Archive for the ‘Two Sons’ Category

Three Parables About God’s Vineyard

October 8, 2023

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Fr. Victor Feltes

For a third Sunday in a row, we hear Jesus telling a parable featuring a vineyard. First, there was the parable about the generous vineyard owner who hired more and more laborers throughout the day and paid them all the same amount. Then, there was the tale of a father who asked his two sons to go and work in his vineyard. Today, Jesus refashions the Prophet Isaiah’s allegory (which we heard in our first reading) into a story about a vineyard owner’s wicked tenants. In these parables, Jesus tells us what “the Kingdom of Heaven” is like.

His stories prefigure how the Gentiles would join the Jews as the people of God’s Kingdom. For example, like vineyard workers called late-in-the-workday, God calls the Gentiles long after he called the Jews, yet both are offered the same wage of salvation. The wayward, Gentile, pagan peoples were like the son in the parable who at first denies his father but later changes his mind and faithfully serves him. And the religious leaders of the Jews were like those wicked tenants who betrayed the vineyard owner, mistreated his messengers, and ultimately murdered his son. Because of this, those leaders’ roles of leadership were taken away and given to others in Christ’s Church to produce more fruit for God.

Gospel parables are profound, inspired stories which contain more than one true meaning. Jesus’ vineyard parables not only describe what the Kingdom of God is like for groups of peoples but for individual persons as well. For instance, Jesus’ Parable of the Generous Landowner teaches us that it is not too late for a sinner to repent, answer God’s call and serve him now, while it is still day. His Parable of the Two Sons teaches us that doing the right thing is better than merely saying the right thing. Faithful obedience to our Father God means actually following through. And today’s Parable of the Wicked Tenants teaches us that even those who labor or have authority in God’s vineyard must act justly towards God and his servants. Blessed are those who respond to the Lord, profiting of the precious opportunity he has made possible for us.

Jesus’ parables foreshadow peoples entering God’s Kingdom from all lands. Today, we can see this realized in his Church. Look at us, Americans in Wisconsin, with a pastor of German ancestry ministering alongside a priest from India, and all of us worshipping the God of Israel together. Jesus Christ, the stone rejected by the builders, has become the cornerstone of a new Temple made of living stones, people from every land. By the Lord has this been done and it is wonderful in our eyes.

The Prophet Isaiah once proclaimed a song of his friend concerning his vineyard: “A vineyard on a fertile hillside. He spaded it, cleared it of stones, and planted the choicest vines (to make it fruitful); within it he built a watchtower (to protect it), and hewed out a wine press (to delight in its fruits).” Isaiah’s friend was the Lord God, whose vineyard was Old Israel, which contained the cherished plant of his people. Jesus Christ’s Church, his Bride, is the New Israel; not defined by soil or blood but open to all people. God protects her, makes her fruitful, and delights in her. He delights in us and makes us one. This is Jesus Christ’s desire for every person in our world. May the whole world come to know Christ in his Church and know the peace of God.

Posted in Catholic Church, Generous Landlord, Homily, Isaiah, Jesus Christ, Parables, Sunday Homilies, Two Sons | Leave a Comment »

The Obedience of the Third Son

October 3, 2023

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran

A friend of mine was a social worker for twenty long years. All of a sudden, he became a funeral director. I wanted to know why he changed his mind by leaving a good job and becoming a funeral director. He said he spent ten years trying to change John, but he is still an alcoholic. He spent three years trying to solve Charles and Susan’s marriage problems, but they ended up getting a divorce. Later, he tried to turn one of his friends from drugs, but he is still an addict. Now, at the funeral home, when he straightens them out, they stay straight!

We feel happy when someone obeys us, but at the same time, we do not want to obey anybody. Often we forget obedience is a virtue. The parable of Jesus this Sunday is about the two sons and their obedience. The first son said “No,” but later he changed his mind; he did the father’s will. The second son said “Yes,” but later he did nothing. The meaning of this parable is clear; the Jewish leaders were people who said they would obey God but then did not. The tax collectors, sinners, and prostitutes said “No” to God, but after listening to the teaching of Jesus, changed their lives. This is what the prophet Ezekiel pointed out in the first reading, “But if the wicked turn from the wickedness they did and do what is right and just, they shall save their lives, since they turned away from all the sins they committed, they shall live, they shall not die.” (Ezekiel 18:27–28)

After listening to this parable you may have a question; which of them should we follow? I cannot say that one is better than the other, the two sons caused pain and sorrow to their father. The one caused pain at the beginning and the other one at the end. Neither of the two sons brings joy to the father. The answer comes from today’s second reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we follow neither the first son nor the second son. Rather, we follow the third son, the one who said “Yes” and obeyed His heavenly Father even unto death. He is Jesus Christ.

Jesus is our model for obedience to the Father’s will. Jesus obeyed His Father completely, emptying himself, taking the form of a slave, by accepting death on the cross. Because of this obedience of Jesus, God the Father exalted Jesus above every name, at the name of Jesus the knees of heaven and earth will bend, and every tongue will confess Jesus is the Lord. Jesus our Lord and Master achieved victory by humbling himself to His Father.

Today we all must examine ourselves, and evaluate how faithful we are to the promises we made. When we were baptized, the priest asked us in the name of Christ, “Do you renounce Satan? And all his works? And all his empty show? Do you believe in God the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth? Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death, and was buried, rose again from the dead, and is seated at the right hand of the Father? Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, and the resurrection of the body? And life everlasting?” For all these, we said, “I do!”

As a priest, I have to examine myself and see how faithful I am to the Lord, and to the promises I made to Him during my ordination. Those who are married, how faithful are you to your spouse and to the Lord, and to the promises you made to them in the presence of God? Let us listen to the voice of God in every moment of our life, and obey it.

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The Parable of Two Sons, Jesus Christ & Us

September 30, 2023

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes

The father in Jesus’ parable has two sons. He tells the first, “Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.” That son refuses but later changes his mind and goes. The father comes to the other son and gives the same command. That son replies, “Yes, sir,” but does not go. When Jesus asks the chief priests and elders which son did the father’s will, they answer, “The first.” Were those Jewish leaders correct? Yes and no.

Yes, it is true that it is better to do the right thing than to merely say the right thing. Nevertheless, it is a father’s will that all his children would do both, obeying in word and deed. In Jesus’ parable, neither son did the father’s will perfectly. Jesus Christ, on the other hand, is perfectly faithful to our Father. “However many are the promises of God,” the Letter to the Hebrews tells us, “their ‘Yes’ is in him.”

Jesus enters our world saying, “Behold, I come to do your will, O God.” Though he was in the form of God, he emptied himself and humbly took the form of a servant, assuming our human nature to his Divine Person. He was perfectly obedient to the point of death, even a death by crucifixion. Through Jesus’ obedient, faithful, loving response to his Father’s will, God has exulted him highest among us. We too have said yes to God’s will and given him our word, but we have not been obedient to that same degree.

Many here have vowed before God, ‘I, take you, to be my spouse. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.’ I pledged a similar self-gift on my deaconate and priestly ordination days. And any Catholics who are not in either of these sacramental vocations promise and pledge a gift of themselves when receiving Jesus in the Eucharist. At the turn of the fifth century, St. Augustine noted that when you approach to receive the Holy Eucharist at Mass “you hear the words, ‘The body of Christ’ and you reply ‘Amen’. Be then a member of Christ’s body, so that your ‘Amen’ may accord with the truth… Be then what you see, and receive what you are.” Our Heavenly Father has called to do works of love in our various states of life and we have said, “Yes, sir,” but we have not always done it. Yet there is encouragement for us in today’s gospel.

Jesus notes how tax collectors and prostitutes had not done the will of God preceding the preaching St. John the Baptist. They had disobeyed God’s commands but, through believing, changed their ways and were now entering the Kingdom. Through believing in Christ we also can change. We cannot do it alone, but we were never expected to. Consistently invite Jesus Christ to live his perfect obedience, his intense love, his holy life in you. Then, becoming more like him, you will share more greatly in his exulted glory.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Homily, Jesus Christ, Parables, St. Augustine, Sunday Homilies, Two Sons | Leave a Comment »

Which Son of the Father Sinned?

September 27, 2020

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Because I am a sinner, I receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation on a regular basis. About twice a month, typically on my day off, I drive about twenty minutes away to confess my sins and receive absolution from another area pastor. The gracious gift of this sacrament helps me to be a better man than what I would be without it. After my most recent confession, Father and I went for a walk and talked about several topics. Something he said in our conversation made me laugh because there is some truth to it. He said, ‘The homilies that get the most compliments from parishioners are the ones they think that other people need to hear.’ (“That was a great homily, Father! You really told ’em.”) The homilies that we think we don’t need to hear – but that we think other people do – can make us feel good about ourselves without us actually becoming better people.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus asks the chief priests and elders of the people, ‘Which of these two sons did his father’s will? The first, who when asked by his father to work in the vineyard, refused, but then changed his mind and went; or the second, who when approached by his father with the same request replied, “Yes, sir,” but chose not to go?’ The Jewish leaders answered that it was the first son who did the father’s will. But did they answer correctly? It’s true that the first son eventually did go to work in the vineyard. However, the Jewish leaders discount the fact that neither son did the Father’s will perfectly. One son sins by not going to the vineyard at all, but the other son sins by disrespecting his father, disobeying him to his face. No one obeyed the father completely.

The Pharisees had a similar blind spot. Once, when they saw Jesus and his disciples dining with many tax collectors and sinners, they objected: “Why does [he] eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. … I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” But wait, doesn’t Jesus come to call everyone and save everyone? Yes, but the Pharisees, the chief priests, and the elders of the people did not accept that “Christ came to save sinners,” and that this included themselves. When they confronted Jesus with the woman caught in adultery and he replied to the crowd, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her,” Jesus was not expecting there to be one such person among them. Even the most religious among them had sins to repent of.

Jesus would point this out, at times calling them hypocrites. Jesus’ words were hard against hypocrites, yet his words were gentle with sinners. So what’s the difference between a hypocrite and a sinner? A hypocrite is not just someone who professes one thing and does another. (Unless they lack moral principles, all sinners do that.) A hypocrite is more than a sinner. A hypocrite is someone who says one thing, does another, and doesn’t care anymore about the disconnect, if they ever cared at all.

Jesus was hard with hypocrites in hopes of shaking them from their deadly complacency. But the tax collectors and prostitutes knew they were sinners and wanted to change their lives. They were unhappy and hoped for more. They wanted a better life. They desired the way of righteousness that John the Baptist and Jesus were offering. But the Jewish leaders did not, and tax collectors and prostitutes were entering the Kingdom of God before them. As the Prophet Ezekiel records in our first reading, the Lord is more interested in the direction we are headed than where we have been. The person who turns from wickedness to do what’s right can live and be saved, but the one who turns away from virtue to do evil can die and be lost. This is why the Sacrament of Reconciliation is so important.

Regular confession helps us to not be hypocrites, complacent in and comfortable with our sins. Confession helps hold us accountable, it helps to make us face reality and live in the truth. A good confession forgives our sins; in the case of grave sins, it saves our soul and reconnects us to Christ. The sacrament is an encounter with Jesus Christ, and we leave confession with a new beginning, a fresh start, new graces, and a fresh perspective. We walk away much lighter and more joyful than before.

When was your last confession? I offer confession times every week, but I have heard very few in recent months. Perhaps the posted times and places are inconvenient for you. If so, then contact me to make a confession appointment, for yourself or your whole family. We can do it in church or out of church in a way that is safe and convenient for you. Please make me busy hearing your confessions. What could our lives and community be like if we unloaded ourselves of sins? Is this a homily that you’ve needed to hear? Is the Father calling you to confession? Then please respond by doing your Father’s will.

Posted in Confession, Homily, Repentance, Sunday Homilies, Two Sons | 1 Comment »

Tuesday, 3rd Week of Advent

December 16, 2009

Is it more important to say the right thing, or to do the right thing? As people like to say “Talk is cheap,” but “Actions speak louder than words.”

Some Christians say that if we merely confess Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior then we are assuredly saved. But Jesus Himself says that ‘not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

It is easy to feel righteous like the chief priests and the elders if we subscribe to the right and enlightened opinions, but we should be humbled by the fact that scandalous sinners have turned to Christ and today harvest more fruit in the vineyard than we do.

We have to do more than talk a good game, we have to show up on the court. For example, you say you oppose the killing of the unborn? Good! But what are you doing to end it? Do you pray for mothers and their babies? Do you march for life?

You say that hatred between peoples should end. Absolutely! But is there someone here that you cannot bring yourself to pray for, or say “hello” to in the hallway?

You say that we must care for people in need. Indeed, and Jesus says the same. But do you give of your time, talent and spending cash until it hurts a bit, like an actual sacrifice?

If I were to end this homily here and now with an exhortation that you should go out into your world and to work hard for good in that vineyard, you might decide to listen and your life might change a little bit for a little while. But I would not expect your life change a great deal, unless you also respond to another calling; the calling from our Father that you work in another vineyard first. This vineyard is within you, it is an inner-vineyard. You work it alongside Christ in prayer and what you harvest from it is intimacy with God.  Of this encounter, St. Augustine wrote:

“Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you!  You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you.  In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created.  You were with me, but I was not with you.  Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness.  You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness.  You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you.  I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more.  You touched me, and I burned for your peace.”

In the labor of prayer (and it does take a daily effort) you encounter God. He surprises you with gifts of consolation and peace, and you overflow with His love. This overflow is what makes the saints the saints. It is what makes their holy lives possible. The saints are not self-made men and women. Their cups runneth over within them, and it is from out of this abundance that they love the vineyard of the world and work in it for the better.

You say that you believe in God, and in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. So come to the work of prayer each day, or your devotion and service to God will remain forever little more than lip-service.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Homily, Joy, Last Judgment, Our Lady of Peace Parish, Parables, Prayer, Salvation, School Homilies, Service, Social Justice, Two Sons, Weekday Homilies | 1 Comment »