27th Sunday of Ordinary Time [A]

 


27TH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME [A]


It’s not as if they intended to gather in a harvest of wild grapes; it’s something that just sort of “happened” (see Isaiah 5:1-7). We could say the same about the vineyard featured in Matthew chapter twenty one. They were anticipating a routine transaction. It wasn’t that they were aiming to stir up a dose of trouble. The trouble is something that just sort of “happened” (Matt. 21:33-43). It gets bad, sometimes. It’s not that we desire the bad; it just sort of “happens.”  For example, it might get bad within your mind and your soul. It’s not that you want it to get bad. It’s just something that sort of “happens.”  


You’re like the seminarian who feels discouraged. He consults with his spiritual director, complaining that the face of God seems so very far away. An array of cobwebs stands between the seminarian and his Lord, obstructing the view. The spiritual director explains that it’s typical for webs to form when there is a lack of activity. You will find a whole network of webs if you step into an old abandoned house. But if the house is being lived in, then the webs will never have a chance to take shape. In a “lived in” house, you clear the web away, as soon as it has been noticed. And if the spider is out in the open, you simply kill it. 


According to the director, your soul can become like an abandoned house. There’s no activity. This being the case, it shouldn’t surprise you that the webs have taken over. The answer is to open up your soul; make it a hub of activity. Enter in on a regular basis. Make it a place that is being lived in. And if you are wondering how to proceed, borrow a measure of wisdom from St. Paul. Concentrate particularly upon his Letter to the Philippians chapter four. Appreciate what he has to say about the purification of your thoughts (4:8). Appreciate also what he has to say about the subject of gratitude (4:6). 


Contrary thoughts afflict each and every one of us. When a counter-productive thought invades the vineyard of your mind, seek immediately to banish it. How? St. Alphonsus Liguori’s method was to repeat the holy names of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph [St. Alphonsus Liguori, 1696-1787, Naples Italy]. By closing his eyes and repeating the holy names, the unwanted thoughts would be effectively purged. And when they inevitably return, you refer all over again to the holy names. The holy names become your way of hitting the “reset” button. 


Furthermore, you will want to be in the practice of counting your blessings. Paul promotes the discipline of “giving thanks” (Phil. 4:6; First Thess. 5:18; Col. 3:15). This is another approach that will drive away the cobwebs, and whatever else might be potentially contaminating  your vineyard. However, if the prayers of thanksgiving are no longer being offered, this amounts to an invitation: you are literally inviting the webs to reappear. Similarly, if you neglect the holy names, this too will bring about a kind of relapse. It all adds up to a theme of disappointment. The vineyards aren’t what they are supposed to be. Your flow of thought isn’t what it’s supposed to be. And most tragically, your soul isn’t what it’s supposed to be. 

Popular posts from this blog

Sermon For Trinity Sunday

Image
  TRINITY SUNDAY [C] We are prepared to observe Trinity Sunday. But are we prepared to go that extra step? Are we prepared to actually celebrate the Trinity? It’s expected of us. But it’s not easy, getting excited about the Trinity. It’s not just a doctrine; it’s something dense; it’s a profound mystery. How do you penetrate the mystery of one God being revealed in a Trinity of three Persons? Perhaps we should begin by picking up a Bible.  Now that your Bible is open, you find yourself being introduced to our God; you’re being introduced to him in the Book of Genesis. You will notice right away that he is a rather busy God. Busy in what way? He’s being an artist. He’s doing what artists typically do: he’s creating. He stands back, he admires his creation, and he pronounces it as “good” (Gen. 1:31). This episode doesn’t resolve all of your questions, but at least it’s a start.  Later on in the Bible, we will arrive at a particular juncture. St. Paul refers to it as “the ...
Read more

Second Sunday of Easter [C]

Image
  SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER [C] The Peter we’ve been waiting for has finally arrived. We can say that, after a number of false starts, he is now beginning to blossom. If he comes into contact with you, then you will be able to expect a positive result. In fact, according to the Book of Acts, even if he walks past you, the effect of his shadow will produce a meaningful impact (5:15). If only you could have a St. Peter enter into your life. You’ll be satisfied even if he simply walks on by.  A vagrant finds himself being passed by. He is stationed at a street corner, selling flowers. Some of the pedestrians walk on by, refusing to offer anything in the way of acknowledgement. Others stop long enough to stuff a dollar or two into his donation jar, but they continue on, not bothering to take one of his flowers. The point comes, however, when an actual customer steps forward. It’s a businessman, who opens his wallet, deposits a sum of money, and then picks up one of the flowers. He a...
Read more

Sermon, Feast of the Holy Family

Image
                                                                             FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY  Once again, Santa has managed to pull it off. Somehow, he gets it done, all within such a brief timeframe—the timeframe of Christmas Eve. Deliveries are made, far and wide. Imagine all of those houses, those neighborhoods, those towns, all of those regions spread across the country and even the wider world! You wonder if perhaps Santa has cloned himself? If so, then this would seem to explain his ability to be in more than one place at one time. On the other hand, maybe we’re better off not even trying to understand. We’ll just call it a miracle.  We will see that Jesus knows how to perform miracles. We will be reading about these miracles as the lit...
Read more