Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Reflections on Isaiah 5:1-7 / Philippians 4:6-9 / Matthew 21:33-43
by Frank D. B. Savadera, SJ
There is trouble in the Lord’s
vineyard. According to Isaiah 5: “What more was there to do for my vineyard
that I had not done? There is bloodshed! a seething cry for justice! What EXASPERATION! Can we contemplate the seeming frustration of the landowner when he says: What more was there to do for my
vineyard that I had not done?
What troubles do we see
in the Lord’s vineyard at this time? We read about the recent calamities in
Luzon and news about parts of Manila sinking by a few centimeters every
year. Every so often, there’s a new storm coming! We also read about crimes
associated with the youth. There's this young
teenager who killed his “so-called” friend with a gun ... inside a mall in
Pampanga ... and this before shooting himself.
And kidnappings! How are we allowing such troubles to affect/
not affect us? God’s vineyard is
supposed to produce good fruits. What prevents our
situation/ context from producing “God’s desired results?” The Gospel today tells us
that the Kingdom of God will be taken from those who are not bearing
fruit. There is trouble in the Lord’s
vineyard! Can we allow ourselves to be
disturbed by all these troubles and assert that all of must must work to assure
that the Lord’s vineyard produce good
fruits ... real good fruits.
Peace of mind (inner) and the quality of our
prayer. Amidst all the troubles we see and experience
around us, how are we led ... all the more ... to pray and seek inner
peace? Saint Paul, in his letter to
friends (Philippians ... his most loved community) speaks about a kind of peace
... the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. When was the last time you’ve experienced such
a kind of peace? How much do we long for
that kind of peace ... the kind of peace which according to Saint Paul ... that
will guard our hearts and minds. How
sincerely do we long for inner peace?
Are we making such a request known to God? As Saint Paul suggests: "Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make
your requests known to God." How is he assuring us to have no anxiety at all?
Longing for peace in our communities. How did UN-peace / trouble evolve in the
Gospel? The tenants of the vineyard were
drawn to commit violence against their neighbor. Why? They wanted for themselves what did
not belong to them. The vineyard’s produce belonged to the
landowner. The tenants simply didn’t
want the owner of the land to benefit from the produce. What are the things that we wish to possess
for ourselves? These, of course, need
not be materials things. Rather, these
may mean all the things that we deem important
... i.e., our reputation, our principles, our pride, our self-image,
etc. Often, being too protective of what
we wish to possess for ourselves causes us to inflict violence upon
others. All the more, we must pray and
seek peace not only within us but as well in our communities. The advice of Saint Paul can translate to the
peace that we can build in community: “Whatever
is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is
lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is
anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
