Sunday Lectionary: Gratuitous Grace

As I mentioned earlier, I was on retreat this past weekend. This meant that I didn’t have the usual amount of time to spend on the Lectionary Notes this week, so sorry if they appear a bit rushed again…

 

25th Sunday of Ordinary Time: 18th September, 2011

The readings this week speak of God’s mercy and generosity. We so often scorn God’s goodness, but in today’s Readings we learn that God is gracious and generous to all who return to Him.

“Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you… You were with me, but I was not with you… You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more” – St. Augstine, The Confessions

 

Reading I: Isaiah 55:6-9

This Reading from Isaiah is part of Chapter 55’s invitation to “Come to the water, all you who are thirsty…”. Isaiah exhorts his listeners to not delay, but come and enjoy the Lord’s goodness.

Seek the LORD while he may be found, call him while he is near. Let the scoundrel forsake his way, and the wicked his thoughts; let him turn to the LORD for mercy; to our God, who is generous in forgiving. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts.

Possible Questions:

• What does Isaiah exhort his listeners to do?
• Isaiah contrasts men and God. In what way does he say they are different?
• Practically speaking, in what way are God’s “thoughts above your thoughts”?
• How does this Reading relate to the Gospel Reading?

Commentary:

“Seek the LORD while he may be found, call him while he is near”

This is an invitation to return to friendship with God. Do not delay! Seize the opportunity!

“Let the scoundrel forsake his way”

Returning to friendship with God means leaving behind your old way of life.

“…turn to the LORD”

This is essentially what repentance is – turning away from sin and towards God.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways”

We are not the same as the Lord. His ways are not are ways. Scripture often describes God in an anthropomorphic (“human-like”) language, but it must always be remembered that God is soooooooo much greater than we are.

In the Gospel Reading we will hear of a particular area where God’s ways are unlike our own.  God is infinitely more generous.

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 145:2-3, 8-9, 17-18

This is a typical psalm of praise. This psalm’s title actually describes it as a psalm of “praise”. The Hebrew word for this is “tehillah”, whose plural form, “tehillim”, is the traditional Hebrew name for the book of psalms. This song describes God’s greatness, kindness, mercy and His unfathomable nature.

R. (18a) The Lord is near to all who call upon him.

Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.

The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.

The LORD is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.

Possible Questions:

• What is the emphasis in this psalm?
• How does it describe God?
• How does it describe our relationship with Him? How does this relate to the Gospel Reading?

Commentary:

“The Lord is near to all who call upon him.”

God is loving – all we have to do is call upon him.

“…his greatness is unsearchable”

This means that God’s greatness is without end. We cannot grasp it fully. Some translations render this verse as “His greatness no-one can fathom”. This is the same sentiment we heard in the latter part of the First Reading (“As high as the heavens are above the earth…”).

“The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness”

A common refrain in the book of psalms about God’s character.

“The LORD is good to all and compassionate toward all his works”

This refers to everything that God has created which includes, of course, us 🙂

 

Reading II: Philippians 1:20c-24, 27a

Today’s Second Reading continues the theme from last week‘s Second Reading where St. Paul spoke about living and dying for Christ. In today’s passage Paul expresses a dilemma. He is  is torn between two goods:

1. Life. If Paul remains alive he will be able to continue to preach and he sees the clear need of this, both to spread the Gospel and strengthen the Church.

2. Death. If he is martyred, he gets to be with Christ and, in the language of St. Ignatius of Antioch, “imitate the passion of [his] God”. His spirit will leave his body (until the Resurrection) and he will be with God.

Here we see Paul’s attitude towards life and death. He says that “Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death…to live is Christ and to die is gain”. I love this attitude! He says that whatever happens to his circumstances, whether he lives or dies, Christ will be glorified and it will ultimately be for Paul’s good. His is a life consumed by Christ.

Brothers and sisters:

Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me life is Christ, and death is gain. If I go on living in the flesh,
that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose. I am caught between the two. 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.

Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ.

Possible Questions:

• Paul has a dilemma in this passage. What is it?
• What is the advantage of living?
• What is the advantage of dying?
• Which does Paul say is better?
• Does Paul have his life planned and sorted? What is his attitude towards providence?
• What is Paul’s request of the Philippians, either way?

Commentary:

“Christ will be magnified in my body”

Paul’s body is, like all Christians, a temple of the Holy Spirit. As we read a couple of weeks ago, it is to be offered as a “living sacrifice” to God (Romans 12:1-2).

“…whether by life or by death…”

Either way God will receive glory.

“For to me life is Christ…”

Being alive in Christ means to spread the Gospel. Christ is Paul’s source of life and the source of his joy, the joy which is so evident in his letter to the Philippians. Jesus is his confidence and trust in the face of an uncertain world.

“…and death is gain”

…because to death means union with Christ.

“…fruitful labor for me…”

This is the spreading of the Gospel and the strengthening of the Church.

“…depart this life and be with Christ, for that is far better”

Despite his preference for union with Christ (“which is far better”), Paul says that he will try and remain for the benefit of the Church (“Yet that I remain in the flesh is more necessary for your benefit”).

“Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ.”

This refers to the high moral standard to which Christians are called.

Whatever happens….whatever happens… Paul is calling for steadfastness. Paul tells them to live this blameless life whether he is around them or not. It reminds me of the saying that “To see the true character of the man, see what he does when he thinks no one is looking…”.

 

Gospel: Matthew 20:1-16a

This parable highlights God’s generosity.

Throughout salvation history the Lord had been forming a people for Himself, reflected in a series of covenants. First He made a covenant with a couple (Adam & Eve), then a family (Noah), then a tribe (Abraham), then a nation (Moses), then a kingdom (David). In Jesus, a new and everlasting covenant has been made. We Gentiles are also included in this covenant, we “who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:13)

To the Children of Israel, the inclusion of the Gentiles could easily be seen as “unfair”. Why should these Johnny-come-lately Gentiles get an equal share in God’s goodness? Quite simply, because God is that good. He is that generous. Resentment of this goodness isn’t very pretty, it’s a characteristic we see in the Older Brother of the Prodigal Son.

Jesus told his disciples this parable:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard.  After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 

Going out about nine o’clock, the landowner saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard,
and I will give you what is just.’ So they went off. 

And he went out again around noon, and around three o’clock, and did likewise. 

Going out about five o’clock, the landowner found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’
They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’

When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’

When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage. So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage. And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying,
‘These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat.’ 

He said to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you.  Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go.  What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous?’

Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Possible Questions:

• Who does the landowner represent?
• Who do the labourers represent?
• What do the vineyard here represent?
• What do the different hours of the day represent?
• What does evening symbolize?
• Why did the first workers feel cheated?
• How does the landowner justify himself? Why were identical wages given?
• How could this passage be applied to the Jews and the Gentiles?
• How could this passage be applied today? To converts and cradle Catholics?
• Are you jealous of God’s generosity to others whom you deem “undeserving”?
• At what hour would you say that you entered God’s vineyard? Do you wish you had entered earlier or later?
• What lesson should we learn about God from this passage?

Commentary:

“…landowner…”

God.

“…labourers…”

Those hired early in the day are the Children of Israel, those later in the day are Gentiles.

“After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard”

The first round of workers go into the vineyard. They agree to work for “the usual daily wage”, a denarius. This was also the usual daily wage of a Roman soldier.

“…vineyard…”

The vineyard is a common Old Testament image for the people of God e.g. Isaiah 5:7. When Israel failed to produce fruit it was conquered by foreigners (Psalm 80:9-20), but God promised restoration (Hosea 14:5-10). In the New Covenant, the vineyard is the Kingdom.

“…the landowner saw others standing idle in the marketplace…”

These day labourers were utterly dependent upon the landowner for work (“Give us today our daily bread…”). This is a picture of our dependence upon God’s goodness and grace. This is something to consider before we start complaining about His generosity to others…

“nine o’clock…noon…three o’clock…five o’clock”

Origen, an early Christian writer, saw a moral sense in this passage. He saw in the hours of the day the different stages in life when people turn to God. Some turn to God at an early age, others as adults, others in old age. These different people are all rescued from the idleness of sin and called to the harvest before the sunset of this world.

“…evening…”

Symbolic of the end of judgement and the close of the world.

“When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage. So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage”

Regardless of the time, God is generous to all, awarding the gift of eternal life to all who call upon Him.

“…they grumbled against the landowner…”

Doesn’t their complaint sound pretty legitimate? Yet, as we heard in the First Reading, God’s ways are not our ways…

“What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money?”

God is generous. If everything belongs to Him, He can do what He likes with it! It is God’s gift, His….grace.

As we saw last week, you’re putting yourself in a very sticky situation if you wish to deny grace to others, while expecting it for yourself…

“Are you envious because I am generous?”

Are you jealous of God’s generosity? You shouldn’t be! God’s generosity to give us hope, both for our own salvation and for those who appear far from the vineyard…