Homily for 24 September 2023 by Fr. Gerard Jonas
Hard Work with Heart Work
Isaiah 55:6-9; Psalm 144; Philippians 1:20-24, 27; Matthew 20:1-16
Originally, the parable of the workmen in the Gospel according to Matthew may have been a rebuke to the Jewish Christians who resented the influx of Gentiles and other pagans into the community. The generations-old religious community resents the newcomers who come from different cultures and traditions. The parable may be a reprimand to the exclusivistic and legalistic view of the Chosen People. Why would the early comers and newcomers have the same access to work compensation? But why would they feel uncomfortable with God’s equal welcome to everyone?
That was then, how about us today? What do we get from this parable of the Kingdom?
First, what does it mean to work in God’s vineyard?
In this parable, Jesus presents the dynamics of God’s Kingdom. It shows that it is a heart work as it is a hand work. It is an internal toil as much as it is an external endeavor. It is as strenuous to the spirit as it is to the body.
God is just and merciful.
God is just as the image of the landowner who gives the rightful compensation according to the agreement. But God is also merciful as the image of the landowner who gives beyond what is just.
The Lord Jesus presents God who is beyond just, God who is mercifully generous. Notice how the early workers grumble just like the older brother of the prodigal son in another Kingdom parable. Like the landowner, the father of the prodigal son was also prodigiously generous with the wayward younger son. But it caused someone close by to resent and complain.
Grumbling or complaining begins when we begin to compare. Remember, if we go by this attitude, grass would always seem greener on the other side of our fence. It leads to self-centeredness. “Why do I not get what I am entitled to? Entitled according to whose standard? Clearly, these are the ways of the world. They lead to corruption of the heart. That’s why Jesus tells this parable – so we may convert our heart to the ways of God- to the ways of the Kingdom. It is an invitation for some heart work.
We often miss the bigger picture. If we only begin with an attitude of gratitude, we would even rejoice at the good fortune of others.
As we heard early this morning at Vigils, Pope Benedict said that being called by God is itself already the reward.
The parable is about the Kingdom of God, about the call to belong to God’s Kingdom. The call is inclusive. All are invited. The call is ever available. But God’s offer happens in kairos time, not only in chronological time. We tend to complain because we do not yet understand. We have not yet entered the kairos time of the Kingdom. We encounter God in His appointed time and circumstance. But we miss it if we do not approach it as kairos.
The Lord shows as if the landowner could not stand unemployment and just employs everyone at any time. Indeed, the invitation is to transcend our chronos time into kairos moment. The challenge for us is to check what part of our life is still not engaged into kairos. What parts of my day still lie idle and not focused, not yet dedicated to God? The 3rd hour, the 9th hour, the 12th hour?
We are all invited to join the labor force of the God’s Kingdom. Jesus enlists us. So let us dig into some heart work. Let gratitude energize us and stretch our spirits to be welcoming. Let God’s spirit enlighten and move us to discern how more we can transform each moment of our day into kairos moments of growing in intimacy with God, even with the work of our hands, mind and heart, alongside others in God’s great family! Let us take the Kingdom challenge to re-align our selfish hearts to God’s mercifully generous heart!
