Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Ez 18: 25-28, Phil 2: 1-11, Mt 28: 28-32
Dear sisters and brothers,
How many times have you quickly agreed to do something and then failed to follow through? Or refuse to do something only to rethink your position later and complete the job? Both instant without follow-through and reluctant accountability can show weakness, lack of love, and imprecision of purpose.
This parable of the 2 sons is so simple that it belongs to all time, even to this very day. You see, it helps us to probe into our very own hearts and find the Pharisee in us. But, it’s also a parable of mercy. It’s a parable about changing our minds in order to do what is right in God’s eyes, even if we have turned away from Him for most of our lives.
There’s an old saying in sports which I think is apropos to this parable. It’s not where you start that counts. It’s where you finish. The Jewish leaders thought, because of their education, wealth, power and high social status, that they should be the leading candidates for entry into God’s kingdom. But they are precisely the ones who were in danger of not getting into heaven at all.
These people knew the laws of Moses thoroughly and followed them-the Sabbath and feast days, ritual purity, tithing, dietary rules—all 613 of them. But, according to Jesus, these fine fellows will be standing on the outside of heaven watching the lowliest of the low parading into the kingdom. They will be scratching their heads, wondering what went wrong.
So, what did go wrong for these people who knew everything about what the laws of Moses commanded? Well, for one thing, they had no clue about what was most important to God. Earlier in the gospel of Matthew, Jesus told the Pharisees, “Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice’”.
To be sure, Temple sacrifices were important to God. After all, God Himself commanded that they be done. But, to these Jewish leaders, burnt offerings in the Temple took precedence over getting rid of injustice, over helping widows and orphans, over welcoming the stranger and over helping the poor, the sick and the elderly. That’s when their Temple sacrifices became an abomination to the Lord.
Thanks be to God; we’re given the opportunity to change our minds with regard to following God. In the morning years of our lives, we may have said ‘no’ to God. But, as our lives move on, we begin to see things differently and our ‘no’ to God becomes a ‘yes’. Someone may have made terrible mistakes but then redeem him/herself and, by the grace of God, atone for these mistakes by making the rest of his/her life a lovely, grace-filled thing.
Many of the greatest saints of all time have done that very thing—they were great sinners who initially said ‘no’ to God and who later changed their minds and said ‘yes’ to Him. St. Augustine is a good example.
In the Eucharist, we worship and honor Jesus; we ask for his mercy and receive his strength. Jesus paid a high price for us, agreeing to do the Father’s will and perfectly carrying it out despite the suffering. So great was his love for us that he held back nothing in rescuing us from sin. We have only to be open to him to receive the precious gift of his love. In Jesus’ body and blood, we have the guarantee of all that we seek and desire.
Peace and all good!
Fr. Valery Burusu
Parochial Administrator