Sunday Preparation

September 24, 2023

Gospel: Matthew 20:1-16 (The Laborers in the Vineyard)

Sunday Readings Audio
Girardian Lectionary
Fr. James Alison Homily
'Sunday Connection' Scripture Commentary
RCL/Benziger Gospel Reflections
Street Psalms
Bishop Robert Barron Sermon

Question of the Week (Adults):

Are you resentful when others are given mercy?

Question of the Week (Children):

How do you feel when other people get more than their fair share?

Catechism Connection (Gospel)

No references

Saints This Week:

September 24 Saint John Henry Newman
September 25 Saints Louis Martin and Zélie Guérin 
September 26 Saint Paul VI, Pope
September 27 Saint Vincent de Paul patron saint of charities
September 28 Saint Wenceslaus patron saint of Bohemia 
September 29 Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael Archangels, patrons of Death, Germany, Grocers, Police officers, Radiologists
September 30 Saint Jerome patron of Librarians, Scholars, Translators

Note that this is the second of four consecutive major parables in Matthew that begin with a double designation to introduce the main character. This is found in the Greek text, not reflected in our translation. The landowner in the story is introduced as “a man, a head of household” to show that he should be seen as a human being, and not as a stand-in for God.

1. “a man, a king” (in Greek, anthrōpō basilei) — Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (18:23-35), 24th Sunday
2. “a man, a housemaster” (anthrōpō oikodespotē) — Parable of the Generous Vineyard Owner (20:1-16), 25th Sunday
3. “There was a man, a housemaster” (anthrōpos ēn oikodespotēs) — Parable of the Wicked Tenants (21:33-46), 27th Sunday
4. “a man, a king” (anthrōpō basilei) — Parable of the King’s Son’s Wedding (22:1-14), 28th Sunday

This parable seems to have three (at least) layers of history, interpretation and meaning.

The earliest location of the story is connected to the social conditions of agricultural day laborers in the time of Jesus. They were very poor, and in a precarious economic situation, where each day they had to try to find a day’s work to feed their families. (There are Day Laborers in our community who are still in this situation.) The “usual daily wage” in the story was the minimum that they needed to survive. When the landowner hired other workers later in the day, he said to them “I will give you what is just”, and at the end of the day he gave them enough to meet their families’ needs, rather than in proportion to the number of hours they had worked. Had he given them less, the workers’ families would have gone hungry that day.

The practice of the landowner is behind the concept of the “social wage” or “just wage” in Catholic Social Teaching, which is based on the needs of workers and their families (rather than their “value” in the “marketplace”), to give them enough to live in “frugal comfort” and not in poverty or insecurity.

The second location of the parable is in the tension between Jewish Christians (those who labored from the beginning of the day) and Gentile Christians (the late-comers) in the early Church, over who should inherit what in the Kingdom of God. In this case the point is that those who arrived later should receive no less than those who came first, and those who came first should not be resentful.

Msgr. Michael Clay explains the third layer of meaning, as it applies to Christians in any age:

“This parable is found only in Matthew. The point is clear: eternal inheritance is the same for all regardless of past history. Some of the Jewish Christians were unwilling to give equal status to the Gentile Christians coming into the new faith because they had not previously been Jews. The Gentile Christians were perceived as second class citizens by the Jewish Christians.

The parable forms a fundamental teaching on grace. Grace is hard to believe and even harder to accept because sometimes we are entrenched in our own thoughts and ways and because we continue to burden ourselves and others with a system of merit rather than one of mercy. The point of the parable is clear: just as the vineyard owner dealt generously with each of his workers, so also does God deal with all of us sinners, not with the justice we deserve, but with mercy, and not according to a system of merit and reward, but with grace. Those who serve God on the basis of strict legal observance will inevitably find this type of action incomprehensible.

The workers were looking for justice, symbolized in the issue of pay. The parable reminds us that God’s ways are not our ways, and that participation in the reign of God is not determined by merit but by grace. Salvation is not earned, but is a free and generous gift for all who turn to God, whether in the morning of their lives or in their twilight years, or anywhere in between.

To the extent that we are still shocked by this story, underscores the fact that we have yet to fully understand and accept the ways and workings of God.”

October 1, 2023

Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32 (The Two Sons)

Mass Readings Audio
Girardian Lectionary
Fr. James Alison Homily
'Sunday Connection' Scripture Commentary
RCL/Benziger Gospel Reflections
Street Psalms
Bishop Robert Barron Sermon

Question of the Week (Adults):

When have your actions not measured up to your promises? What was the outcome?

Question of the Week (Children):

Why is it important to follow through on your promises to others?

Catechism Connection (Gospel):

546 - Jesus' invitation to join the Kingdom of Heaven often comes in parables

Saints This Week

October 1 Saint Theresa of the Child Jesus, Doctor of the Church
October 2 The Guardian Angels
October 3 Saint Theodora Guerin
October 4 Saint Francis of Assisi patron of Ecology, Animals, Italy, Merchants, Metal Workers, Archaeologists.
October 5 Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska 
October 6 Saint Bruno
October 7 Our Lady of the Rosary

Scripture Notes

The Scriptures for this Sunday have a theme of taking responsibility for your actions before God. In Old Testament times the Jewish people believed that often the punishment or responsibility for sin fell not just upon an individual, but upon the wider community, such as upon children for the sins of their parents, or upon the entire nation. The prophet Ezekiel says that this is not so – each person must be responsible for their own actions. Jesus continues this idea when he shows that a person’s initial response to the commandments of God is not what counts (the defiant son, or the “tax collectors and prostitutes”), but rather what counts is if they truly repent then do what is right. Jesus also castigates his listeners for not listening to the preaching of John the Baptist and not turning back to God when they had the opportunity.

"Tax Collectors and Prostitutes" seem to be a surprising and shocking set of people who are entering the Kingdom of God, before the Chief Priests and the Elders of the People.  We may think of both of them as "bad people" or "public sinners", and also "outcasts", but there is more to this below the surface. Tax Collectors in Jesus' time were perpetrators of economic injustice. They are people who robbed the poor, on behalf of the occupying Roman Empire. Prostitutes on the other hand were the victims of economic injustice. Many were widows who had lost the support of a husband, and turned to desparate and undignified ways of making a living. Both stand in contrast to the Chief priests and Elders who were both economically secure and self-righteous. 

Note that this is also one of many examples of Jesus using 'inclusive language' in the Gospels. Often when Jesus gives an illustration of his teaching, he give an example from the experience of men and another from the experience of women. In this case, Tax Collectors are "male outcasts" and Prostitutes are "female outcasts".  In other examples Jesus talks about "those who marry" (men) or those who are given in marriage (women), in Mt 24:38, or "Two men with be out in the field (doing men's work) ... two women willl be grinding at the mill (women's work), in Mt 24:40. What significance does this have? Jesus is recognizing women as the equals of men in their capacity to respond to God and live as responsible people.  

The Second Reading from the Letter to the Philippians includes a text which is one of the most important in the New Testament, describing who Jesus is, and his relationship to his Father. This text we also hear as the Second Reading on Passion Sunday, as a preamble to the story of Jesus' Passion and death, and it is this self-emptying unto death on a cross that Paul refers to in this reading.

The apostle Paul frequently teaches in his writings, that Christian should model their lives upon imitation of Jesus. He often talks about, “putting on the mind of Christ”, as the model to follow. This may seem impossible to us, and we may ask how do we know the mind of Christ? However, throughout the gospels and also Paul’s epistles, we see Jesus himself imitating the love and goodness of God his Father. We too therefore can "put on the mind of Christ" by imitating Jesus' imitation of his father! Insofar as we take Jesus for our model of both faith and moral conduct, by imitating Jesus we can come closer to “putting on the mind of Christ”.

One important practice which moves us in this direction is contemplative prayer, in which we empty ourselves of our thoughts and wishes and desires so as to be filled with God, even when God’s fullness feels empty. In this practice, in a small way, we are acting out the kenotic (self-emptying) action of Christ, who emptied himself of his divinity so as to become a human being. (Phil. 2:6-11) This kenotic aspect of prayer should extend to life as a whole so that, in our actions with other people, we empty ourselves for their sake in the way we empty ourselves in prayer.

Concerning Jesus’ parable of the two brothers, Jesus’ listeners took the bait and took sides. However, this may not be the way Jesus wishes us to respond. The parable suggests that the two brothers are embroiled in competitive rivalry to the extent that each always says the opposite of what the other says, and does the opposite as well. That is, they react against each other and not at all to the father. Both then, have failed to respond to the father and both are in need of forgiveness and mercy.

October 8, 2023

Gospel: Matthew 21:33-43 (The Parable of the Vineyard)

Mass Readings Audio
Giraridan Lectionary
Fr. James Alison Homily
'Sunday Connection' Scripture Commentary
RCL/Benziger Gospel Reflections
Street Psalms
Bishop Robert Barron Sermon
 

Question of the Week (Adults):
What kind of fruit are you bearing for the kingdom of God?

Question of the Week (Children):

What kind of fruit are you bearing for Jesus?

Catechism Connection (Gospel):

755 - the Church compared to a cultivated field
756 - the Church compared to a building

Saints This Week

October 4 Saint Francis of Assisi patron of Ecology, Animals, Italy, Merchants
October 7 Our Lady of the Rosary
October 9 Saint John Leonardi 
October 10 Sainf Francis Borgia patron saint of Earthquakes

Scripture Notes

The Parable of the Vineyard told by Jesus in the Gospel mkes use of an image of Israel drawn from the Old Testament. Both the First Reading from the prophet Isaiah, and Psalm 80 speak of the nation of Israel as a vineyard, planted by God. God did everything to nurture it so that it would bear fruit, but the vineyard did not bear fruit. Therefore God will allow it to be overrun and destroyed. Note the presence of violence rather than justice in both Isaiah and the Psalm. 

The meaning of Isaiah’s prophecy was well known to the Israelites, that the nation was overrun by its enemies because of its infidelity to God. Jesus speaks a variant on the same prophecy, this time castigating “the chief priests and the elders of the people” for rejecting him “the son”. The story is a metaphor for both how Jesus was treated and also the early Christians, who were “thrown out of the vineyard". It is also a warning to religious leaders who become complacent about "bearing good fruit". Even today God can take the kingdom away from his complacent followers, and give it to others who are going to respond more honestly.

One key idea in the interpretation of this Gospel is Jesus' statement,

The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;
By the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes. 

This quotation comes from Psalm 118:22-23. Early Christians often applied it to Jesus, as one who was rejected (as was "the son" in this parable) but who then became the "Cornerstone" of the New Israel of the community of the disciples of Jesus. 

Note that this is the third of four consecutive major parables in Matthew that begin with a double designation to introduce the main character. This is found in the Greek text, not reflected in our translation. The landowner in the story is introduced as “a man, a head of household” to show that he should be seen as a human being, and not as a stand-in for God.

1. “a man, a king” (in Greek, anthrōpō basilei) — Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (18:23-35), 24th Sunday
2. “a man, a housemaster” (anthrōpō oikodespotē) — Parable of the Generous Vineyard Owner (20:1-16), 25th Sunday
3. “There was a man, a housemaster” (anthrōpos ēn oikodespotēs) — Parable of the Wicked Tenants (21:33-46), 27th Sunday
4. “a man, a king” (anthrōpō basilei) — Parable of the King’s Son’s Wedding (22:1-14), 28th Sunday

Scripture Resources for Catechists

• Seasonal Resources from Be My Disciples
• Cycle A, B and C Resources - from Loyola Press
• Girardian Lectionary - comments and exegesis on the Sunday Scriptures
• Lesson Strategies from Be My Disciples
• Sunday Connection for this week from Loyola Press
• Preacher Exchange - Fr. Jude Siciliano, O.P.
• Finding God - the Online Catechists Helper from Loyola Press (log in required)
• Sunday Homilies - from St Andrew's
• The Text This Week - Lectionary, Scripture Study, Worship Links and Resources 
• Audio of Daily Mass Readings - from the USCCB
• Video Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings - from the USCCB