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St. Elizabeth Seton Virtual Parish

Abstract Surface

Breaking Open Word

Interesting start to the gospel – Jesus is directing His instruction to the chief priests and elders. Now, those folks did not take a shine to being instructed by the son of a carpenter so the discussion must have been rather heated. And the discussion was being held in Jerusalem, so those listening were the elite of the Jews.

The parable Jesus is teaching was a common practice. A landowner builds the infrastructure – those things necessary for him to carry on his business, but he lacks the employees to actually get things done. The landowner gives over what he has created to tenants who were supposed to farm the land and produce a bountiful harvest upon his return. The vineyard is a reference to our Church and everything and everyone in it.

In the parable, the landowner is God, the vineyard is Jerusalem, the tenants are the chief priests, elders, and scribes. The servants are the prophets of the Old Testament. The son is Jesus, who will be mistreated and killed, and as a result God will put those who kill the son to their own death. God will then entrust the New Covenant that is established by Jesus to a new Jerusalem.

In the bible, when we see references to Jerusalem it generally is taken to mean the Church established by Jesus. In this case, God will entrust his New Covenant to the Catholic Church. In Matthew 21:42-43, Jesus identifies Himself as the cornerstone rejected by the builders, in this case the builders would be those who will put Him to death. God will hand His church to a new leadership of those who follow Him and take it away from the chief priests and elders.

October 4 - 27th Sunday Ordinary Time

We can be rightly mystified by the behavior of the characters in this odd little story. An initial invitation to come to a wedding feast in honor of the king’s son is met with rejection. That’s odd because who would turn down a royal summons by the king to a feast? Then a second invitation sweetens the deal with descriptions of the elaborate preparations- it’s going to be delicious! Who wouldn’t come to this party? People love to get together over food, especially when it’s free. But those invited are apparently unimpressed, and return to business as usual. This is unusual behavior but then things go completely off the rails.

We watch in horror as the servants sent by the king to announce the party are seized, abused, and murdered. We didn’t see that coming! How did the stakes suddenly get so high? And the weirdness and violence are just getting started. In retaliation, the king goes to war against these people. Enraged by their actions he unleashes an army. Before we know it, the murderers themselves are murdered, and their city is a pile of smoldering ash. But it gets weirder still. With our heads still spinning, we learn that the dinner is still on! Now the invitations go out again, this time to commoners on the “main streets” of the city.

In other words, this is not a realistic story, so you are invited to appreciate its absurdities. No doubt this is a disturbing story — inflammatory, even. But perhaps we can get some perspective and even a little understanding about the way it strains credibility — even the special credibility we reserve for parables. With the stakes of realism lowered a bit, we can start to answer some questions.

Throughout human history, people have found excuses to ignore God's call to salvation, letting life's concerns or temptations lead them away from fellowship with the Lord. Others who came into a covenant relationship with God abused and killed His servants, the prophets, when He sent them to chastise the covenant people for falling into sin and disobedience to His commandments.

There is a prophecy in the words of Jesus. Jerusalem would be destroyed less than 40 years later in exactly the same way. And not only did the chief priests and elders kill the Son of God for His message, but little could the apostles listening to this parable know that while Jesus was predicting His passion and death, all but one of them would also be killed through their announcing the “Banquet of the King.”

October 11 - 28th Sunday Ordinary Time

The Pharisees and the Herodians approach Jesus with a carefully constructed question designed to trap him: “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” The two groups were unlikely allies. As the name would suggest, the Herodians were political allies of king Herod and benefited from Roman rule, while the Pharisees were religious scholars concerned with strict adherence to their interpretation of Mosaic law. They regarded Roman domination and taxation as humiliating. If Jesus says no, he can be accused of rebellion against Rome. If he says yes, he risks alienating people who resent the occupation (especially the Zealots). Jesus recognizes their hypocrisy and asks to see the coin used for the tax. The denarius bears Caesar’s image and inscription. When they identify the image, Jesus replies, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” His answer brilliantly avoids their false choice. Civil authority may have legitimate claims upon us, but those claims are limited. Caesar’s image is stamped on the coin; God’s image is stamped on every human person. Taxes and civic duties may be owed to the state, but worship, conscience, and the whole of our lives belong to God. Jesus does not divide life into a worldly part with no connection to faith and a religious part reserved for God. Rather, he places every earthly authority under the higher and ultimate sovereignty of God.

October 18 - 29th Sunday Ordinary Time

October 25 - 30th Sunday Ordinary Time

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