+ We have two powerful and instructive readings today: the gospel passage is about God's way of thinking that does not always correspond with man's; the first reading is about God's way of thinking that does correspond with man's.
In this first reading: God himself, through the Prophet Ezekiel, relates his extreme displeasure at shepherds who are interested only in themselves and not the sheep. Woe to such shepherds of Israel who have been pasturing themselves! You have fed off their milk, worn their wool and slaughtered the fatlings, but the sheep you have not pastured. You did not strengthen the weak nor heal the sick nor bind up the injured. You did not bring back the strayed nor seek the lost, but your lorded it over them harshly and brutally. So they were scattered for the lack of a shepherd and became food for all the wild beasts. But thus says the Lord, I am coming against these shepherds. I will claim my sheep from them and put an end to their shepherding of them. And I myself will look after and tend my sheep! This I will do by sending my own Son as Chief Shepherd; and he will send his best friends to do this shepherding until the end of time. This kind of logic, reasoning and thinking of God's is easy for us to go along with! Now, it is still the task of the shepherds of the Church to be faithful to their calling and ministry: TO PUT THE FLOCK FIRST, RATHER THAN THEMSELVES! THE FLOCK AND ALL OF ITS NEEDS, ALWAYS FIRST!
The gospel passage is about God's generosity and mercy and the distribution of his graces and benefits: even to those who come by it rather late in the history of salvation! The parable, however, goes against human reasoning; and the modern American work ethic: "if I work harder and longer, then I should get more, and I should get mine first." But God, the employer, says: No! I choose to bring the last up first, and to give them the benefits of a full day's work: I choose to give them the fullness of redemption as surely as I would give it to those who for centuries have chosen my will and cooperated in their salvation! And this, thanks be to God, is how all of us receive salvation: we are the last on the scene: but we have it as good as those who were walking right along with Jesus, and listening to his words, and eating the bread that he provided! It is wonderful: God's way of thinking – it is wonderful when ours corresponds with it; and it is wonderful when it doesn't!
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want!
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