Homily for 24th September 2023

 

 

My dear friends today we celebrate the Twenty Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The first reading taken from the prophet Isaiah is from chapters 40-55 which are called Deutero-Isaiah. In this section, the prophet is preparing the people for the end of their exile and their return to Jerusalem. The first line of the 1st reading is quite interesting, it says - Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near. The question is can’t God always be found? Isn’t God always near?

The people of Israel were coming to the end of a long exile. An exile during which they felt that the Lord had abandoned them. Now the prophet Isaiah is bringing them this joyful news that their exile is drawing to a close and that the Lord has drawn near once more. It is a golden opportunity that they just cannot afford to miss. We then read these beautiful words ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways’. For the Israelites in exile, the immediate cause for concern was just to survive the day by having enough to eat and drink. They surely hoped to escape but feared the consequences of failure. Many of them would prefer their current predictable circumstances to returning home.

God’s vision however isn’t short-sighted like them. God’s plan involves raising a Persian king who will let the Israelites return home. Nothing is impossible for God. If they seek the Lord now, the Lord will have mercy on them and pardon them. However, if they fail to seek the Lord even now, their exile will never come to an end.

I remember recently seeing this video where there was a thirsty man in the desert. He was desperately looking for water, and having searched long he began to hear this inner voice to move to the left, however when he sees to the left he only sees barren land and dry rocks, but when he sees to the right he sees a small water pump. Facing this dilemma he eventually chooses to go right, and have those few drops of water. The video ends with an overhead shot of there being a huge waterbody just beyond the dry rocks.

The interesting thing about God is that although he is almighty and powerful God cannot force his love on us, he cannot force us to love Him. We have to take the first step. We have to be the first to act, we have to allow him into our lives. Only when we do that, only when we let God take control of our lives, will we see the grand things that he has in mind for us.  The reading is an invitation to take a leap of faith into the unknown. If like the man in the desert we limit our life choices to only the certain and the predictable then we miss out on the amazing possibilities that God has in store for us.

The second reading is taken from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians. The Apostle Paul wrote this letter to his close friends, the Christians in Philippi, from his Roman house arrest as he waited for his court appearance before Caesar. St. Paul gives us a rather radical perspective about death that leads eventually to an exhortation of the congregation to be willing to suffer for Christ.

When we look at our societies today, every effort is geared towards enjoying and elongating life. Most of what we see in media is dominated by thoughts of making life more gratifying and fulfilling while eliminating the threat and experience of death. But in the reading, we hear St. Paul say “Living is Christ and dying is gain” Why does he glorify death? In prison, Paul faces the possibility of death.  Paul’s reflections centre on the presence of Christ. Paul is certain that death is not a transition into a state of non-existence; hence, he is not afraid of it. Paul does not doubt at all that death can only be the moment when he will be united with Christ. He challenges every accepted notion about life that is propagated by the media of our time. Attitudes of ‘Enjoying life’ suddenly become questionable. The quest for more material possessions suddenly becomes vain. Paul admitted to the Philippians that he might not be released from this present imprisonment, but it might instead result in his martyrdom. Paul was torn between being with the Lord or continuing to minister to the Philippians and others. Paul understood that others still needed him; that his work was not yet done. Paul tells the Philippians to be good, patriotic citizens of the kingdom of God, to promote an increasing trust and belief in the good news of Jesus Christ.

In the gospel taken from Matthew, we hear the parable of the laborers in the vineyard which revolves around the theme of being the first and the last in the kingdom of heaven. We see a contrast being drawn between how things work in the earthly realm and how things work in the spiritual realm. Let’s look at the earthly or temporal realm first. If you were to hire workers to paint your house you would look for the best possible worker who would do the job at the lowest cost. Our concern is not the welfare of the worker but our expenses. Comparing this with the spiritual realm - what is the motivation of the landowner? Surely, it is not to save money. He keeps looking out for workers to hire so that they can earn their daily wage. In his eyes, he sees children who will go without food if their fathers fail to find employment. 

The second difference is that the earthly sense of justice is very different from the spiritual sense of justice. Whether we like it or not we tend to work on the principle of ‘as you sow so shall you reap.’ If you have done something bad then you ought to pay the price. The spiritual realm is entirely different. Recall the incident in the gospel of Luke about the two criminals who were crucified with Jesus. While one mocks Jesus the other one turns to Jesus and repents and Jesus in turn welcomes him into paradise. There is no tit for tat in heaven.

The parable also lays bare the tendency we all have to covet and to be resentful of what others receive from God. We fail to acknowledge that God’s grace, mercy, and forgiveness are God’s to give away as God sees fit. So the question that arises is who are the firsts, and who are the last? Taking the context into consideration the firsts in the parable would include the Israelites, the Pharisees and the scribes and the last would be the Gentiles. Who do you feel are the firsts and last when we apply the gospel to our context today? I feel the firsts could be those of us who are born into the church, the baptized, the regular churchgoers. The firsts could be us priests and religious. The firsts could be the rich and influential among us. The last would include the refugees, the migrants, the domestic helpers, and those on the margins of society. Those whom we do not want to be associated with.

Why would such firsts become lasts? Like the labourers who were hired in the beginning, perhaps we have become overconfident and proud. Perhaps because we spent our lives praying, “MY will be done!” instead of “THY will be done.” Perhaps because our lives have been characterized more by getting than giving. Do we tend to grumble and find fault in others and become judges? Instead of inviting people to the kingdom of God are we keeping them far away? At some stage or the other in our lives, we all come to seek God. Some people are lifelong disciples, and some people convert only toward the end of their lives. Irrespective of when we turn to God, like the landowner who is always looking to hire labourers God is always out there looking for us. It is never too late to turn to God.

The invitation before us today is to turn to God, take the leap of faith and strive to not be a part of this earthly realm but to be part of the spiritual realm. Let’s seek God’s ways and God’s thoughts which are much much greater than our ways and our thoughts. May God bless us all.