Lectionary: 139

Reading 1:

IS 5:1-7

Let me now sing of my friend,

my friend's song concerning his vineyard.

My friend had a vineyard

on a fertile hillside;

he spaded it, cleared it of stones,

and planted the choicest vines;

within it he built a watchtower,

and hewed out a wine press.

Then he looked for the crop of grapes,

but what it yielded was wild grapes.

Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah,

judge between me and my vineyard:

What more was there to do for my vineyard

that I had not done?

Why, when I looked for the crop of grapes,

did it bring forth wild grapes?

Now, I will let you know

what I mean to do with my vineyard:

take away its hedge, give it to grazing,

break through its wall, let it be trampled!

Yes, I will make it a ruin:

it shall not be pruned or hoed,

but overgrown with thorns and briers;

I will command the clouds

not to send rain upon it.

The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel,

and the people of Judah are his cherished plant;

he looked for judgment, but see, bloodshed!

For justice, but hark, the outcry!

Responsorial Psalm:

PS 80:9, 12, 13-14, 15-16, 19-20

R. (Is 5:7a) The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

A vine from Egypt you transplanted;

you drove away the nations and planted it.

It put forth its foliage to the Sea,

its shoots as far as the River.

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Why have you broken down its walls,

so that every passer-by plucks its fruit,

The boar from the forest lays it waste,

and the beasts of the field feed upon it?

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Once again, O LORD of hosts,

look down from heaven, and see;

take care of this vine,

and protect what your right hand has planted

the son of man whom you yourself made strong.

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Then we will no more withdraw from you;

give us new life, and we will call upon your name.

O LORD, God of hosts, restore us;

if your face shine upon us, then we shall be saved.

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Reading 2:

PHIL 4:6-9

Brothers and sisters:

Have no anxiety at all, but in everything,

by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,

make your requests known to God.

Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters,

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.

Keep on doing what you have learned and received

and heard and seen in me.

Then the God of peace will be with you.

Alleluia

JN 15:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

I have chosen you from the world, says the Lord,

to go and bear fruit that will remain.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

MT 21:33-43

Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:

"Hear another parable.

There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,

put a hedge around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a tower.

Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.

When vintage time drew near,

he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce.

But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,

another they killed, and a third they stoned.

Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones,

but they treated them in the same way.

Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking,

'They will respect my son.'

But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,

'This is the heir.

Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’

They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.

What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?"

They answered him,

"He will put those wretched men to a wretched death

and lease his vineyard to other tenants

who will give him the produce at the proper times."

Jesus said to them, "Did you never read in the Scriptures:

The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

by the Lord has this been done,

and it is wonderful in our eyes?

Therefore, I say to you,

the kingdom of God will be taken away from you

and given to a people that will produce its fruit."

Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. That is the basic lesson we can take away from this trilogy of readings. These readings give us vital information pertinent to our lives today.

First, some background: Isaiah, author of the first reading, lived about 700 BC. Back then, Israel lived in relative peace, but this peace encouraged a decline in the religious life of the people. Idolatry, corruption, indifference to the suffering of the poor and growing oppression flourished in this lax atmosphere. As we can imagine and know from Isaiah’s prophecy, God soon cleared out the vineyard by allowing the Assyrians to destroy Israel as punishment for their sins. Only a small remnant of faithful Jews survived this destruction and had to re-learn what their forefathers knew - about how to remain faithful to God through God’s covenant with them.

Moving to the gospel today, Jesus spoke a parable using this same prophecy from Isaiah as base text and adding some extra details to make it even clearer and more poignant, thereby making sure it would be passed down to us and understood in New Testament terms, the New Covenant brought to us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. This repetition tells us how important it was that we read and understand the lessons contained in this story.

I think the most important lesson from these readings is the reality of God’s justice for those who become lukewarm in their faith and put worldly desires before their responsibilities to give to God that which rightfully belongs to Him. Let’s think for a minute about “God’s justice” and consider what Isaiah and Jesus are both telling us about it.

One thing is that God will provide divine justice to all His creation. Another is that God’s justice is not to be confused with His mercy. Without divine mercy we would all be in trouble, at least I would be. But these readings are about God’s justice, so let’s not conflate God’s mercy with His justice.

It must be said up front that God’s justice can be harsh for those who deny God. Jesus said in Matthew 7: “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” This is the very sobering central point that I think Jesus and Isaiah are trying to drive home to us today. The road to eternal life is not easy, but it’s the one we want to be on. We must resist idolatry, worldliness, lukewarmness and other sin towards our Creator.

When we see ourselves as the vineyard tenants in the story we can ask: are we lukewarm, idolatrous, indifferent or have agendas other than God’s? How about our families and extended families?

Like people living in 700 BC, we find ourselves today in a position of widespread laxity and even antipathy towards God. By some estimates, about three quarters of Catholics don't go to church and about that same number don't believe in the Real Presence that will soon be confected on our altar in just a few minutes. Our country is polarized, riots in many major cities occur nightly and virtually any talk of God in the public sphere is couched in clouds of caveats. We hear of the “separation of church and state” as if that’s a law or some sort of rule (which it isn’t) but it is spoken as a cudgel, a way to oppress or end any talk of God.

So, what can we do about it? What do we do about our kids that have fallen away from our Church or came home from college with New Age, Marxist or even worse beliefs?

Let’s end with a few practical ideas:

1. Men, the vineyard’s tower is your responsibility. You are charged to protect what is yours and your family’s. There are many predators. Saying something like “I work too much to go to Church”, or “Church is for women” or “Sunday is the only day I get to sleep in” must end. Do your manly duty and protect your household and its inhabitants who are, after all, the domestic church. Leading is your responsibility.
2. Do not be indifferent to moral laxity. There is objective truth and it can be known through faith and reason. Everything is NOT relative or subject to personal opinion. Some truths are fixed by God’s law. Reject all claims to the contrary.
3. It’s time to stop being afraid to speak up. You’ve heard the saying “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”. Do not be afraid of conflict: Jesus certainly wasn’t. Speak the truth, especially when it’s hardest.
4. Lastly, see Holy Family Parish as a refuge from the world. Make friends here. Realize that Holy Family offers a great source of resources for you and your family. The Ministry Fair outside after Mass will give you a good place to tap into to some of what our parish offers to help you in your own education and spiritual growth. We have two spiritual mentors here at this parish, Bible studies for men and women, Knights of Columbus, St. Teresa’s Society, Building and Grounds and many other groups to make new friends in while growing in your faith. I hope to see you outside after Mass to see what’s all available.

Let us bow our heads and pray.

Father, we give you thanks for Your creation in which You gave us everything we need to live with you in heaven for all eternity. Please help us to encourage others who have strayed from the path of Your Son who showed us the way by dying for us on the cross. Please help us to overcome lukewarmness in our faith as we work to find our way Home to you. Amen.