27th
Sunday in Ordinary Time – October 8, 2017
I
–The vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel.
R
–The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.
II
– Do these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
A
– I have chosen you from the world, says the Lord, to go and bear fruit that
will remain.
G –He
will lease his vineyard to other tenants.
+ The readings for the day establish two points: God first acts to plant a
vineyard; and he employs workers to take care and tend his investment. For us this means that it is not we ourselves
who have planted anything at all: all comes from God the Father, Creator
and Great Architect of the Universe. He has planted everything and everyone
where he wants them / us; and he is telling us by means of the parable in the
gospel today that the dramatic story of family-formation, salvation and
redemption depends upon our cooperation with the process.
It is not up to us to pick and
choose the parts we will agree with, and not agree with in the process. When
God had to show himself to be the one in charge in the history of this
family-making project by force, the participants were thrown into a tither –and
they cried out to him over and over: OK
OK; Your way! Your way! Yah-weh!
But then over and over again:
they took it back and set themselves up as lords
of their own lives, once again. Even when the Father sent his own Son –
this temperamental and rebellious people did not accept him – and being the
great light of truth that he was, showing them exactly who they were, and what
was in their hearts – they killed him! They just did not listen to his
invitation to “turn away from their iniquity, their sin, their
short-sightedness” and be free, happy and redeemed!
Our
readings today invite us to do two things: to acknowledge the ever active and present Father-God who wants
nothing but our happiness; and to cooperate
with him to bring about our own salvation and that of as many others as we can:
encouraging them to be good and faithful
workers in the vineyard of the Lord, with us: doing each day what is good,
right and pleasing to God, and encouraging others to do the same!
May
the God of peace remain with us always, because we humbly and affectionately
ask him to!
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