It's Not Fair!

 

26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Cycle A

Ez 18:25-28

Phil 2:1-11

Mt 21:28-32

 

It’s not fair! And thank God it’s not.

Today’s readings tie in nicely with last week’s, where we heard the parable of the vineyard workers where the workers who were hired for only a short time received the same wage as those who had worked all day under the sun. The ones who had worked all day felt cheated because the vineyard owner was generous with his money. We hear from the prophet Ezekial today that the Israelites felt they were not being treated fairly by God because there were consequences to their actions. Ezekial sets them straight just as the vineyard owner last week did with the workers who had felt cheated.

It is so good that God does not treat us as we treat each other. It is so good for us that God’s ways are not our ways. What we think is fair may not be what God thinks is fair. We think that getting our fair share means someone else misses out. God gives everyone the same based upon our actions. Our idea of justice is really around punishment. God’s idea of justice is all about mercy. We are all given as many chances as we like to repent and return to God, up until the very moment of our death. And it doesn’t matter what other people do. It’s our choice and we will each have to suffer the consequences of our choices.

It doesn’t matter how long it takes us, just as long as we make the right choice.

Both sons in the vineyard story today had a change of heart, but the only decision that mattered was the one that ultimately conformed to their father’s will. We aren’t given any reasons for their decisions. We don’t know why they ultimately changed their minds. Perhaps the first son who initially agreed to go into the vineyard was attacked and vilified for it. Maybe his friends lured him away to go have some fun instead.  Perhaps the second son was hard-headed and proud, but came to obey his father out of love for him. Or maybe his friends guilted him into it. Their situations didn’t matter, only their decisions did.

We are all called to work in the vineyard of the Lord and be faithful to his commandments. And his commandment is to love one another as he has loved us. To love someone else as God loves them is to humbly serve them.

I spend too much time on social media, I admit it. It seems that every day someone posts a meme or a comment about how important it is to focus on yourself, to rid yourself of people who do not bring out the best in you, or don’t reciprocate your affection or attention. Be strong and be alone. Don’t rely on others. Such an American way of thinking, isn’t it? But that is not how God thinks. St. Paul says today that not only should we be of one mind and heart, we should actually live for one another, to empty ourselves just as Jesus did.

Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory;
rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves,
each looking out not for his own interests,
but also for those of others.

To be truly human is to serve others. Jesus said that he did not come to be served but to serve. God didn’t have to become man. He didn’t have to redeem us. He didn’t have to suffer our ignorance. He didn’t have to suffer and die on that cross. He chose to. He humbled himself and became one of us, because he loved us so. He not only became human, Paul says he took on the form of a slave, the lowest form of human. He became obedient and humbled himself. Are we greater that that? Are we called to anything other than that?

Jesus always turns things on their head. We think that success will come from being self-reliant, smart, and focused on ourselves. Jesus says the greatest person is the one who is the servant of all. We think that those that work harder should get more. Jesus says that everyone is subject to his mercy, no matter what. We think that appearances matter. Jesus says that we will be judged not by our words and our promises but by our actions. Those who do nothing will receive nothing, but even the reluctant workers will get the rewards.

And we are given every chance throughout our lives to make decisions to act, even to the very end of our lives. The workers in last week’s parable thought it was not fair that those who had worked in the vineyard only one hour should get the same pay as those who worked all day. And we may think that it’s not fair that someone who had lived a wicked life but at the end repents will gain the same reward as the person who was faithful their entire life. But what if you were that person, would you care if it were fair, or would you rejoice in your good fortune? We should not consider it a slight to ourselves if God is merciful to others. We should rejoice with them.

I find it a great comfort to know that I can choose God even in the last moment of my life, and he will be merciful. I also know that I can not choose God, and there will be consequences to that. I know that I am called to work every day of my life for others if I am to be a true disciple. And discipleship will bring me happiness and will greatly benefit those around me, and will ultimately lead to eternal life with God. It’s really hard to think of myself last, and I rarely do it well, but I am still called to try, even if I fail.

Think not as human beings do but as God does. We never seem to understand that, do we? It seems to be so difficult for us to live not for ourselves but for others. We don’t understand that the best way to be happy in ourselves is to deny ourselves and live for others. The path to happiness and fulfillment in life is through selflessness. That is the way God thinks. Jesus proved that.

We are not to worry about what others are doing. Worry about yourself. Only an empty cup can be filled. Empty yourself and you will be filled. By humbling himself Jesus was exalted. It will be the same with us.

It’s really not fair. Isn’t that wonderful?

 

Get Behind Me, Satan

 

22^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Cycle A

Jer 20:7-9

Rom 12:1-2

Mt 16:21-27

 

Do you remember in last week’s gospel Jesus asked his disciples who people were saying the Son of Man was? Some thought Jesus might be the prophet Jeremiah, and this week we hear why. Jesus was a lot like Jeremiah. Jeremiah was a fearless prophet, who suffered many persecutions and attacks upon him by kings and false prophets who did not like his message of repentance in the face of destruction. Jesus also prophesized about the destruction to come, and preached repentance and conversion. Jesus was also persecuted and killed for his message and his claim. Without calling it such, Jeremiah was preaching the gospel and foreshadowing the coming Messiah. And so, we can understand why people might have thought of Jeremiah when they heard Jesus.

 

Jeremiah is not one of the most uplifting prophets. The weeping prophet, he is called. Jeremiah was called to prophetic ministry in 626 BC. He was young, probably just a teenager or in his early twenties, and he was a reluctant prophet. He really didn’t want to be God’s mouthpiece, and he came up with all sorts of excuses not to do it. He came from a well-off priestly family, and probably was not what most people thought of when they thought of a prophet.

 

The times in Judah were tough. The last few kings had not been faithful to God, choosing to worship the god Baal, one of the local pagan gods. They went so far as to adopt the practice of child sacrifice. There were rumors that the Babylonians were planning to sweep down and invade the country, as they had so many others, so the people were looking to the king to make the right alliances to protect them.

 

And so Jeremiah shows up and starts telling them that they don’t need to rely on human alliances, they really just need to repent and put their trust in God. Jeremiah’s job was to reveal the sins of the people and explain the reason for the impending destruction and captivity by the Babylonian army. “And when your people say, 'Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'" Not exactly a popular message. And Jeremiah was attacked and ultimately killed for it.

 

You can see why Jeremiah was tempted to give it all up. He saw the futility of it all, the danger. He says that God duped him, that reality wasn’t what he thought he had been offered when he accepted the role of prophet. He was understandably angry and discouraged.

 

Jesus slams Peter pretty hard today. Last week we heard Jesus proclaim Peter to be the rock upon which he would build his church and he gives him the keys to the kingdom of heaven. In the next passage he seems to call him Satan. But it was not Peter Jesus was rebuking, it was the opportunity to take the easy way out and not fulfill his mission as his Father wanted him to.

 

Peter wasn’t doing anything wrong when Jesus rebuked him. In fact, he was acting out of love for Jesus. But Peter didn’t see the big picture, he didn’t understand the plan like Jesus did. Peter was thinking as any friend would when someone they loved was placing themselves in danger. But Peter wasn’t thinking as God thinks. Peter didn’t yet fully understand that Jesus must suffer and die, and that the good news of the gospel was the outcome of that death.

 

I am often frustrated and bewildered at hatred for the gospel today. The world still does not see things as God sees them. When given the choice, we choose ourselves over God. And it’s sad and ironic that by doing so we are going against our own self-interest. The world has distorted its understanding and view of the gospel to be exactly the opposite of what it really is. They see it as a set of oppressive rules, stifling the human spirit, when in fact it is the most freeing and human thing we could embrace. Jesus Christ didn’t become man to enslave us but to redeem us. And that path had to lead to the cross. The good news of Jesus Christ is that God became human so that we could become divine.

 

The world has left out half of that equation, believing that we are already dieties, that humanity is all there is, everything begins and ends with us, we are in control, and God is a myth. Our plan is focused tightly on ourselves; we see only what is before our eyes, and we have no understanding of the greater plan, because we think we are the plan.

 

Jesus understood the true plan and knew where it would lead him. Through Peter Satan was tempting Jesus to take the easy way out. If anyone could do that, Jesus could. It was the same temptation Satan had given Jesus earlier in the desert. If you are the Son of God, make it easy on yourself and eat. Declare and exercise your power over heaven and earth and take dominion of all the nations. You can choose not to do this, so don’t. It’s too hard. It’s futile. They won’t love you for it. They will reject you. They will kill you. So, don’t do it. Leave them to themselves and their own destruction. They don’t deserve so great a redeemer.

 

But like Jeremiah, Jesus couldn’t resist the Spirit. Like Jeremiah, Jesus had the Spirit burning in his heart, and he was compelled to follow the will of God. All prophets know the consequences of their message. They are often afraid. But the Spirit of God uplifts them and strengthens their resolve. Get behind me, Satan. I will not go the easy way. I will sacrifice myself for the ones I love.

 

Do you have a burning in your heart to speak the truth? Is there anything in your life that you would have the courage to stand up for and profess, even at the risk of losing your friends, your livelihood, even your life? We live in fear; fear of viruses, fear of violence, fear of being destroyed if we say or do the wrong thing or speak the truth. We distrust all our institutions, our church, our government, our neighbors. As Jeremiah laments, “violence and outrage is my message”. And, just as Jeremiah tried to remove himself from his prophetic mission, we often shy away from ours as well.

 

It takes great courage to be a prophet, but we are all called to prophesy. When we were baptized we were anointed with the Sacred Chrism as priest, prophet and king, just as Jesus was. On that day we were sent on our mission. We have the same choice Jeremiah and Jesus had. We can resist our mission and take the easy way out, or we can surrender ourselves, allow ourselves to be duped by God and embrace it. We are called to speak truth to power, we are called to admonish one another, instruct the ignorant, and correct our own behavior that goes contrary to the truth. We are called to live lives of persistence, fortitude, and courage.

We must continue to be the light of the world and proclaim the good news that the Kingdom of God is at hand. Now. Not just 2000 years ago. We must declare our allegiance to Jesus Christ and not to the world. It may cost us dearly. We may lose friends, position, and power. But we must do these things because we must love as God loves.

 

Do not conform yourselves to this age
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and pleasing and perfect.

 

 

 

 

The Wisdom of Solomon

17^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

1 Kgs 3:5, 7-12

Rm 8: 28-30

Mt 13:44-52

How many of us would make the same choice as Solomon if given the chance? How many of us would choose human relationships over our own pleasure or success or comforts? As I grow older, I have come to understand that having wisdom and acting wisely is a great gift, and one that will bring all the other things to you as well. Because Solomon asked for such an unselfish gift, God gave him wealth and power and prestige, all the things he did not specifically ask for.

Solomon asked for an understanding heart to judge and rule God’s people and to know right from wrong. That request itself was a wise one. It showed great self-awareness, and that is the basis for wisdom. You must know yourself before you can understand another, just as you must love yourself before you can love another. How can you love your neighbor as yourself if you first do not love yourself? How can you understand your neighbor if you first do not understand yourself?

There’s a saying that wisdom is making good choices and knowing how comes from making poor choices. But just making a lot of mistakes does not make you wise. You have to learn from those mistakes and work hard to change your behavior to the good. We all know people who keep making the same mistakes over and over again, and never learn from them. And wisdom does not necessarily come with age nor with position. Solomon was not wise just because he was king, and yet though he was a youth he was regarded as the wisest person on earth.

Wisdom is also knowing what to do in a given situation. Wisdom can be painful to attain, because usually it comes from not knowing what to do and getting it wrong. It is that pain that remains in our memory so we can avoid it in the future. I’m glad it hurt to touch that hot stove when I was a child, because I haven’t done it since. It often takes time to become wise, because we are so very stubborn and so slow to change.

We often think of the wise person as someone who we can go to for advice. A wise person has something other people don’t, some special secret. The guru on the mountaintop who can give us the meaning of life. And many times, that’s what a wise person does. But more often wisdom is found in not doing something. Wisdom is most often self-restraint. It’s anticipating the consequences of an action and choosing not to act because it would not be in the best interests of the other person or make the situation better.

Wisdom is not responding back in kind when someone attacks or insults us. It’s not posting that rude comment or sending that nasty letter. And not only because it would be fruitless but because we understand that the best way to bring someone around to our point of view is not to attack them in return but to try to understand them. When we open ourselves up to that understanding, oftentimes the solution to the situation becomes clearer to us. Many times, our grace and patience will calm things down and help win the other person over. But mostly, the wisdom of not responding in kind is in the love we show for the other person by showing restraint. Turning the other cheek is not a sign of weakness but of love for the other person. How will attacking them show them the love of God within us?

It takes great courage to be a person of wisdom. It is not just hard to show restraint, it takes courage to admonish someone when required. It takes courage to tell your daughter that her lifestyle choices are putting her immortal soul in danger. She may reject you and your message or even her faith. It takes courage to go against a dangerous or sinful conventional wisdom. It takes courage to stand up for what is right and speak truth to power, but the world needs wisdom, especially these days. And it takes courage to learn from the wise, because it often requires deep changes to our lives. Wisdom rips away the pretense and gets to the depth of the truth, and that can be painful. Wisdom not only requires self-awareness but self-denial and humility.

Wisdom does not have to come just from our own experience, but from that of others. We all know people we consider wise. Maybe it is a parent or grandparent, a mentor or great leader or thinker. Or, all of the above. We can and should learn from wise people. We hear from Jesus in today’s gospel,

“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven
is like the head of a household
who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”

The wise person does not embrace change just for change’s sake. The wise person is a complete person and knows that wisdom is the sum total of a person’s life and experiences. They don’t throw out former worthy ideas and experiences because they know that is what had formed their new ideas. And the wise person knows that you can’t just jettison the past, with all its heroes and villains, virtue and vice. The wisdom of the ages is a valuable thing, because it is the foundation of the wisdom of the current age. And the wisdom of today is often born out of the folly of yesterday.

The best place to learn wisdom is the bible. You know, in scripture there is an entire book dedicated to wisdom. It is actually quite beautiful and profound. In it wisdom is described as one of the main attributes of God and is actually personified. Wisdom is described as a person, a woman actually, who was with God from the beginning, is of God, and is God. God is wisdom itself, and wisdom is how God interacts with all creation. Therefore, wisdom is holy because God is holy. When we act wisely, we are holy also.  Since wisdom comes from God our path to wisdom must be with God.

The wisest person in history was Jesus Christ. Jesus knew human nature better than anyone. Who knows the human heart better than the one who created it? People came to him for advice and guidance, or to try to entrap him, and he turned their hearts precisely because he knew their hearts. People were amazed at the depth of his wisdom, and many became his disciples because of it. And Jesus lived his wisdom with great courage and humility. It is the same with us. People will come to know and love Jesus Christ because of the wisdom of our lives and example. When we act with wisdom, we image Christ to the world and show the world the many practical and intimate ways God is working in their lives.

Wisdom is a gift we give to other people. It is totally selfless, if it is true. Solomon didn’t ask for anything for himself, instead, he asked for the ability to treat others as they should be treated. To truly love his neighbor as himself. When we act out of concern and compassion for another person, that is wisdom. When we put ourselves in their shoes to try to understand them, that is wisdom. When we get our own ego out of the way, that is wisdom. Being wise is to love and to love is to be wise.

We all are given the choice of Solomon, a man who knew his limitations and chose to rely on the wisdom of God. Learn from that perfect wisdom and let it guide you. Don’t worry if your store of wisdom is lacking. God has plenty to share.