Call to a Life of Virtuousness with an Emphasis on Humility as an Antidote to Vices: Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

To consummate his earthly ministry of redemption of the fallen humanity, Jesus entered Jerusalem triumphantly, receiving fervent welcome from people (Matthew 21:1-11).  Upon entering the city, he cleansed the Temple, which was denigrated to a “den of robbers” by hypocrites (Matthew 21:12-17). This resulted in drawing more heightened and intense attentions from those who were annoyed by his presence.

A day after cleansing the Temple, Jesus returned to the Temple area. There, he began teaching. Then, the chief priests and the elders came to him and questioned, By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?, in regard to his teaching and action of cleansing the Temple (Matthew 21:23). To this Jesus answered:

I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me, then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things. Where was John’s baptism from? Was it of heavenly or of human origin? (Matthew 21:24-25).

The chief priests and the elders could not answer. So Jesus said, “Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things”(Matthew 21:27).

Then, Jesus spoke the parable of the two sons to them to ask their opinion on the sons (Matthew 21:28-31).

In the parable, a man asked his first son to work in the vineyard. He said “no” at first but changed his mind later and went to the vineyard, as asked by his father. The father also asked his second son to work in the vineyard. He said “yes” but never went there. Then, Jesus asked them, which of the two sons did their father’s will. And they answered, “first one”.

So, Jesus said to them:

Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him (Matthew 21:31b-32).

The question is, why did Jesus present this parable about the two sons: the first one declined to work in the vineyard but actually went to work, while the second one consented to work but never went to work, and asked which so did their father’s will?

First, we must understand the context of the parable and the inquiry of the opinion of the chief priests and the elders about the two sons.

It was, indeed, to confront their hypocrisy, which is associated with the corruption of the Temple. The parable and the question of their opinion on the parable served as a mirror for them to recognize their problem.

First, Jesus juxtaposed these hypocrites to the son who made an impression to his father that he would go to the vineyard to work there. Then, he allegorically reminded them that they were worse than those who whom they despise for their sinfulness, represented with the tax collectors and the prostitutes, because they repented their sins and went to John the Baptist to be baptized (Matthew 21:31b-32a). This is because that the chief priests and the elders saw them wen to John the Baptist with contrite hearts, they saw that but did not change their mind to believe John the Baptist (Matthew 21:32b).

This method of confrontation was used also by Nathan when he confronted David’s sin, asking the king’s opinion about a rich man oppressing a poor man out of his greed (2 Samuel 12: 1-7). David responded with his indignation toward the rich man for his evil act on the poor man. And Nathan reminded David that the man whom he showed his anger and thought to be condemned to death was him for what he did to Uriah to take his wife, Bathsheba, for himself. Then, David humbly confessed his sin and repented (2 Samuel 7:13).

Yes, David recognized his sin through Nathan’s parable. But, what about the chief priests and the elders? Did they recognize their sin and repent? Hold your answer until you read the next parable, in which Jesus spoke about the tenant workers in the vineyard, who killed the landowner’s servants and son (Matthew 21:33-44), from which the Gospel Reading of the Twenty-Seventh Sunday (Matthew 21:33-43) is drawn.

Jesus’ parable of the two sons (Matthew 21:28-31) is about the imperative of the integrity to our promise to God. Once we say, “Yes” to God, we must commit ourselves to what we have said “Yes” to God.  For example, our vows to God, like those we take to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, the Sacrament of Matrimony, and the Sacrament of Holy Orders.

As Christians, what we must commit ourselves to is a virtuous life in order to enter the Kingdom (2 Peter 1:3-11). And to live a life of virtues requires the Holy Spirit, because virtues are fruit of the Holy Spirit, powerful antidote to vices (Galatians 5:13-26).

The First Reading (Ezekiel 18:25-28) calls us not just to live a virtuous life but to maintain a life of virtues against vices all the time, while it urges us to convert our hearts from wickedness of vices to virtuousness. As the first son in the parable changed his mind to do his father’s will, though he first refused to do (Matthew 21:29), those who live a life of vices must change their hearts to a life of virtues (Ezekiel 18:27-28), while those who fail to maintain a life of virtues, though they were virtuous before, will be condemned to death (Ezekiel 18:26).

Remember, David would have been condemned to death for his two-fold mortal sins: sending Uriah to a battle to have him killed and to have committed adultery with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:1-27). But he was not because he repented, confessed his sin, and changed his heart to commit himself to a life of virtuousness (2 Samuel 12:1-25).

Perhaps, even these hypocritical chief priests and the elders started off with a life of virtues to have held such positions. However, they let vices take over virtues in their lives. According to the First Reading (Ezekiel 18:25-28), they were to be condemned to death (v26), while those tax collectors and the prostitutes who repented their sins and sought John the Baptist for baptism were not condemned (vv. 27-28).

With the parable of the two sons, Jesus said that those unrepentant hypocrites, namely, the chief priests and the elders, involved with the corruption of the Temple, will not be the first to enter the Kingdom (Matthew 21:28-32). But with the following parable, the parable of the wicked tenant works of the vineyard, Jesus made it clear that they will be condemned because they are like the wicked tenant workers, who basically turned the vineyard into the land of murders (Matthew 21:33-45).

The Second Reading (Philippians 2:1-11) calls us to live a virtuous life, especially with an emphasis on the virtue of humility, manifested in selflessness, in order to safeguard against vices. And we are humbly minded that it was Christ himself demonstrated humility, as well as, obedience, for our salvation. Thus, Paul wrote:

Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:5-8).

In his letter to Dioscorus, St. Augustine of Hippo prescribed the virtue of humility, as the foundation of all virtues, to this young proud orator, through these words in the hope for him to turn away from the vice of pride to the virtue of humility:

My Dioscorus, I desire you to submit yourself with unreserved piety, and I wish you to prepare for yourself no other way of seizing and holding the truth than that which has been prepared by Him who, as God, saw the weakness of our goings. In that way the first part is humility; the second, humility; the third, humility: and this I would continue to repeat as often as you might ask direction, not that there are no other instructions which may be given, but because, unless humility precede, accompany, and follow every good action which we perform, being at once the object which we keep before our eyes, the support to which we cling, and the monitor by which we are restrained, pride wrests wholly from our hand any good work on which we are congratulating ourselves. All other vices are to be apprehended when we are doing wrong; but pride is to be feared even when we do right actions, lest those things which are done in a praiseworthy manner be spoiled by the desire for praise itself (St. Augustine, Letter 118, paragraph 22).

Basically, humility and obedience go hand in hand. And this combination makes a very powerful antidote to vices. Laking the twofold virtue of humility-obedience puts us at risk of becoming hypocrites like the chief priests and the elders, who did not believe in Jesus and his authority, as they did not believe John the Baptist and repent. Because of their lack of humility, they failed to maintain a life of virtuousness with obedience to God’s will to serve as the chief priests and elders, contrary to the vows they had taken.

Three Musketeers with Christ and Us: Three Archangels: St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael

On September 29, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the feast of three Archangels: St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael. I call these three as Les Trois Mousquetaires Archanges. Among them, St. Michael is the general in the forces, while St. Gabriel heads public relations, and St. Raphael manages the damage control/restoration program, as well as, the protection program.

In the optional First Reading of this feast (Revelation 12:7-12ab), we take a glimpse into the warn in heaven, St. Michael expelling Lucifer the Satan, portrayed as the ancient serpent, the dragon.

Having fallen on earth, Satan tempted Eve, then, she tempted her husband, Adam, to sin against God. This was how the beginning of the corruption of the world with sin, allowing Satan to continue infusing and inflicting his wickedness to the world. As a result, Adam and Eve were evicted from Eden (Genesis 3:16-24), through God prophesized the destruction of Satan by the Son of the New Eve, who is Mary the Theotokos, the incarnated Christ, born of her (Genesis 3:15).  Knowing this, Satan in the dragon tried to destroy the incarnated Christ in the womb of Mary altogether. But he did not succeed. So Mary was able to give birth to the Son of God (Revelation 12:4), as God protected her and the Son in her womb.

Through the incarnation in Mary’s womb (Luke 1:35) and birth from her body (Luke 2:7), Christ came down to save us from where Satan has inserting his influence (John 3:16; 1 John 4:9), as he continue to oppose God’s scheme to redeem the children of Adam and Eve, the fallen humankind. So, the war between St. Michael and Lucifer the Satan, has been transplanted on earth as the war between the faithful, who have been adopted as children of God through Christ (Galatians 4:3-7; Ephesians 1:5), and Satan and his evil collaborators (Ephesians 6:10-17).

As Jacob had seen in his dream, the angels of God descend from heaven and ascend from the earth (Genesis 28:12), St. Michael can come to us on earth, leading our battle against the evils. Certainly, we have received the incarnated Christ (John 1:1, 14; 3:16; 1 John 4:9; Luke 1:35; 2:7), who has descended from heaven and ascended from the earth (John 3:13; Ephesians 4:7-10), 40 days from his resurrection (Acts 1:3-9), but remains with us in the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:20; John 14:18, 28), so that we can continue to fight against Satan’s forces. And we have the sword of the Holy Spirit, which is the Word of God (Ephesians 1:13-14; 6:17). Thanks to Mary, through St. Dominic, we also have the Holy Rosary as our powerful weapon against evil (Leo XIII, Octobri Mense).

St. Raphael may come down to us to protect us from Satan’s attack and to heal us from wounds inflicted in our battles against Satan on our pilgrim journey to the Kingdom of God, as he protected Tobias on his journey, healed his wife, Sarah, from demonic possession and his father, Tobit, from blindness, as written in the Book of Tobit. When he served Tibit and his family, St. Raphael appeared in disguise of a Jewish man, Azariah. But he eventually revealed himself as one of the seven archangels, who stand and serve before the glory of the Lord (Tobit 12:15). Remember, as Jacob had seen, any angel can come down and go up between heaven and earth (Genesis 28:12). So, it can be St. Raphael to be our protective and healing companion, reminding Jesus being with us. And it can be St. Michael, spearheading our battles against Satan on earth as we are, indeed, Ecclesia Militans, Christ’s militant Church (i.e. Ephesians 6:12).

Now, what about St. Gabriel?

St. Gabriel may come down to us to help us understand a revelatory vision from God, as he did to Daniel (Daniel 8:16-27) and did to Mary on the Paschal Mystery of her Son (Luke 1:26-35). He may bring good tidings about God’s salvific scheme and how we will be involved with it, as His messenger to us, as he did to Zachariah (Luke 1:11-18) and to Mary (Luke 1:28-37). This way, we know what we are doing in our battle against Satan on earth and remain in confident hope for the victory in the battle.

Along with His only begotten Son, God has provided us with these three archangels, St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael, though they can be quite busy going back and forth between heaven, where he stand before God in His court, from where the Christ the Son comes and returns, as in Daniel’s vision, reflected in the First Reading (Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14; cf. Revelation 5:11-14; 7:1-17). And, what is so good to know is, as Jesus said to Nathaniel, as found in the Gospel Reading (John 1:47-51), as the angels of the Lord, these Archangels, not simply descend and ascend between heaven and earth but do so on Christ (John 1:51), who is with us until we victoriously enter the Kingdom as saints (Matthew 28:20). Indeed, the ladder to heaven seen by Jacob, through which angels can descend and ascend (Genesis 28:20) is a prefiguration of Christ. Therefore, as Christ remains with us, so do Les Trois Mousquetaires Archanges: St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael, to lead us to the victory, to guide us with salvific wisdom, and safeguard our pilgrimage through battles against Satan.

Mary is the first one to have made it to heaven ahead of us, being the heavenly gebirah to her Son, the King, by his throne. Now, we are on the way, with Christ in the Holy Spirit, on whom Les Trois Mousquetaires Archanges: Saint Michel, Saint Gabriel et Saint Raphaël ascend and descend.

Honoring and Being Inspired by the Sixteen Martyred Saints in Japan (1633-1637), including San Lorenzo Ruiz, San Thomas Nishi, Santa Magdalena of Nagasaki

By virtue of the Sacrament of Baptism, we assume priestly, kingly, and prophetic services, for Christ and his Church. By receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation out of our willing volition, we have made a commitment to follow Christ on his way, by denying our own desires for ourselves but to submitting ourselves to God’s will on us, so that we carry our respective crosses all the way until our death.

Carrying a cross means to bear a prospect of martyrdom as a result of our apostolic works, bearing abundant fruit of grace we receive, as demonstrating our steadfast faith in Christ. Therefore, being a faithful Christian does not mean that your own personal wishes for yourselves and your loved ones would be fulfilled, just because we accept Christ as our personal savior through baptism. Rather, to live as Christians, we offer our lives as living sacrifices acceptable to God, not conforming to the world (Romans 12:1-2). So this is what we have accepted out of our free will in receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation.

Though we have made our vow to serve Christ through our selfless apostolic works, as willed by him and empowered by the Holy Spirit, Satan in the world constantly attacks us to thwart our commitment to faith. His goal is to turn us into apostasy and make us betray God, as well as, our Confirmation vow. Thus, Satan certainly will make it difficult for us to keep our faith in facing persecution, hoping that many would denounce faith and give into his wicked way of life. And Jesus has warned the danger of our apostolic work and told how we can conduct ourselves in facing persecution (Matthew 10:16-31). Remember, Jesus, who sends us on our apostolic mission (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-18; John 20:21) has never promised that he would pull us out of persecutor’s execution. Therefore, when we are sent into the world, we must understand that our apostolic journey many not necessarily have a way of return, because it may lead to martyrdom. Weather we may be executed by a persecutor or not, one thing for sure about our journey of carrying a cross will leads to greater glory of God.

In fact, martyrdom is faithfulness per excellence. There is no better way than this to show how faithful we are to Christ. Many early Christians thought that being chosen to end their earthly lives in martyrdom was a special honor. They were not afraid of being tortured to death by the hands of persecutors. They felt so special to die like Jesus, Stephen, James, Peter, Paul, and many more countless martyred Saints.

On September 28, the Roman Catholic Church honors the heroic lives of the sixteen Saints martyred in Japan from 1633 to 1637.  Out of these sixteen martyred heroes of the Catholic faith, nine of them are Japanese, including two women, four are Spanish, one is Filipino, one is Italian, and one is French. In the United States and the Philippines, this memorial feast is called “Memorial of St. Lawrence Ruiz (San Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila) and companions, martyrs”, while in Japan, as “Memorial of St. Thomas Nishi and 15 companion martyrs”.  These martyred Saints followed the path of the twenty-six martyred in Nagasaki, 1597, the first group of martyrs in Japan.

The sixteen martyred Saints, beatified in 1981 and canonized in 1987 by Pope St. John Paul II, honored on September 28 are:

Group I: Those martyred in 1633

St. Domingo (Dominic) Ibanez de Erquicia: Spanish Dominican priest, after teaching at Universidad de Santo Thomas in Manila, and  preaching in various parts of the Philippines, he entered Japan stealthily in 1623 and served as Vicar Provincial to the missions incognito. However, he was arrested and tortured, being demanded to apostatize. But he refused to denounce his faith, and was subsequently put to death.

St. Francisco (Francis ) Shoyemon: Japanese cooperator to the Dominicans, served as a companion of St. Domingo Ibanez de Erquicia, executed together with his spiritual father, St. Domingo Ibanez de Erquicia, upon receiving Dominican habit in prison.

St. Jacob (James) Kyushei Tomonaga of St. Mary: Japanese Dominican priest, hailed from a noble family and studied at the Jesuit college in Nagasaki, before being expelled from Japan in 1614, because of the “crime” of being a catechist. He reached in Manila but returned to Japan in 1632 because of his desire to help his fellow Christians in Japan, though knowing that he would be killed. He was arrested, tortured, and killed for the “crime” of propagating Christian faith.

St. Michael Korobioye: Japanese lay catechist, a companion to St. Jacob of St. Mary.  When he was tortured, he revealed the hiding place of St. Jacob of St. Mary. He repented that he gave in to the persecutor’s pressure and joined St. Jacob’s martyrdom upon confessing his faith.

St. Luke (Lucas) Alonso of the Holy Spirit: Spanish Dominical priest. Upon teaching at Universidad de Santo Thomas and preaching in Cagayan, he entered Japan in 1623. He faced and endured so many predicaments while working for the Lord there. He was arrested in Osaka and sent to Nagasaki for execution, upon being tortured.

St. Mateo (Matthew) Kohioye of the Rosary: Japanese Dominican brother, serving as a catechist, while assisting St. Lucas Alonso of the Holy Spirit, and became a Dominican novice. He was arrested in Osaka and endured horrendous torture, maintaining his steadfast faith in Christ to death. He was 18.

Group II: Those martyred in 1634:

St. Magdalene of Nagasaki: Japanese Augustinian tertiary, whose parents were also martyred. She served as a catechist and cared for the poor and the sick. When her spiritual director, St. Hyacinth Jordan Ansalone, was arrested, she presented herself to the authority, declaring her Christian identity. Subsequently, she was arrested and tortured cruelly. Then, she was hung on the gibbet and died after 13 days. Her faith never flinched throughout the torture and the thirteen-day of hanging.

St. Marina of Ohmura: Japanese Dominical tertiary (Third Order), consecrated herself to Christ. She served those who were poor and displaced selflessly and tirelessly. Upon her arrest, she was stripped naked for shameful humiliation, shown as a public display, throughout the village. But she marched rather modestly as an untainted virgin. Then, she was transferred to Nagasaki and burned alive with slow fire.

St. Hyacinth Jordan Ansalone: Italian Dominican priest. After his missionary work in the Philippines, mainly serving the poor and the sick, he came to Japan under the disguise of being a merchant, in 1632 to offer himself for persecuted Christians in Japan. Upon his arrest, he was tortured, forced to see his companions being beheaded in front of him, then hung upside-down on the for 7 days in order to eventually have his head fall into a manure-filled bucket.

St. Thomas Hioji Rokuzayemon Nishi: Japanese Dominican priest, whose parents were martyred. He studied at the Jesuit college in Nagasaki. Then he was expelled from Japan, arrived in Manila in 1620. There, he joined the Dominican, further studied at Universidad de Santo Thomas. Then he was ordained as priest in 1624. Upon serving as a missionary to Taiwan, he returned to Japan with passion to help struggling Christians, especially bringing those who apostatized back to faith. While caring for St. Hyacinth Ansalone, who fell ill, he was arrested and tortured. Though he was forced to denounce his faith, he resolvedly refused. Then, he was hung upside-down to death.

Group III: Those martyred in 1637. They came to Japan from Manila together to help persecuted Christians there in 1636. As soon as they arrived in Okinawa, they were arrested and imprisoned for a year.  Then, they were transferred to Nagasaki for more tortures and execution.

St. Antonio (Anthony) Gonzales: Spanish Dominical priest. He taught at Universidad de Santo Thomas in Manila and served as its lector. He led the 1636 Dominican missionary expedition to Japan from Manila. After a year from his arrest, he died in prison, upon enduring series of tortures, while keeping his faith steadfast.

St. Guillaume (William) Courted: French Dominican priest. He taught at Universidad de Santo Thomas in Manila. Various tortures were inflicted on him, including, water torture, inserting needles under fingernails, and hole hanging, he never denounced his faith but kept praising the Blessed Virgin and chanting Psalms to endure the horrendous tortures. Then, he was beheaded.

St. Miguel (Michael) de Aozaraza: Spanish Dominican priest. Prior to Joining St. Antonio Gonzales on the mission to Japan, he served as missionary in Bataan. He endured tortures and sent to Nagasaki for execution. There, the authority put an apostatized ex-priest to persuade him to denounce his faith. But he fended such a devil’s offer and put the betrayer in shame, saying, “You apostatized yourself. Your Latin is fluent but its content is not good”. Then, he was further tortured and died while swords were cutting his body.

St. Vincente (Vincent) Shiozuka: Japanese Dominican priest. He studied at Jesuit college in Nagasaki until his expulsion from Japan. Upon his arrival in Manila, he further studied at Universidad de Santo Thomas and ordained as priest there and ministered to Japanese exiles in Manila. During his imprisonment, being constantly tortured, he once apostatized but repented and soon returned to faith. He was hung on the gibbet.

St. Lazaro (Lazarus) of Kyoto: Japanese lay Christian. He suffered from leprosy and was excelled from Japan with other lepers to the Philippines. Though not much is known as to what he did in Manila, he joined St. Antonio Gonzales, as an assistant, on his mission to Japan. However, upon arrest in Okinawa, he could not endure tortured much and apostatized after a few hours. But he repented and died in faith with other companions from Manila.

St. Lorenzo (Lawrence) Ruiz: Filipino lay Christian. He was educated by Dominican friars and joined the Rosary Confraternity. He also served the Dominicans as escribano for his excellent penmanship. He was married and had three children. When he was falsely accused of murdering a Spaniard, he joined St. Antonio Gonzales’ missionary expedition to Japan, in order to escape from injustice. Unlike other Dominican companions, who were ready to die as martyrs, he was probably not determined to face severe persecution in Japan. Nevertheless, he remained faithful to Christ, enduring series of gruesome tortures. One persecuting official took pity on him, realizing he was a layman married and had children, and offered a chance to save him from execution if he would denounce his faith. But he flatly rejected such an tempting offer. According to the report in Latin sent to Manila by a witnessing missionary, San Lorenzo said, “Ego Catholicus sum et animo prompto paratoque pro Deo mortem obibo. Si mille vitas haberem, cunctas ei offerrem (I am a Catholic and wholeheartedly do accept death for God; Had I a thousand lives, all these to Him shall I offer). Then, he was hung upside-down and died after 2 days. He became the first Filipino Saint.

At that time, martyrs made up less than 1 % of the faithful in Japan. Many went hiding in remote islands or caves in mountains or disguised themselves as Buddhist, called “Kakure Kirishitan”, or apostatized. The Shogunate officials inspect every household and family to weed out Christians. They often asked to step on or spit on an icon of Christ. Anyone who refused to do was deemed as Christian and arrested and tortured. Unless they denounce their faith and apostatize, they were executed in public. Not to mention, those who were caught in teaching and exercising their Christian faith, were arrested, tortured, and executed, unless they “covert” not to be Christian anymore.

In such a social context, the above listed sixteen heroes of Christian faith, stood strong in faith to heroic martyrdom, though two of them had their faith shaken at once during the torture.

The Dominican martyrs from the Philippines, including St. Antonio Gonzales and St. Thomas Nishi, knew that going to Japan meant death. Nevertheless, it was their ardent desire to help the persecuted Church in Japan for the sake of Christ, knowing that they would shed their blood. But they knew that their blood, added to the blood of those who had shed their blood, as the Twenty-Six Martyrs of Nagasaki in 1597, such as St. Peter (Pedro) Bautista, Spanish Franciscan from the Philippines, and St. Pablo (Paul) Miki, Japanese Jesuit before ordination.

Certainly, in honoring these sixteen martyred Saints in Japan, as well as other martyred Saints, this well-known line of Tertullian’s writing in “Apologeticus” is fitting: Plures efficimur, quotiens metimur a vobis: semen est sanguis Christianorum , which is often translated as “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church", while its literal meaning is, “We spring up in greater numbers the more we are mown down by you: the blood of the Christians is the seed of a new life”.

And these heroic Saints really lived up to these words of Jesus:

Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? Or what can one give in exchange for his life? (Matthew 16:24-26).

In the jurisdiction of the USCCB (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops), these Scripture Readings are assigned in honoring these sixteen martyred Saints in Japan: 2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14 (First Reading); Responsorial Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; John 15:18-21(Gospel Reading).

The First Reading juxtaposes the heroic martyrdoms of the seven sons, who was tortured to death while their mother was forced to watch. No mater how agonizing the torture became, they all refused to violate the Torah by eating pork, being Jews of steadfast faith in God and integrity to the Torah.

In fact, their mother encouraged her seven sons to die nobly, saying, “The Lord God is looking on and truly has compassion on us, as Moses declared in his song, when he openly bore witness, saying, ‘And God will have compassion on his servants”(2 Maccabees 7:6).   Then, following the heroic martyrdom of the first son, the second son said these words before his death, “You accursed fiend, you are depriving us of this present life, but the King of the universe will raise us up to live again forever, because we are dying for his laws”(2 Maccabees 7:9). Then, the third one said, bravely stretching his arms, “It was from Heaven that I received these; for the sake of His laws I disregard them; from him I hope to receive them again”(2 Maccabees 7:11). The fourth brother said before his heroic death, “It is my choice to die at the hands of mortals with the hope that God will restore me to life; but for you, there will be no resurrection to life (2 Maccabees 7:14). The fifth brother said, looking at the evil pagan king, “Mortal though you are, you have power over human beings, so you do what you please. But do not think that our nation is forsaken by God. Only wait, and you will see how his great power will torment you and your descendants”(2 Maccabees 7:16-17). Then, the sixth brother said, “Have no vain illusions. We suffer these things on our own account, because we have sinned against our God; that is why such shocking things have happened. Do not think, then, that you will go unpunished for having dared to fight against God”(2 Maccabees 7:18-19). Finally the seventh brother said:

What is the delay? I will not obey the king’s command. I obey the command of the law given to our ancestors through Moses. But you, who have contrived every kind of evil for the Hebrews, will not escape the hands of God. We, indeed, are suffering because of our sins.  Though for a little while our living Lord has been angry, correcting and chastising us, he will again be reconciled with his servants. But you, wretch, most vile of mortals, do not, in your insolence, buoy yourself up with unfounded hopes, as you raise your hand against the children of heaven. You have not yet escaped the judgment of the almighty and all-seeing God. Our brothers, after enduring brief pain, have drunk of never-failing life, under God’s covenant. But you, by the judgment of God, shall receive just punishments for your arrogance. Like my brothers, I offer up my body and my life for our ancestral laws, imploring God to show mercy soon to our nation, and by afflictions and blows to make you confess that he alone is God. Through me and my brothers, may there be an end to the wrath of the Almighty that has justly fallen on our whole nation (2 Maccabees 7:30-38).

These words of the martyred seven brothers echo what these sixteen martyred Saints in Japan said to their torturers, showing their steadfast faith in God. Amidst of horrendous pain, their kept their faith unshaken because they remain confident in God’s care, as reflected in the responsorial Psalm refrain:

The Lord delivered me from all my fears (Psalm 34:5).

Therefore, they remained fearless during tortures and execution.

Through the Gospel Reading (John 15:18-21), Jesus reminds us that those who would persecute Christ today will certainly persecute us for we are his disciples. Though he has come and spoken, those who are against him and will persecute his disciples still do not know the truth that he was sent by God the Father. Though their ignorance now has no excuse, Jesus certainly calls us to face them not only with our courage but to enlighten them with his truth until our death, so that he will be glorified.

We cannot let our fear of being killed keep us from speaking our faith and Christ’s Good News and our work of faith. We never stop our apostolic works until our death, weather it will be martyrdom or else.

St. Vincent de Paul: Rich Fruit of Grace through Pastoral Ministry for the Poor

September 27 is the memorial feast of St. Vincent de Paul (1581-1660). The two pillar of his ministry are: charity works of mercy for those in need and fight against the heresy of Jansenism.

As he lived through the turbulent time of the protestant reformation, St. Vincent de Paul faced the counter-reformation movement in the Catholic Church. However, there was an extreme anti-Luther, anti-Calvin movement, known as Jansenism, dividing the Church. This heresy, based on a problematic interpretation of St. Augustine’s theology of sin and grace, argued that Christ died only for the special elect as ordinary humans are not capable of observing the commandments for salvation.

God’s grace, an antidote to our sins, is not for certain “elites” but sent to all. But it is not just simply receiving grace to be saved as we need to make fruits of the grace i.e. (John 15:8; Colossians 1:6) we received through our works, observing the commandments.

And the work, rooted in our faith, is essential (James 2:14-26), to act out of the grace. So, St. Vincent de Paul worked hard through his pastoral ministry.

The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest (Matthew 9:38).

As a priest, St. Vincent de Paul took these words of Jesus in his pastoral ministry. Because of his compassion, he saw great needs to care for the poor, the sick, the marginalized, and other vulnerable people, in the society, and reached out to them,  just as Jesus was moved with compassion in lending his care to those in need (e.g. Mark 1:41; Matthew 14:14; 15:32; 20:34; Luke 7:13). His ministry for the poor and the afflicted was to also modeled after the ministry of Jesus, who said, reflecting the words of Isaiah (61:1-2; 58:6), “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord”(Luke 4:18-19).

Ever since to time of Moses, God has commanded us to care for those in need:

If one of your kindred is in need in any community in the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor close your hand against your kin who is in need. Instead, you shall freely open your hand and generously lend what suffices to meet that need. When you give, give generously and not with a stingy heart; for that, the Lord, your God, will bless you in all your works and undertakings. The land will never lack for needy persons; that is why I command you: “Open your hand freely to your poor and to your needy kin in your land”. (Deuteronomy 15:7-11).

And Jesus has reminded us of this in Bethany:

The poor you will always have with you (Matthew 26:11a).

St. Vincet de Paul also knew that he needs financial resources to run his ministry for the poor and the vulnerable. In fact, he also ministered to the wealthy and the aristocrats, garnering their supports for his ministry for those who were less fortunate. He was, in fact, a bridge between the poor and the rich. What he secured was not just fundings but also human resources to join in his ministry, realizing these words of Jesus in sending his disciples on mission:

The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest (Matthew 9:38).

As he led more and more people, priests and lay people, reaching out to the poor and the vulnerable, St. Vincent de Paul founded the Congregation of the Mission in 1625, and co-founded the Company of the Daughters of Charity with St. Louise de Marillac in 1633.

Today, these Vincentians continue to St. Vincent de Paul’s outreach ministry, the works of mercy, throughout the world, to the poor and the vulnerable, in Jesus’ name, linking the poor to the wealthy.

Though “preferential option for the poor and the vulnerable” is an integral part of the Catholic moral theology, it is not an option but rather imperative (Deuteronomy 15:7-11) for all Christian to care for the poor and the vulnerable, as the Good Samaritan, being a loving neighbor to a stranger in need (Luke 10:25-37). And this is a way we love God by loving our neighbors in need, whether we know them personally or not, as Jesus said, putting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18 together:

You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments (Matthew 22:37-40).

After all, our Lord, Jesus Christ, came to this world as a poor baby, being born in a manger, placed in a manger, not in a comfortable room in the royal palace, though he is the King (Luke 2:7; cf. Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1-6). And he remained with the poor and died as a poor man. In fact, our salvation hinged upon how we care for the poor and the vulnerable (Matthew 25:31-46; cf. Luke 19:31).

Let us follow an example of St. Vincent de Paul and the Vincentians to bear abundant fruit of the grace we have received through our works of faith for the poor and the vulnerable.

 

Catholic Reflection of the Jewish עֲשֶׂרֶת יְמֵי תְּשׁוּבָה (Aseret Yemei Teshuvah) from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur

The seventh Jewish month, Tishrei (תִּשְׁרֵי), has a very significant meaning as the High Holidays, from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur are in this month.

From the first day of this month to its tenth day are the high holidays in Judaism, known as עֲשֶׂרֶת יְמֵי תְּשׁוּבָה (Aseret Yemei Teshuvah), translated as “the ten days of penitence”. The first two days are celebrated as Rosh Hashanah and the last day is solemnly observed as Yom Kippur (Leviticus 23:23-32; Numbers 29:1-11). Rosh Hashanah (רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה) means “new year”. But it is described as the feast of trumpet in the Bible, while Yom Kippur (יוֹם כִּפּוּר) is described as “day of atonement”, as it is meant.

The Jewish tradition holds that God opens the Book of Life (ספר החיים/ Sefer Ḥayyim or HaChaim) during the two-day period of Rosh Hashanah, to inscribe the names of those who are righteous in His eyes. Those whose names are not written in this book will be doomed, and God closes and seals the book on Yom Kippur. For those whose names are not put in the Book of Life on Rosh Hashanah are given a “grace period” until Yom Kippur to practice teshuvah (repentance and return to God) through spiritual purification, in the hope to be included in the Book of Life before it is closed by God on Yom Kippur.

Rosh Hashanah is the first two days of the Jewish new year, from the sundown of the first day of the month of Tishrei (the seventh mouth from the month of Nisan) until the sunset of the second day of Tishrei. These todays of Rosh Hashanah are also the first two days of Aseret Yemei Teshuvah, the ten days of the repentance (תשובה/teshvah), to return to God, casting away sins,  as the Hebrew word, “תשובה”(teshuvah), literally means “return”.  And this Hebrew word contains “שֻׁ֥בוּ”(shub), which means “turn”(to God)(Joel 2:12).

During these ten holy days, Jews practice Tashlich ( תשליך) ritual, standing by a large body of water, symbolically casting away their sins to the water, as to cast all sins into the depth of the sea, citing Tashlich Prayer, as “tashlich” means “cast off”:

The prophet Micah proclaimed (Micah 7:18–20):

"Who is a God like You, forgiving mistakes and erasing our wrong-doing ... You have not maintained anger forever ... You will take us back in love .... You will hurl all our sins into the depths of the sea."

The author of the Psalms comforts us (Psalm 118, 130):

"In stress I called on Adonai; and Adonai answered me and brought me relief. Adonai is on my side, I have no fear; what can others do to me ? ... It is better to seek shelter in Adonai than to trust in the great."

We remember Abraham and Isaac, walking together toward Moriah and toward their destiny, when Satan the Adversary became before them a great and raging river blocking their path. Girding themselves with faith, the two leapt into the rapids, praying to God for courage and rescue. God heard their call, dried the river, and their journey continued.

We remember our exiled people, sitting beside the rivers of Babylon, weeping to a God who had forsaken them, longing for a life and a land for which they had become unworthy. Through the power and the force of teshuvah--the entire community pleading for forgiveness and vowing to change--God turned exile into return, desperation into hope.

We imagine the life that teems beneath the water's surface :fish who swim and eat, breath and bear young in the cool depths. But we also remember the captured fish--struggling in a net, their fate unknown. We, too, are struggling today, in a net of our own making. Give us the strength to break free--to cast aside the weaknesses and limitations which bind us and prevent us from becoming our best selves.

They also cite Taḥanun (תחנון) Prayer (“Tahanun” means “supplication”).

My God! My soul is Yours. My body is Your servant, take pity on what You have created; my soul is Yours and my body is Yours, God help us for Your sake.

We come to You because we want to honor Your reputation.

Help us in our moral struggle for the sake of Your reputation; because You are kind and compassionate.

Forgive us, for there is so much we need to be forgiven for.

Pardon us our Father, our errors are so great; forgive us our Royal Master many are our mistakes Our God and our parents’ God, pardon our sins, erase our rebellions.

Let our failures not appear before You.

Mold our drives to serve Your purposes; let our stubbornness be in Your service.

Refresh our conscience to guard Your instructions.

Sensitize our hearts to love You and to respect Your reputation as Your Torah prescribes:

“and YaH Your God will sensitize, Your heart and the hearts of Your children so that your love for your God will be wholehearted, inspired, to make Your life meaningful”.

Dear God. I approach You from the desire to serve You and yet there is no Tzaddik who can do only good and not fail in it.

Please help me with my moral Life so that in every way my attitude will be balanced and right.

To begin with, help me to forgive anyone who has frustrated and upset me, irregardless if they have sinned against me, my body, my possessions, my reputation, anything of mine, unintentionally, intentionally whether they schemed, or were unaware, whether it was in word or action whether is was a thought or the imagination. Whether it was in this incarnation or in any other.

I completely forgive any God-wrestler; let no one be punished on my account.

My God and my parents’ God may our prayer come before You. Do not turn Your attention from our pleading. We don’t want to be impudent. We don’t want to be stubborn and claim that we are righteous and have not sinned.

Indeed our parents have sinned and we have sinned.

Help us. With God’s help, not to fail You again and what I hereby confess to You

(insert the particular sin)

I beg You, that in Your great mercy You erase my sins but not by means of suffering and illness.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable for You, Yah, my rock and my Redeemer.

I place my faith in You.

I place my trust in You.

I place my hope in You.

(Translated by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and other unknown authors)

Though the Jewish New Year begins with a joyful tone, wishing for a sweet year with God’s abundant blessings, dipping apple in honey, and with greetings, “Shana tovah u'metukah”( שָׁנָה טוֹבָה וּמְתוּקָה‎/have a good and sweet year), Rosh Hashanah is also to start intense spiritual renewal in anticipation of Yom Kippur through repentance and conversion to be in good standing with God.  In fact, Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of penitential preparation for Yom Kippur, with contrition and humility, realizing the unfathomable depth of God’s חֶסֶד/chesed (covenant loving kindness) and רַחַם/racham (mercy, compassin).

On Yom Kippur, fasting is required and the scripture readings are: Leviticus 16:1-34; Numbers 29:7-11, with Haftarah/ הפטרה (concluding): Isaiah 57:14-58:14. And for Yom Kippur Mincha/ מִנחַה (afternoon prayer), the scripture readings are: Leviticus 18:1-30, with Haftarah: Jonah 1:1-4:11; Micah 7:18-20.

Perhaps, the Catholic tradition that can be comparable to the Jewish high holidays (Aseret Yemei Teshuvah), from Rosh Hashanah (1^st day of the month of Tishrei) to Yom Kippur (10^th day of the month of Tishrei), is Lent (Quadragesima), 40 days of penance, spanning from Ash Wednesday until the sunset of Maundy Thursday, followed by Paschal Triduum. The Jewish high holidays are a period of spiritual renewal through repentance for atonement. The Catholic Lenten period is also about renewal of faith through penance, conversion, and reconciliation, punctuated with prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

The First Reading of Ash Wednesday (Joel 2:12-18) certainly evokes the spirit of Rosh Hashanah to begin the preparation for Yom Kippur:

Yet even now—oracle of the Lord— return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.

Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God.

For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting in punishment.

Perhaps he will again relent and leave behind a blessing.

Grain offering and libation for the Lord, your God.

Blow the horn in Zion! Proclaim a fast, call an assembly!

Gather the people, sanctify the congregation; Assemble the elderly; gather the children, even infants nursing at the breast.

Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her bridal tent.

Between the porch and the altar, let the priests weep, let the ministers of the Lord weep and say: “Spare your people, Lord! Do not let your heritage become a disgrace, a byword among the nations!

Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”

The Lord Relents.

Then the Lord was stirred to concern for His land and took pity on his people.

And Rosh Hashanah trumpet to call Jews’ attention (Leviticus 23:24) is echoed not only by Joel 2:15 (blow the horn to Zion) but also this call for repentance that John the Baptist announced, in preparation for the coming of Christ:

Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand! (Matthew 3:2)

Followed by these words:

Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.

And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire (Matthew 3:8-12).

John the Baptist’s call for repentance and to produce good fruit of penance is actually not only to prepare for the public appearance of Christ but for the judgement by him, with the Book of Life (Revelation 20:11-15).

In juxtaposition to the Catholic tradition of Lent, Yom Kippur can be compared to Good Friday, because the sacrifice of the incarnated Christ, Jesus, on the Cross, as not only the Paschal Lamb to deliver us from the bonds of sin but also as the sacrifice for our atonement.

On Yom Kippur, only the high priest could enter the holy of holies to offer sacrifices for atonement (Leviticus 16:1-19). But the incarnated Christ is the greatest high priest who offered himself as the Yom Kippur atonement sacrifice once for all for the new covenant, perfecting the Yom Kippur under the old covenant. So it is written:

But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that have come to be, passing through the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made by hands, that is, not belonging to this creation, he entered once for all into the sanctuary, not with the blood of goats and calves but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.

For if the blood of goats and bulls and the sprinkling of a heifer’s ashes can sanctify those who are defiled so that their flesh is cleansed, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works to worship the living God.

For this reason he is mediator of a new covenant: since a death has taken place for deliverance from transgressions under the first covenant, those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.

Now where there is a will, the death of the testator must be established. For a will takes effect only at death; it has no force while the testator is alive. Thus not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood.

When every commandment had been proclaimed by Moses to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and goats, together with water and crimson wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, “This is ‘the blood of the covenant which God has enjoined upon you.’”

In the same way, he sprinkled also the tabernacle and all the vessels of worship with blood.

According to the law almost everything is purified by blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Therefore, it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified by these rites, but the heavenly things themselves by better sacrifices than these.

For Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands, a copy of the true one, but heaven itself, that he might now appear before God on our behalf.

Not that he might offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters each year into the sanctuary with blood that is not his own; if that were so, he would have had to suffer repeatedly from the foundation of the world. But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages to take away sin by his sacrifice.

Just as it is appointed that human beings die once, and after this the judgment, so also Christ, offered once to take away the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to take away sin but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him (Hebrews 9:11-28; cf. Leviticus 16:1-34).

It is the Christ, who has consummated Yom Kippur for the New Covenant. And by his precious blood, we can atone with God, upon repenting, casting off our sins, converting our hearts for purity, and returning to God. Let us thank and praise God for giving us the Great High Priest, by whose love and mercy we can return to God and approach the throne of Christ in his Kingdom, through repentance, conversion, and atonement.

Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin.

So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Danger of "Equality Trap", a Source of Jealousy against the Principle of "The First Shall be the Last, the Last Shall be the First" - Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

“Equality” is a tricky concept. Therefore, the word, “equality”, is a favorite buzz word is devil’s favorite to trap us to distance ourselves from God.

The modernism of the secular world has been promulgating “equality” even though we are not inherently equal but unique. As a result many are fighting against one another for “equality” and “fairness” based on “equality”, dividing themselves between those who are for “equality” and those who are not. And this has been spilled over into the Church, and thus making it divided. So this is one way how devil, which literally means “a divider”, has been destroying the Church, making us falsely believe as if God were an enemy to “equality”. The Greek root word for “devil”, διαβάλλω(diabalio), means “to divide by letting accuse and slander each other”.

Now, as you read the Gospel Reading of the Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A, Matthew 20:1-16a, and if this makes you upset, then, you diagnose yourself how much your mind has been infected by devil’s campaign for a division under the banner of “equality”. And you may be at risk of apostasy or slipping into false faith, because Jesus spoke a parable that goes against the principle of “fairness” according to “equality”.

Jesus spoke this parable (Matthew 20:1-16) in response to Peter’s question, “We have given up everything and followed you. What will there be for us? (Matthew 19: 27), elaborating his answer:

Everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first (Matthew 19:29-30).

And Jesus begins the parable with these words:

The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard (Matthew 20:1).

This suggests that what he speaks through the parable teaches how the principle of the Kingdom of Heaven works, in contrast to the norm of the worldly society. And the vineyard is a symbolic metaphor of the Kingdom.

A prototypical vineyard metaphor is found in Isaiah 5:1-7, where the vineyard is symbolic to the house of Israel. In general, this means that the vineyard represents the community of God’s people. Thus, we can understand the Kingdom of Heaven as the outgrowth and reflection of the community of God’s people, whether they are Israelites or Gentiles.

The landowner, who owns and manages the vineyard, goes out and recruited the first batch of workers at dawn, and the workers agreed with the landowner to be paid for a day’s wage (Matthew 20:1-2). Likewise, in later hours, the landowner recruited those who were standing idly in the market to let them work in his vineyard, with the agreement to pay for the day’s wage (Matthew 20:3-7).

Then, in the evening, the landowner asked his foreman to summon all the workers in his vineyard to give them the promised payment, beginning with the last and ending with the first (Matthew 20:8). Seeing the workers who came in later hours receiving the same amount of payment, those who started working first in the morning grumbled against the landowner (Matthew 20:9-11), saying, “These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat”(Matthew 20:12).

So, how did the landowner responded to this complaint? Did he adjust the payments based on how long they worked?

No. Instead, the landowner said to the grumpy workers:

My friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous? (Matthew 20:13-15).

And Jesus concludes this parable with these words, reiterating what he said in Matthew 19:30:

Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last (Matthew 20:16).

The bottom-line of this parable of Jesus (Matthew 20:1-16) is the principle that the last be first, and the first will be last. Therefore, in order to understand what Jesus means by the parable, we need to understand what Jesus intends to say with this principle of the first- the last, the last-the first.

Jesus speaks the principle of “the last-the first, the first-the last” against our ego-driven tendency to assume a greater reward for our harder and longer works. Perhaps, this is how it works on earth. But, Jesus makes it clear that it does not work in such a way in the Kingdom. And it is not the way to enter the Kingdom.

The work according to faith is absolutely necessary to enter the Kingdom (i.e. James 2:14-26). However, the parable warns us not to equate the quantity of our work, even it is rooted in faith, with the amount of rewards from God.

First of all, the landowner did not cheat. He stood with his promise to all the workers: paying them the daily wage. And every worker received it, beginning with the last one to work.

Think this way.

Do you think you deserve to have a greater reward from God because your donation is greater in its mount compared to these from other parishioners? Because you give a larger amount of money to the parish for you work harder and longer than others to earn more money? If you think so, then, your mind may be tainted with the heresy of “prosperity gospel”.  And this suggests that your faith is misguided because it is directed to yourself, not to God.

Psychologically, the early hour workers complained to the landowner for receiving the “equal” pay to the workers of later hours, because of envy.

Remember, these later hour recruits did not have a work to do. Unless the landowner reached out to hire them, they would have wasted a whole day. The landowner showed his compassion for them to let them work in his vineyard and reward them greatly. But, the “fairness” principle of their minds’ “equality”, saw this as “unjust” or “unfair”, as they complained, prompted by covetousness hidden in their minds.

So why did these early hour workers need to complain against the landowner’s greater compassion toward those whose needs were greater? It is jealously, feeling that the landowner’s greater compassion “violated” their “fairness”-based dignity.

Did the landowner really treated the early hour workers with disrespect?

The landowner paid all worker the exactly the same amount for a day’s labor, regardless of when they started working and how many hours they worked for the day. It was because that was how he promised to each worker at the time of hiring. And they agreed with this condition. So, the landowner was true to his words.

It is the generous God, whom Jesus symbolically represents with the landowner, who hired and provided works to those who would otherwise have wasted their lives. As God is compassionate, right and just (i.e. Psalm 89:15;  Zechariah 7:10; Acts 10:34; Hebrews 6:10), so is the landowner to all his workers in his vineyard.

The First Reading (Isaiah 55:6-9) humbly reminds us that our human thoughts are not as high as God’s. And this also calls us to seek God in order to narrow the gap between God’s mindset and ours so that our thoughts can be more like God’s. This way, we can better understand Jesus’ intention and mindset for giving the parable of the vineyard worker to reiterate the important salvific principle: the last will be first, and the first will be last.

As reflected in the Second Reading (Philippians 1:20c-24, 27a), we shall long to depart a life driven by human mindset in order to attain Christ’s, even while we remain on earth. This way, we can serve God through our works of love and compassion to one another, without falling to the “equality trap”, which triggers our envy, festering into jealousy.

Let us ask: Whose prerogative is it: God or your ego-driven desire for yourself? Who is to determine your heavenly reward: God or you?

Our human mind is vulnerable to devil’s influence, and “equality trap” is one. By tapping into our egos, he sure makes us think that we should be treated “equally” even by God, according to our own merits. Let us not allow “equality trap” infect our mind so that our thoughts may not be driven by our ego but let God’s prerogative be reflected.

In regard to how God loves us, His eminence, Francis Cardinal George of Chicago, wrote with a provocative title, “Why doesn’t God love everyone equally?”:

A saint lives in loving intimacy with God, who creates that love in the saint by first loving him or her. Since there are great saints and little saints, God doesn’t love everyone equally. It doesn’t matter that we don’t know why God loves some people more than others, but recognizing this difference reinforces our conviction that everyone is unique and challenges any assertion that everyone is equal, except before the abstract principles of the law. Life, however, is not a dialogue with legal principles. In life, differences abound in our relations to God and to other people.

….

Even if God loves each of us differently and unequally, he still loves us all. Thinking of sanctity, we have to ask also about our love for God. Do we all love God equally? Obviously not; but why not? I suppose there are as many answers as there are human creatures, but two reasons not to love God or at least not to love him as he wants to be loved come to mind.

First of all, perhaps our intimacy with God is stymied by fear, especially by fear of punishment. We tend to avoid those we fear; we ignore those who might ask us embarrassing questions, even God. This has been the pattern of human interaction with God ever since Adam and Eve hid from him after their disobedience in the garden. Perhaps, secondly, we resist intimacy with God because we resent losing our autonomy, our imagined self-sufficiency. To love another means he or she has entry into one’s life. To love God means he directs our life in ways we sometimes don’t care to go. Better to keep our distance, loving enough to be safe but not given to considering what God wants in our every thought and action. What makes great saints, however, is the desire to please God in every detail of their lives. The Catholic New World, February 27, 2011

Likewise, in the parable, Jesus presents how God in the landowner, loved and cared all of the workers in his vineyard. And the way he loved them was not as “equal” as the jealous first-hour workers’ mindset regarded as “fair”. And that became displeasing to him, as his generous love and care became displeasing to them. And this is how “equality trap” can set divisions and distance us from God.