September 24, 2017

September 24, 2017

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time A

Isaiah 55: 6-9; Philippians 1: 20-24, 27; Matthew 20: 1-16

How many times do I hear, ‘It’s not fair!'  I would answer ‘a lot’.  I heard it all the years I spent in high school work.  I hear it routinely from the kids in school today, all years.  I hear it in people expecting something and they didn’t get it; whether it was a promotion, an award, a salary raise, even in those not receiving a present for their birthday or Christmas.  I hear it when people get bad reports from their physician.  I hear it when people are told they have a short amount of time to live.  I hear it when people make a comment about today’s gospel.  I heard it when Harvey hit Texas and the surrounding areas. I heard it when Mexico was hit by the earthquake and followed with hurricane Katia.  I continue to hear it from the devastation from Irma.  God is not fair.  If God is good, why does He allow all this pain and suffering.  I said it myself when I was young and I had to go to bed earlier than my sisters and brother; it didn’t seem to matter the they were 7 - 12 years older than I.  Or when they got special attention and I did not.  Or when I was ‘told’ to eat fish on Fridays.  It’s just not fair.   WHY?   WHY NOT?  Is God responsible for all the evil and all the bad things?  Is God responsible for all the sicknesses and diseases?   Is God the reason why terrorists kill and criminals violate society’s laws?  Is God a loving God?  Do I believe that God loves me?  How present is God to me every day?  Is God a God of love?

We look to Isaiah’s writing: scholars say that Isaiah is a book of poems composed by the author but also by disciples some of whom came many years after Isaiah.  Chapters 1-39 were from Isaiah himself; Chapters 40-55, commonly know as Deutero-Isaiah have been attributed to another poet who prophesied toward the end of the Babylonian exile. Chapters 56 -60 continued the work of the great prophet and were composed by disciples.  Today’s passage is from the last section of Deutero-Isaiah; the people are still exiled are very discouraged and demoralized.  Will they ever get to go back to Israel?  Jerusalem has already been destroyed and all the leaders, nobles and influential people are in exile.  Today the prophet is concluding a longer poem in which God speaks to offer encouragement.  “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call Him while He is near.”  The people had felt that God was in the great Temple of Jerusalem, but He is right here, present to the exiles.  Even though they don’t understand what is happening, God is merciful and forgiving.  We need to know God is present and is always loving.  Do we go to Him?  

Paul’s letter to the Philippians is believed to have been written toward the end of his life while he waits in prison for his death sentence.  So his words about life and death can be viewed in the immediacy of his martyrdom.  He knows that he will die and he is looking forward to being with God in heaven.  He also knows that as long as he is still here, God has plans for him.  “I long to depart this life and be with Christ, for that is far better.  Yet that I remain in the flesh is more necessary for your benefit.”  The people still need to hear Jesus’ message and how they are to live the Gospel and share their life with others.  What a message for us:  while we have no reason to fear death, our lives are of great value each and every moment of life.  We have been promised by Jesus that we will be with Him forever in heaven, but while here on earth we are still called to live lives of witness and service.  God has a plan for each person.  Do we accept this plan?

The gospel is a parable, a story…it has nothing to do with fair labor practices.  In fact the focus is on the Last Judgment.  What will happen when that time comes?  Am I afraid or am I awaiting the final call to heaven.  This is what Jesus is talking about.  How will God act at the Final Judgment?  The Good News, the fantastic news is that God will be generous. The last will be first and the first will be last but this does not matter in any way.  God’s mercy and generosity will extend to every person.  The workers in the parable have a hard time in understanding the landowner’s actions and were very vocal that they were being treated unfairly.  Jesus is telling us that God treats people the same way and is generous in rewarding all people. 

Joseph Donders, a member of the Society of Missionaries of Africa, wrote these words about this gospel in The Fullness of Time.  It is a wonderful piece to sit and use as a guide to reflection and contemplation.  He says,       

 “God hears many complaints like:

• Why are others healthy, while I am sick and in pain?
• Why do others seem to be so happy, while I am so miserable?
• Why did she have to die so young and not live into old age, like most people?
• Why do other people seem to be so much more gifted than I am?

      These are often bitter cries that no social welfare system can quieten.  The parable in today’s gospel reading addresses this problem:  everything is a gift from God and no-one has an a priori right to anything - even to be called into existence.  We should be thankful for what we have got, and not complain about what we have not been given.

   The other side of the coin is that we too readily look down upon those who are less fortunate or are simply different from us, trying to convince ourselves that we are better than they are.  The owner of a Mercedes Benz may think he or she has a right to quicker service than the person in a Ford Fiesta.  Not so very long ago, left-handed people were forced to use their right hands instead, because they were considered abnormal.  Similarly, people with disabilities are often despised and treated as second-or third-class citizens.  We find non-smokers looking down upon smokers, vegetarians looking down upon meat-eaters, and so on, ad infinitum.

   There is an endless list of criteria by which those who consider themselves to be among the ‘first’ in our society judge themselves to be better than those who are ‘last’ — from people’s wealth, physique, looks, health, skin color, age, sex, religion, diet, race, and culture, down to which region or city they come from, and even which side of the street they live on.

   When Jesus says that ‘the last will be first, and the first last,' He is not so much turning that order around as abolishing it.  He does not intend to set up a new queuing system for God’s gifts, with a different group of people heading the queue.  He is saying that, in God’s eyes, the ‘first’ and the ‘last’ are brother and sister who stand before God as friends and equals.”   Do I believe God?

So I reflect on:

• Have I felt envious or entitled?  What has it gained me?
• How has gratitude and always seeking God transformed me?
• How do I react when I see others suffering from prejudice or injustice?  Am I as concerned as I would be if I were part of the group suffering?
• How can I become more aware of justice issues?

Sacred Space 2017 states:

   “This story will irritate us if we cannot glimpse something of God’s generosity and overflowing compassion.  Here I am, Lord.  You see how little I deserve, but you want to hold nothing back, if only I open my hands to receive it.

   The human mind suspects injustice while the heart of God sees only an opportunity to be generous.  Help me, Lord, to let go of my presumptions so that I may see as You do and act freely from a full heart.”