Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Let me now sing of my friend,
my friend's song concerning his vineyard.
My friend had a vineyard
on a fertile hillside;
he spaded it, cleared it of stones,
and planted the choicest vines;
within it he built a watchtower,
and hewed out a wine press.
Then he looked for the crop of grapes,
but what it yielded was wild grapes.
Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah,
judge between me and my vineyard:
What more was there to do for my vineyard
that I had not done?
Why, when I looked for the crop of grapes,
did it bring forth wild grapes?
Now, I will let you know
what I mean to do with my vineyard:
take away its hedge, give it to grazing,
break through its wall, let it be trampled!
Yes, I will make it a ruin:
it shall not be pruned or hoed,
but overgrown with thorns and briers;
I will command the clouds
not to send rain upon it.
The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel,
and the people of Judah are his cherished plant;
he looked for judgment, but see, bloodshed!
for justice, but hark, the outcry!
Second reading Philippians 4:6-9
Brothers and sisters:
Have no anxiety at all, but in everything,
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
make your requests known to God.
Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.Finally, brothers and sisters,
whatever is true, whatever is honorable,
whatever is just, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious,
if there is any excellence
and if there is anything worthy of praise,
think about these things.
Keep on doing what you have learned and received
and heard and seen in me.
Then the God of peace will be with you.
Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:
"Hear another parable.
There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,
put a hedge around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a tower.
Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.
When vintage time drew near,
he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce.
But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,
another they killed, and a third they stoned.
Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones,
but they treated them in the same way.
Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking,
'They will respect my son.'
But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,
'This is the heir.
Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’
They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?"
They answered him,
"He will put those wretched men to a wretched death
and lease his vineyard to other tenants
who will give him the produce at the proper times."
Jesus said to them, "Did you never read in the Scriptures:
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful in our eyes?
Therefore, I say to you,
the kingdom of God will be taken away from you
and given to a people that will produce its fruit."
By Theresa Ballo
The theme of today’s readings is about vineyards and seeing the fruit of one’s labor. In the Gospel, Jesus shares the story of a vine owner who leases the vineyard to others who seek only their own benefit from fruits of the vineyard. Too obvious it may seem, God is like the owner of the vineyard. The servants are the prophets from the Old Testament. They were sent by God to be messengers and protectors of his creation. The Son is Jesus. The son dragged outside the vineyard is Jesus’ passion and death on the cross.
The readings made me think of the things, people and events God has given me. Going more into thinking made me feel grateful and happy yet going deeper into the depths of my thoughts, I asked this question to myself, what have I done with all God has entrusted to me? In spite of a few true friends, supportive boyfriend and a loving family, there are still nights where I feel all alone. I know I am doing my part maximizing God’s gifts to me like for example the gift of emphatic listening. I listened very well, without judgment, without pre-conceived notion. Yet, in most cases I feel drained and tired of listening to people’s trauma, pains and desolations. Sometimes they bring back my own childhood trauma. Sometimes, I feel worthless especially when I cannot do anything to help. My powers are limited. My skills fell short. I have been given many tools that I can use in order to care for the part of the vineyard which God has let me work. I am sometimes tempted as the tenants in the Gospel, to be greedy and see what I can get out of the crop just for myself.
At night I ask myself, am I still willing to help them carry their crosses faithfully and be exemplary counselor and journey with them in their highs and lows? Maybe, this is my cross too. Maybe this is what I have been called to do. As St. Therese of Lisieux is famous for her “little way”, in which she said, no amount of effort, no matter how small, is insignificant in the effort for the conversion of souls and glory of God. I tell this to myself. I would like to be like her. She had her moments of being insane too but she became a saint, a doctor of the Church in fact.
At the start of this pandemic in the Philippines, I feel sorry and I also cried to all the fallen heroes. To the doctors, health professionals and frontliners who willingly sacrificed their lives in the service of their professions. Yet as months progresses, there are the “other” frontliners who are courageous to give their time and skills listening to people’s mental health issues, helping people manage and lessen their anxieties, extending spark of hope so people can continue to choose to live and to breathe. Simply because they cannot say “no” to the inner crops in their soul. They listened to it and stay faithful to their call.
At this time of global pandemic, we are all invited to be beacons of God’s light, truth and hope. This may expose both the best and worst of humanity but we should bear witness to God’s love and show His love to one another in these trying moments.
PRAYER
Blessed are you, O Lord God, provider and owner of all things. Through Your goodness, You have gifted us with care of those who You have entrusted to us. We ask that we may continue to be good stewards and give back to You the praise, glory, and honor that is due to You. May we follow the example of Your Son in the way that He treated and cared for Your people. In this way, we can experience true and lasting peach which is beyond all understanding. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Tell us what you feel...