1 Cor 16: 13-24
Matt 21:33-42
Throughout history, God has always wanted not just deacons, priests, and bishops to minister to the world, but all of his people. Peter calls us a Royal Priesthood, and Revelation refers to us as a kingdom of priests.
We are priests, in the sense that we minister to the mass of humanity, just as the priest at the altar ministers to the Body of Christ.
So, how does that apply to the Gospel and Epistle today?
Let’s look at the Gospel first.
The landowner is God, and the vineyard is humanity.
The servants were the prophets
The tenants were the Jews. Not all Jews, of course, but the Jewish authorities. That would be the Scribes and Pharisees, and the Sadducees. Remember, our Lord was a Jew, as were all of his disciples. And there were also other groups in the Jewish diaspora; THEY were not the tenants in this parable.
And, of course, the son who was killed was Jesus.
The Epistle shows that it is us who now tend the vineyard, The Church. It speaks of the family of Stephanus devoting itself to the service of the holy ones - the Christians. And they gave ministerial support to Paul, not only ministerial, emotional support. (We know from other places that Paul actually supported himself financially, working as a tentmaker).
So, how do we tend the vineyard?
In his 2011 Pastoral Letter, The Vibrant Parish, Patriarch Sviatoslav lists a number of areas for action in this area.
The first of them is knowing the Word of God. He says:
I encourage all our faithful to read the Sacred Scriptures on a daily basis; this is done ideally through participation in parish bible-study groups or through prayerful reading at home. The newly published Catechism of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, “Christ our Pascha,” is another essential volume which should become a handbook of faith for all the members of our Church – children, youth, and adults. The Catechism, according to Metropolitan Andrey (Sheptytsky), is the foundation of Christian life.
Knowledge of the Word of God is foundational to our faith. St Jerome tells us, “Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ”. And, in 2 TImothy, Paul writes, “Study to show yourself approved”.
But, knowledge without practice is just that - knowledge. As the Epistle of James tells us, faith without works is dead.
We need to put our faith and knowledge to work.
We have to continue exercising the Corporal Works of Mercy and the Spiritual Works of Mercy. We need to know the 8 passions which lead to sin and their contrasting virtues. We need to learn to live the life-style of the Beatitudes.
Over a decade ago, I was talking with then-Fr., now Bishop, Danylo, and he commented that it was good that the Beatitudes were available as a substitute for the Third Antiphon in the Liturgy; they wouldn’t often be heard otherwise, since they are part of the Gospel reading only once, during a weekday Liturgy.
They are:
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will see God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you falsely because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.
Reviewing, the Corporal Works of Mercy are:
Feed the hungry
Give water to the thirsty
Cloth the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit the imprisoned
Bury the dead
And the Spiritual Acts of Mercy are:
Admonishing the sinner
Teaching the ignorant
Counsel the doubtful
Comfort the sorrowful
Bear wrongs patiently
Forgive all injuries
Pray for the living and the dead.
And the Passion/Virtue pairs are:
Gluttony, contrasted with Temperance
Lust, contrasted with Wholeness of being
Avarice, or greed, contrasted with Generosity
Melancholy, or Sadness, contrasted with Joy in the Holy Spirit
Anger, contrasted with Long-suffering
Acedia, or despondency, contrasted with Cheerfulness in Spirit.
Vainglory, contrasted with Humble-mindedness
Pride, contrasted with Humility
After talking about the importance of knowing the Word of God, his Beatitude goes on to discuss the Sacraments and Prayer. After addressing Sunday Liturgy (which, being here, you already appreciate), he continues:
Members of a vibrant parish also actively participate in the Holy Mysteries (Sacraments). Regularly, if possible even daily, they gather for the services in praise of our Heavenly Father. They frequently go to Confession and receive Holy Communion. In a vibrant parish church organizations combine their activities with common prayer, finding in it their strength and inspiration. No less important is our private prayer – personal and family prayer – which extends and continues our liturgical prayer in the Church. Our parishes, and in them our families, must again become a school of prayer for all of our faithful.
Three things to take away
Study the Word of God
Live the Gospel, through works of Mercy, Virtue, and Beatitudes.
Live a life of Sacraments and Prayer
Slava Isusu Christu.
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