable of the two sons. The parable exposes the Jewish leaders who pledged obedience to God but reneged on their promises, whereas the tax collectors and public sinners, who at first refused keep the commands of God are now been converted by the preaching of John the Baptist. The second son represents the High priests, the elders and the Jews, that claim to have impeccable character, but rejected God’s call to conversion, and to faith for salvation. They say “yes” in words, but in action “no”. Their act is irresponsible. But the first son, who represents the publicans, prostitutes and pagans, lived in an irresponsible way in his relation with God in the past, but even though he said “no” with his words, now with his work of adherence and conversion, has started responding “yes” to God. His previous irresponsibility has been purified through his present responsibility. And in these two categories of people we see the bisection of conventional and anonymous Christians. For in the eyes of God, the past does not count much, even though it is important and merits consideration. More important is the present, our responsible yes daily.

     This passage is equally suggestive of an appeal to repentance and conversion addressed to backsliders in faith and the so called conventional Christians. For some of us today, our situation as Christians really reflects that of the second son that said Yes, but never accomplished it, conventional and nominal Christians. Whereas the reality of the first son is reflective of the situation of those that have turned to Christ in adherence to His words, and these could be called in the parlance of Karl Rahner: anonymous Christians. As a matter of fact, from all indications Jesus must have told this parable to vindicate his proclamation of the Good News of the Kingdom of heaven against those who were criticizing him, “the tax collectors and prostitutes who receive me now will enter into the Kingdom of heaven at the last judgment rather than you, who criticize me for welcoming them”. Indeed, at the heart of this parable is the proclamation of God’s mercy to sinners, His unending mercy.

     In the parable of the two sons, Jesus illustrated the importance of the personal responsibility and collaboration in one’s salvation. Jesus used this parable equally to correct the erroneous and unhealthy claims of the Jews, in particular the Pharisees, who considered themselves as the privileged people of God, the chosen people, thus holding tight to the privileges of the past, without a present effort, they are like the son that said yes to the father. There are also all others, the pagan, the publicans and sinners, those who initially said no to God but later accepted the message of salvation. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees and Jews for their pretentious behavior and maintained that it is not enough to be children of Abraham or to hold on to the past privileges. Salvation is a personal thing, and one makes the decision depending on the attitude he assumes before God and before the Good News of Christ.  God’s salvation is for all, it is not a patrimony of a particular set of people, but to all who accept the Word of life proclaimed by Jesus and live accordingly. Even though God’s design is for all to be saved, but there is need for a personal consistent choice, we need to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (cf. Phil. 2:12), unfounded familiarity cannot save. Indeed, the words of John the Baptist to  the Pharisees and Sadducees speak volume on this, “do not presume to tell yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father,” because, I tell you God can raise children for Abraham from these stones” (Mt. 3:9). God has offered salvation for all men and women; it now depends on the free response of each person.

     Furthermore, Jesus insisted on another aspect: that is on the concreteness of one’s response. “It is not anyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” who will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven” (Mt. 7:21). It is not the one who is contended with mere sentiments and unfounded affiliation, but he who translates daily into concrete gestures and actions his believe and adherence to God. This is why the son who said no at first and later carried out the will of their father is preferred to the one who said yes but did not fulfill his yes. Jesus calls us in our daily decisions to let our actions reflect our Christian values. It is a call to imbibe the value and principle of orthopraxy: right believing and right living. The theme of personal responsibility which is predominant in today’s readings, especially the first reading and the Gospel, emphasizes that even though our salvation is the work or the gratuitous gift of God for man, however, it requires our human collaboration and freedom. Little wonder, St Augustine will say that “the God who created you without you, will not save you without you.” The CCC puts it thus: “God created us without us: but he did not will to save us without us.” Therefore, we need to express our human freedom making effort daily to convert from evil to good. No one should be blocked irremediably in his or her past life.

     This parable should inspire us to action, for a sincere examination of conscience, how true are we to our profession of faith in God? Do we accompany the Yes we say to God with concrete actions or our Yes is empty, unbelievable and devoid of obedience of faith? How are we making effort daily to maintain and concretize the Yes we have said to God at Baptism? To which of the sons do we identify ourselves more with? Brethren, the risk is grave because if we undermine the daily concrete effort of living out our calling and filial identity, our Yes will be inauthentic. In fact, as St. Peter would have it, “Instead of this, brothers, never allow your choice or calling to waver; then there will be no danger of your stumbling, for in this way you will be given the generous gift of entry to the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2Pt. 1:10-11). The words of Jesus: “tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the kingdom of God before you” (v.31), should spur us on to reflect deeply on our manner of life. We are therefore called to a life of synthesis between words and actions!

     In the second reading (Phil. 2:1-11) we see the great Christological hymn. The hymn presents Christ as a model and it concentrates on ethical exhortation. As such, Christ becoming our model, we are therefore expected to live as Christians distinguished by unity, love, humility and consideration for others. By so doing, we manifest the same attitude that Christ showed when he humbled himself to become man and to accept death on the cross. According some exegetes we have to be careful while interpreting this passage, so that Christ will not just be seen merely as an external example, for he is the source of redemptive life. St. Paul offers us wonderful suggestions that will help us to express authentically our free adhesion to God’s plan of salvation manifested to us in Christ. Let us make the words of the apostle a program of life this week and beyond: “be of a single mind, one in love, one in heart and one in mind. Nothing is to be done out of jealousy or vanity; instead, out of humility of mind everyone should give preference to others, ‘everyone pursuing not selfish interests but those of others” (vv.2b-4). St. Paul shows us in Jesus Christ, an eloquent example of total coherency and responsibility before God, His Father. A perfect synthesis between words and actions! His “yes” of words is never different from his “yes” in action. Little wonder, St. Paul exhausts us to have “the same sentiments that were in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5) whose life and existence were a unified “yes” to the Father’s will. In the words of Jesus “My food is to do the will of the one who sent me and to complete his work” (Jn.4:34; cf. Heb. 10:7). 

     In all, as it is suggestive of today’s message we cannot but remember the words of Paul VI: “the modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses” (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 41), those who are heralds and doers of what they preach. And I would like to add, that every authentic Christian should be able to synthesize these two dimensions in his or her life of faith, that is the spheres of word and actions, for sometimes, the gap between our words and actions may plunge us into spiritual and moral schizophrenia. Therefore, the story of the two sons in the Gospel calls our attention for a deeper and personal reflection, “intus legere”, to read inwardly; to read ourselves from within to know where we fall, whether within the tendencies of the first son or that of the second son. Do my words and profession of faith reflect in my actions? We manifest our love and adherence to Him when we put His words into practice. Jesus says: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (Jn. 14:15). Lord Jesus we thank You for standing as a model for us, in the call to authentic Christian living. Give us abundance of your Grace to be able to live a coherent and sincere life, in adherence to your words. Help us to bridge the gap between what we say and what we do. May our existence as Christians be that of an eloquent synthesis between words and actions. Amen!!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC) 

Do Not Question God’s Generosity To Others!

(Homily for the 25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A)

          In the liturgy of the Word today, the theme around which revolves the paramount message is the two ways “the way of man” and “the way of God”. The way of man is manifested in the desire for justice, sometimes expressed with envy: “They were murmuring against the Master saying: The men who came last have done only one hour, and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day’s work in all the heat” (Mt. 20:11-12). Afterwards, we see the way of God: “My friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius? Take your earnings and go. I choose to pay the last comer as much as I pay you” (Mt. 20:13-14). In the first reading, the prophet makes it glaring: “My thoughts are not your thoughts and your ways are not my ways, declares Yahweh” (Is. 55:8-9). Above all, St. Paul in the second reading, indicates what should be the way of a Christian: “I am caught in this dilemma: I want to be gone and to be with Christ, and this is by far the stronger desire and yet for your sake to stay alive in this body is a more urgent need” (Phil. 1:23-24). The way of the Christian ought to be influenced by God’s will, as it manifests in time. The overriding message of today emanates from the Gospel and that is the fact that it’s never too late for God. God offers full wages to all, whether we have served him all our lives or we have turned to him at the eleventh hour. However, man may say it’s not fair! Is God fair?

          In the Scriptures, we see some passages that manifest explicitly the divine logic, the way and thought of God. We can see it in the episode of the sacrifice of Cain and Abel, the one who found favour in God’s sight was not the first born Cain, but Abel the second son (Gen.4:1-16). We see it equally in the context of the anointing of David, David the youngest of the sons of Jesse was chosen to be the King of Israel (1 Sam 16). Also for the Incarnation of Jesus, a small and insignificant village was chosen, Nazareth where no good thing was expected (John 1:46). God’s thought and way is really different from our ways. In the divine logic and parlance God often chooses the weak to make them strong, or to say it with our Mother Mary: “you pulled down the mighty from their seats and raised the lowly” (Lk. 1:51-52). And in another passage Jesus says something very emblematic: “the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the Kingdom of God ahead of you” (Mt.21:31). God’s ways and thoughts are indeed different from man’s. We cannot but remember that experience of St Thomas Aquinas, on his deathbed, when he was caught up with the realities of human finitude and the density of the divine mystery, he kindly begged that all his writings on the nature of God be destroyed, because he was convinced of their limitations and inadequacy. Even though this request of his was never carried out, but this remains as a reminder to us that the reality and the logic of God transcend the human mind and logic. Perhaps, God is indeed infinitely greater than any concept of him the human mind can form or speculate. St. Paul upon having a dint of the uniqueness, density and diversity of the thoughts and ways of God exclaimed: “How rich and deep are the wisdom and the knowledge of God! We cannot reach to the root of his decisions or his ways. Who has ever known the mind of the Lord? Who has ever been his adviser?” (Rm. 11:33-34).

          The first reading (Isaiah 55:6-9) starts with the invitation to seek the Lord while he may be found and to call him while he is near. God invites us through the prophet to enter into communion with him, assuring us of his unfathomable mercy. He therefore invites the wicked to forsake his ways, and to the unrighteous his thoughts. It is God himself who speaks to us, and says “my thoughts are not your thoughts; my ways are not your ways”. The prophet cautioned the community of the chosen people for operating on purely human scales and standards. He therefore insisted that God's ways and thoughts were not to be determined by Israel's ways and thoughts. The words of prophet Isaiah: “My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways” (vv.8-9) underline the teaching of the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. The psalmist on his part confesses that “God is great and worthy of all praise… how good is the Lord… the Lord is just and holy”. This serves as a preparation of our minds to what is to come in the Gospel.    

          Today Jesus begins the Gospel (Mt. 20:1-6a) with a story that beats the human imagination, a story that apparently seems unjust. In that passage, Jesus narrates a story of God’s justice or rather of his mercy and generosity, a man went out in different times to call labourers for his vineyard and he bargained with all at the same amount. Later he paid all of them as they agreed, the same amount, but starting from those that started late. This gave rise to jealousy, and when the first hired workers complained, he reminded them of their earlier agreement “did you not agree with me for a denarius?” “Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me?” The Psalmist once said that “God is in heaven and does whatever He wills” (Psalm 115:3), and that seems to manifest here in the gesture of the Owner of the vineyard. With this parable, Matthew intends to portray the nature of belonging to Christian community and the Kingdom of heaven. Thus, he acknowledged the leaders and other exemplary Christians in the community. He however, pointed out the eleventh-hour members of the Christian community who did not possess the credibility like those others. He thus advised all to emphasize on God's capacity to give, not humankind's tendency to restrict and control. Mathew proposed a Jesus who transcended purely human parameters and standards of reward. He presented Jesus in the image of his Father: a giver of gifts. In this passage, we see the thoughts of man, the first arrived workers began to murmur. They were jealous of God’s generosity. Jesus narrated this parable because of the Pharisees who were scandalized of his attitude towards those at the margins of their religion, or outsiders like publicans and sinners. This parable was born out of this negative reaction of the Pharisees, and thus Jesus intends to let the Pharisees understand that the Kingdom of heaven is open to all even those they have written off by their own standards, no special merit for the order of arrival. In God’s standard the last workers automatically were made partakers of the Kingdom like the old chosen people (cf. Eph. 3:6).

          In the passage of the Gospel, is as if God calls our attention and says: “Be careful, for my relation with man is not that of a Boss and his worker or employee”. For man tends to apply the categories of a contract, of merit, of reward and of commutative justice to his relation with God. Little wonder, in the prophecy of Isaiah, Yahweh says: “For the heavens are as high above earth as my ways are above your ways, my thoughts above your thoughts” (Is. 55:9). With this, it suffices to say that man has not entered into the reality of God’s way, the way of freedom and goodness of the Father. This way of God keeps the “just” man uncomfortable. But that is why, man has to pass from the mentality and state of the “just” to that of the “justified”. In Mathew’s Gospel, Jesus used this parable of the laborers in the vineyard as an invitation to Christians not to crave for rewards. Even though rewards are not denied, but they are by no means the aim of toiling for Christ and for the Kingdom of heaven.  

         The passage can be divided thus into two: ●first part presents a generous and sensible man who shows compassion to the needy: that is the thought of God. ●second part presents the thought of man, expressed in the complaint of the “first arrived workers”. They were envy of God’s goodness. The landowner narrated by Jesus represents God, the God that cares for all men, especially those in need. God calls all, all the times, in different situations, what is needed is to respond to His love. In the case of the workers of the last hour, the master had compassion on them. It reveals that God looks at our needs and not on our merits or on our faults. In the history of the chosen people one of the names of God is the “Just”, but God does not choose this way in His relation with man.  More so, the divine revelation speaks of “God’s justice”, however, not in commutative terms, but in salvific terms. God is just in that He justifies us, He saves us from our sins, and He redeems us through His Son. His justice is imprinted with love and goodness. His justice is not a contract justice or a justice based on merit or what is ones due. The last phrase of the Gospel passage is discomforting for the “just”: “Thus the last will be first, and the first, last” (Mt. 20:16). For the justice and way of God are distant and distinct from man’s.

          The first workers complained and came up against one of life’s realities and perturbing assertion: It’s not fair, life is not fair. So many times and in different circumstances life leaves us feeling cheated. In fact, think about the couple who pray for a child, spend thousands on fertility specialists and drugs, still they have no baby of their own. Then even as they try to adopt they enter into a long waiting list, maybe all to no avail. Meanwhile, a young boy and a young girl make one mistake and one-time, the girl ends up pregnant. Then the couples lament, it’s not fair. In all, the truth is that life is not meant to be fair. Some people are battling with cancer or heart disease for instance, while others no. Some are rich while others are poor. In fact, an existential lesson we learn early in life is that life is not fair. Then here comes the question of questions: Is God fair? I will answer in the negative, No, God is not fair, God is generous. God is merciful, loving and forgiving. God goes beyond being fair, He is a Giver of gifts.

          The passage ends with the intervention of the owner of the vineyard: why should you be envious because i am generous? The question of Jesus and the entire episode reveals that while justice measures merit, goodness and generosity measure the need. The Landowner was generous to the last hour workers because the wages of one hour work will not be able to take care of their families; upon this consideration he paid them the full salary of the day. The parable is therefore not a description of an act of arbitrariness, but the gesture of a man animated by goodness, generosity and full of sensibility towards the poor. That’s how God is! This is what Jesus was intending to communicate by means of this parable, that God is so good that He even makes publicans and prostitutes participants of His Kingdom.

           In all, the prophecy of Isaiah in the first reading underlines the teaching of the Parable of the laborers in the vineyard. And therein, God’s justice is characterized by mercy and love. We humans are always in search of justice and fairness, but today Jesus shows us the other side of the coin. Jesus shows us the divine justice that transcends the human justice. Mercy and love are immanent in divine justice, while merit and fairness are immanent in human justice. In Hebrew “tsedeka” stands for both justice and mercy, and it could be interpreted that in God Mercy and Justice are interwoven. We should therefore, learn from God, how not to allow anybody to put a limit to our goodness and generosity and to treat people not as they deserve, but with love and kindness. Sometimes we may get angry and ask why things work well even for the person we know that does wrong, rather the right attitude is to thank God for his mercy and goodness, for who are you to question God’s generosity? Sometimes, we act like the “first arrived workers”, who murmur and lament when things are working out for others, rather we should learn how to appreciate God’s goodness to others.

          The second reading (Phil. 1:20-24; 27a) presents St. Paul as a man who later in his life comprehended a bit God’s ways and thoughts, and decidedly followed in His path, even while in prison. Today we shift from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, which we have been reading for several Sundays now, to his letter to the Philippians, which was written the time Paul was imprisoned. In our present passage, Paul faces the thoughts of a possible martyrdom. Indeed, the passage presents the apostle’s meditation on the prospects of life and death. He found himself in a state of confusion. However, whether he dies or lives Paul was convinced that Christ will be honoured in his body, either by his labors for the Gospel or by actual martyrdom. St. Paul believed that his martyrdom will perhaps contribute more effectively than his apostolic labors, to the fulfillment of God’s designs in the salvation history. Going back to our earlier reflection on reward, we can as well link Paul’s reflection on martyrdom with the parable of the Gospel. For like the disciples in Mathew, Paul left all and followed Jesus, bearing his apostolic witnesses in and through suffering. As such, it could be tempting for the apostle to crave for reward when he suffers martyrdom. Although, one may argue that his longing “to be with Christ” is reward oriented, but Paul resisted that temptation. In the end St. Paul tells us the only necessary thing: “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the Gospel of Christ” (v.27a).

          Above all, in the first reading, we heard God say: “My ways are not your ways.” And the event that took place in the Gospel evidenced that fact. The men who worked all day long were paid a day’s wage, and the last hired worked an hour and received the same full day’s wage. Each of them was paid not what he earned but what he needed to feed his family. God is a Giver of gifts, He is generous. We need to imitate God’s generosity and loving kindness. Today in this Eucharistic celebration we have gathered around the altar of our Lord Jesus Christ and with humility like those last arrived workers of the parable, we are going to receive unmerited and undeserved blessings and favors, and we shall go home full of joy because of God’s generosity and kindness towards us. Jesus our Brother and Savior help us to worship you with a sincere heart and a generous spirit. And May the power of your Word dispel from our minds and hearts the tendency of the “first arrived workers”. Help us O Lord to be less of self and more of God. Amen!!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)