Paul's Reflections LAST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST. Christ the King - A

LAST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST.  Christ the King - A. (REVISED COMMON LECTIONARY)

I am preaching at ST Paul’s Anglican Church this weekend, and then accompanying Fr Jim to the Uniting Church for their celebration of 130 years of worship. It will be a delightful ecumenical weekend.

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Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

Thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice.

Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide, I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.   I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken.

 

Psalm 100 Page 729, BCP. Jubilate Deo1

Be joyful in the LORD, all you lands; *
serve the LORD with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.

2

Know this: The LORD himself is God; *
he himself has made us, and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

3

Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise; *
give thanks to him and call upon his Name.

4

For the LORD is good;
his mercy is everlasting; *
and his faithfulness endures from age to age.

 

 

 

 

Ephesians 1:15-23

I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

 

Matthew 25:31-46

Jesus said, "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, `Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.' Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?' And the king will answer them, `Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.' Then he will say to those at his left hand, `You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, `Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?' Then he will answer them, `Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

 

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-      It is an honour and a joy to be here again with you and to unite in praising our gracious God, from whom all good things come.   Thanks to Fr Jim for your friendship and the whole St Paul’s community for the strong bonds of friendship and prayer that we share.

-      You may have heard that my Catholic archbishop of Brisbane,  John Bathersby, as had his retirement accepted by the Pope and so he is now retired, effective immediately, and the Catholic archdiocese has a temporary administrator , Bishop Geoffrey Jarratt of Lismore to look after the archdiocese until the pope appoints a new archbishop.  The now emeritus Archbishop John has always been a great supporter of ecumenism and it was one of his major priorities. It is the agreement between him and your Anglican Archbishop Phillip Aspinall, which formed the template for our local agreement here between St Mary’s and St Paul’s.  Please, if you would keep the Catholic archdiocese in our prayers, so that the process discernment for the new archbishop will be continue to be inspired and excellent. May the Holy Spirit choose a leader who will continue to foster the wonderful ties such as we have formed in this region.

-      The gospel this weekend is very special.  I have always found that it goes to the heart of Jesus’ message and mission. How different the world would be if all people took this gospel on face value. Quite literally. “just as you did it to one of the least of these…  you did it to me”..

I think of a shocking example where this did not happen….     Such as the when an internationally acclaimed opera singer lay helpless at a bus stop for more than five hours after suffering a stroke . Delmae Barton, 66, was ignored by about 1000 people when she collapsed and became violently ill several times at a bus stop at a university campus in February 2006. Although a passer-by twice alerted security officers to her predicament, no one called an ambulance or checked on her wellbeing until a group of Japanese students found her and sought help.  Ms Barton was employed as an Aboriginal elder at the  same Brisbane university.  People thought that she was merely drunk…    (which even itself is odd, because people who are collapsed, are also at risk of dying). But the assumption was wrong, and she was not at all drunk, just very ill.   //  That was virtually Christ lying on the ground, stricken, ignored by 1000 people…..   For the words of Christ ring in our ears…  “just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me”

 

-      On a much milder example…  there is the possibly apocryphal story of Queen Victoria, who when on vacation once took a walk on one of her estates.  On the country walk, the Queen was dressed very discretly in walking clothes. A storm blew up and Queen Victoria retreated to a neighbours house and asked if they would kindly lend her an umbrella.  The neighbour begrudgingly lent the umbrella, but when the Queen walked off and opened it up it was full of holes and quite useless.   The next day, the Queen sent one of her attendants back to return the umbrella, with polite thanks.   When the neighbour saw the regal attendant and realised the truth, they were mortified and said. I am so sorry, if I had known it was Her Majesty, I wouldn’t have given her that umbrella.”   (well, whether that situation happened or not, the point is a good one.)  what did it matter WHO it was, why would you give someone a hole-ey umbrella that was useless ireespective of who they were or not.   “That person was virtually Christ … and this gospel calls upon us to treat everyone with the reverence and graciousness we would reserve to God…  // why are we at times tempted to make distinctions in the ordinary matters of human dignity and respect which is due to all people.

-      Closer to home, a trivial, almost funny situation.  I have been a student for priesthood in a parish south of Brisbane, and I have been trying to be more involved in the local parish school, but hadn’t much luck. I did one or two small projects there, but the year was coming to an end. I was invited to the school graduation dinner and I was looking forward to at least being part of that.    But as I walked into the place where the dinner was being held…. My glasses fell apart and the lenses rolled into a nearby garden. I was completely helpless.. I couldn’t see a darned thing!!    I was bent over with my hands over the ground feeling desperately for the lenses… and calling out politely for help from the guests who were attending the same dinner, asking or help….    And the blurry shapes just kept walking in…   no one came to my help…  eventually I went inside..  unable to see a thing.   I didn’t enjoy the night because (being unable to see made me effectively deaf as well, because I didn’t know who was speaking and if they were talking to me, and so…  I was very confused).   Being short-sighted, I couldn’t borrow anyone else’s lenses, they didn’t work.  Fortunately at the end of the night someone came out with me and helped find the lenses but I couldn’t get them back in, so they also had to drive me home in my car, as I couldn’t see to drive.  My mum had told me to keep a spare st of glasses in the car, which I do now always.   But the incident at the start of the night, was amusing but also sad…  ‘what you do to even the least of these.. you do it to me.”

If the world took this very seriously and literally, we could change the world… All humans would have the dignity and respect befitting our God. Which, I believe is the intention of Our Lord.

-      The reading from Ezekiel… is also very fitting. The Lord will be our shepherd, lead us, guide us, heal us, …seek the lost, feed us,  and he shall set up a servant (and his successors by implication) who will serve the people on  behalf of the shepherd….  (The fat sheep come in for some very negative comment here in this gospel, because in this narrative they have pushed around the others and not let them eat and have pasture. The Well-off ones have scattered the poor needy sheep and the master is very unhappy with this.).… 

In that first reading, God recognises that among the people (among every group or people)  there are some who are struggling and experiencing weakness, (all of us do in different ways)… and some who are feeling lost and disconnected and injured…    as well as strong and satisfied….   And the co-responsibility of people to support and encourage each-other is an expectation of the Kingdom.

 

-      In the epistle today….   From the Ephesians..    I hadn’t noticed before, but the wording of it indicates that St Paul has probably not directly visited the people he is writing to..//  He has “heard good reports and is filled with thanksgiving to God for the good news that he has received about them.”  It is inspiring,  even to us these two thousand and more years later. God is truly great. The gift God has given us is beyond full comprehension. It makes us want to strive to be the best person one could be.. and the church is spurred on to put its best foot forward…    The church is called to be a beacon of goodwill, compassion and justice for the inspiration of the world.  This is no small responsibility, and we pray to God for forgivness and strength for the times we have failed to be that shining beacon. With God’s help, we persevere and ask for renewal and guidance.

Thank you for inviting me to share some of these thoughts with you today. I join you in proclaiming that we are all God’s people, the sheep of his pasture… (this is a great gift that God offers to all people; with a corresponding and great responsibility of care for others that goes along with it).    Together, We give thanks to God.. Anglicans, Catholics,  the Uniting church whom Fr Jim and I will be greeting today at St Stephen’s 130^th anniversary celebrations)… and all denominations..  all brothers and sisters in Christ…..   and we ask for God’s guidance and grace as we look out for others..  especially the most vulnerable…….   We move forward, joyfully remembering always that the Lord is Good…  his mercy and faithfulness endures from age to age!!”

 

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REFERENCES:

• FR. PAUL W. KELLY
• New Jerome Bible Handbook. Geoffrey Chapman Publishers. 1992.

·         [Read more:  http://www.news.com.au/national/opera-singer-ignored-after-collapse/story-e6frfkvr-1225942042995#ixzz1dp32vlLF]

 

 

 

Paul's Reflections 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time. A

Homily 6th November, 2011      32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time. A

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The only thing that seems excessive in this story is ……-okay--….. so they weren't prepared for the arrival of the bridegroom!!... They messed up!! So?........... Surely it is a happy occasion when everyone is celebrating and in a good mood?......The bridegroom is a nice guy.....  Why lock out the bridesmaids because they were a bit scatty and unprepared????

But firstly…. Their whole purpose is to await the bride and groom and they missed it due to carelessness and foolishness....  They didn't care enough about the Bride and Groom to do their job properly and have let the whole show down. ...  Plus... Once the party was started…….. it was too big and noisy to hear those calling out in the dark outside...

And also….  On a wider level….. the parable has at least two universal warnings.

(i) It warns us that there are certain things which cannot be obtained at the last minute. It is far too late for a student to be preparing when the day of the examination has come. It is too late for a person to acquire a skill, or a personal quality or character, if they do not already possess it, when some task offers itself to them.  Similarly, it is easy to leave things so late that we can no longer prepare ourselves to respond.  And likewise, one can leave things too late to prepare to meet with God. When Mary of Orange was dying, her chaplain sought to tell her of the way of salvation. Her answer was: "I have not left this matter to this hour." Well said!  To be too late is always tragedy. And if it is too late, it does not reflect on the goodness of the one who shuts the door.

(ii) It warns us that there are certain things which cannot be borrowed. The foolish bridesmaids found it impossible to borrow oil, when they discovered they needed it. A person cannot borrow a relationship with God; They must possess it for themselves. A person cannot borrow a character; they must be clothed with it. We cannot always be living on the spiritual capital which others have amassed. There are certain things we must gain or acquire for ourselves, for we cannot borrow them from others.

Tennyson took this parable and turned it into verse in the song the little novice sang to Guinevere the queen, when Guinevere had too late discovered the cost of sin:

"Late, late so late! and dark the night and chill!

Late, late so late! but we can enter still.

Too late, too late! ye cannot enter now.

….

Have we not heard the bridegroom is so sweet?

O let us in, tho' late, to kiss his feet!

No, no, too late! ye cannot enter now."

There is no too so laden with regret as the sound of the words “too late!”

It takes a lifetime to foster and develop and allow God to transform our attitudes and characters into those consistent with the Gospel of Jesus. It requires constant openness and willingness to change and be transformed by God.   It requires an openness and a transformation that simply must not be left to the eleventh hour!.

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REFERENCES:

FR. PAUL W. KELLY

THE DAILY STUDY BIBLE. GOSPEL OF Matthew (REVISED EDITION). BY WILLIAM BARCLAY.

October 12 2011 - the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time Cycle A 2011

Fr Dan Grundy will be celebrating masses this weekend, as I have another commitment. Thanks Fr Dan.
 
Meanwile,
 
Here are some thoughts from a great resource:
 
The Monastery of Christ in the Desert Homily for October 12 2011
     29th Sunday of Ordinary Time
     Cycle A
     2011
 
 
FIRST READING
Isaiah 45:1, 4-6
 
Thus says the Lord to his anointed, Cyrus, whose right hand I grasp, subduing nations before him, and making kings run in his service, opening doors before him and leaving the gates unbarred:  For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel, my chosen one, I have called you by your name, giving you a title, though you knew me not.  I am the Lord and there is no other, there is no God besides me.  It is I who arm you, though you know me not, so that toward the rising and the setting of the sun people may know that there is none besides me.  I am the Lord, there is no other.
 
 
SECOND READING
1 Thessalonians 1:1-5b
 
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:  grace to you and peace.  We give thanks to God always for all of you, remembering you in our prayers, unceasingly calling to mind your work of faith and labor of love and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father, knowing, brothers and sisters loved by God, how you were chosen.  For our gospel did not come to you in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction.
 
 
GOSPEL  Cycle A
Matthew 22:15-21
 
The Pharisees went off and plotted how they might entrap Jesus in speech.
They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.  And you are not concerned with anyone's opinion, for you do not regard a person's status.  Tell us, then, what is your opinion:  Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?"
Knowing their malice, Jesus said, "Why are you testing me, you hypocrites?
Show me the coin that pays the census tax."  Then they handed him the Roman coin.  He said to them, "Whose image is this and whose inscription?"  They replied, "Caesar's."  At that he said to them, "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God."
 
 
My sisters and brothers in Christ,
 
Who is chosen by the Lord?  Perhaps too often we think that only those who are faithful to their religious obligations are chosen by the Lord.  The Scriptures keep telling us over and over that this is not so.  God chooses anyone and everyone.  God will the salvation of every person who has ever lived.  God makes us of those who are His chosen people but also those who belong to the pagans and the gentiles.  It is important for us to realize this so that we don’t think that just because we are Christians, we have a special right to God’s divine life. 
 
In today’s first reading, from the Prophet Isaiah, we see God using Cyrus and calling Cyrus his anointed one.  Yet Cyrus was not one of the chosen people.  We also know that in the genealogy of Christ, there are present some women who did not come from the chosen people.  God works where God wants to work and uses whatever person He chooses.
 
Today’s Gospel from Saint Matthew teaches the same kind of reality.  The Pharisees are trying to trip Jesus up with their way of thinking, so that they can show others that Jesus is not anyone special.  Jesus outwits them, as usual.  God’s presence and love do not depend on keeping the all the rules that the Pharisees had found in order to protect the Law.  We should not ridicule all of these Laws because they really did help keep a strong practice of faith.  The problem is when the small laws become more important that the enormous values they are supposed to be protecting.
 
We Christians should listen to the words of the First Letter to the Thessalonians today, wherein we are told:  For our gospel did not come to you in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction.  Living the Gospel is not just knowing the words, but living in its power by our daily actions, living in the power of the Holy Spirit, both with actions and with conviction.
 
Christianity is not a philosophy so much as a way of living daily life.
We want to be followers of Jesus Christ, living as He lived and striving to love all others as He did.  May our listening to the Word of God today move us from attentiveness to strong living actions of faith.
 
 
Your brother in the Lord,
Abbot Philip, OSB
 
 
Taken from http://christdesert.org/About_Us/Abbot_s_and_Cellarer_s_Pages/Abbot_s_Homily/index.html
 
Accessed 12/10/11
 
 
 
 

Paul's Reflections Twenty - eighth Sunday of the Year - A. Homily 9th October, 2011

Homily 9th October, 2011 Twenty-eighth Sunday of the Year - A

The disturbing thing about today’s gospel is that the excuses given by those who decline the wedding invitation are actually (in the main) good and worthwhile things: attending to one’s business and livestock, at least.

The thing is, they have their priorities wrong. 

The most important thing they should have been at, (at that time), was the wedding banquet (which they had already accepted) and now were too distracted by other things to bother doing what was most important. 

It is so easy to get caught up with the ‘urgent’  that we lose sight of the ‘important’. 

The other thing is, that even for people who aren’t overly religious, most people in the community would know that Christians believe that God wants to invite all people to be part of God’s family, part of God’s Kingdom.   Christians and non-Christians alike know that God loves all people and invites everyone to be part of God’s family.   The only problem is that some seem to make a big deal of that aspect whilst playing down and ignoring the second aspect of the King throwing out one of the invited guests because they were not properly attired and had no good excuse for it.

Some have watered down the Christian message by overplaying the first point and ignoring the second. You see people fall into that trap when they publicly recommend this kind of thinking: God is a God of Love and compassion, God loves everyone (and that is true), so God wouldn’t care about how people live (that… is not true)… 

This parable warns us, we are all invited to the banquet feast.. We are all invited to be part of God’s Kingdom, but it does not mean that we can then do as we please, live as we want and make up our own relativist mode of morality to suit ourselves.   This parable teaches us that Christianity is not a ‘design-your-own’ lifestyle group.   The baptismal garment, or the wedding garment that symbolises the entry into Christ’s life and death, is not a mix and match costume… one size fits all and that is Christ.. When we accept the invitation to be a part of Christ, WE ARE, as St Paul says, “clothing ourselves in Christ… we are ‘putting on Christ’ and his way of living and loving.  Today’s parable warns us that if we do not put on Christ’s garment, we will be thrown back outside. 

Contrary to some false prophets in this society….   NOT “everything goes” in the Kingdom of God. We have been given true freedom as sons and daughters of God, but that is freedom to keep God’s will and not break it.  (this is a definition of freedom that many in modern society would find confusing.  But it is the Judeo-Christian definition of freedom. Freedom to be everything God calls us to be, not freedom to do as we please).   

I sometimes joke that that wonderful hymn “come as you are” which I like a lot, does NOT have a sequel for the end of mass “go as you please”   …..  nor is there another hymn called  “Do as you please, that’s how I want you…..”   Because, once we are approach God, no matter whether we feel unworthy or sinful.. (and we all feel like that)… nevertheless, then God invites us to be transformed (heart, mind and soul) into the people God calls us to be, and to live and behave as children of God, according to his values.

This parable is sobering and powerful.   Those who were invited thought they could take the goodwill of the King for granted and they also had all sorts of excuses about how what they were doing was more important than what the King was asking them to do at this time. They were fooling themselves, and they were taking their status for granted… and so Jesus warns them, they will all be kicked out and people from other nations, other cultures and other religious…  sinners and saints alike will be given their place and invited to be part of the family…  but they too must put on the garment of salvation and live a new way..  leaving behind their old garments and old ways….

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REFERENCES:

FR. PAUL W. KELLY

THE DAILY STUDY BIBLE. GOSPEL OF Matthew. (REVISED EDITION). BY WILLIAM BARCLAY.

Paul's Reflections Sermon preached by Fr Jim. 8am. St Mary’s Catholic Parish. 2 October 2011

Thanks To Fr Jim from St Paul's Anglican Parish Maryborough, for preaching the homily for Sunday the 2^nd October at St Mary's Church.

Here is a copy of his sermon:

 

The Anglican Parish of Maryborough

Sermon preached by Fr Jim McPherson

at St Mary's Catholic Parish

2 October 2011

 

Isaiah 5.1-7; Matthew 21.33-43

 

 

I am delighted to be here! It was good to reaffirm our agreement in August at St Paul's, and we look forward to Fr Paul joining us for the Feast of Christ the King.

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We read the first reading, from what Christians call "the Old Testament", because it is part of our family history. These readings are addressed to us; the tangled family dramas of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph (Israel's founding family) are our story as well as Israel's. We do Jesus himself a disservice, and the Christian faith we profess a disservice, if we think it all started with Jesus as though he just landed on terra nullius and started from there.

 

The gospel reading makes this clear, when Jesus takes the vine/vineyard (one of the well-known symbols of the nation Israel) and one of the well-known prophetic rebukes to faithless Israel, and reworks it as a prophetic challenge to the religious authorities of his day, "the chief priests and the elders".

 

The story tells of God's persistent and determined efforts to get through to his wayward people; prophet after prophet sent, and ignored; eventually God sends his Son, whom they recognise as Son, and therefore kill – in hope of gaining the vineyard for themselves. (I understand this was a realistic strategy in Jesus' day; after a specified time, an inheritance left unclaimed could go to the first reasonable claimant; or occupation over several years would entitle to ownership.)

 

So now they won't have to worry about the previous absentee landlord, God ‑ or any of God's inconvenient requirements. And the Son joins the succession of murdered prophets.

 

The way Matthew's gospel tells it, the details of the Son's death correspond to the recorded realities of Jesus' death … and the "wretched end" probably describes Rome's invasion and defeat of Jerusalem (including the destruction of its Temple) in AD 70.

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This parable of Jesus taps into something really deep in the way our minds tick over.

 

We humans are all experts at smug. [1] That is, we are excessively proud of how good we are, what we have achieved, what nice people we are, etc; and therefore complacent about anyone challenging us to change. We are such nice people, bumping along satisfactorily (for the most part) with our lives, so that sort of criticism is not only unwelcome, it certainly does not apply to us …

 

Because of smug, we tend to overlook the gospel's concluding sentence: "I tell you, then, that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit." Clearly that applies to "the chief priest and elders of the people", whom Jesus addresses directly. But we are nice people, we are Christians, we know better, we wouldn't do anything like this, especially rejecting the prophets and killing the Son ….

 

Here are two questions, to St Mary's, St Paul's, to the Christian communities in Maryborough:

• Is God an absentee landlord for you? As in Fiddler on the Roof, the blessing for the Tsar: "Lord, bless and keep the Tsar …… far away from us".

 

• As God surveys our vineyard, is the yield worthwhile? The fruits of the kingdom: justice, mercy, peace, righteousness … How's the yield?

 

• And if it's not up to the mark, what can we do about it?

 

© the Revd James M McPherson

Maryborough Qld 4650

 

www.anglicanmaryborough.org.au

 

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[1] "having or showing an excessive pride in oneself or one's achievements: he was feeling smug after his win" ‑  http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/smug (visited 29 September 2011)

Homily 2nd October, 2011 Twenty-seventh Sunday of the Year - A

Homily 2nd October, 2011 Twenty-seventh Sunday of the Year - A

We welcome Fr Jim McPherson (Anglican Rector), as guest preacher at St Mary's for the 8am Mass this weekend.  I will publish online a copy of his sermon after Sunday morning's mass.

 

I also might pinch some of his good ideas for tonight's homily. I am sure Fr. Jim won't mind! J

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The readings this weekend carry a very consistent image in each of them:  the ancient and powerful image of the Vineyard planted and left to people to look after and the landowner returning to claim his rights, only to be rebuffed and all his messengers mistreated and killed, and even his beloved son is rejected and killed. It is very chilling!

It is clearly speaking of the people of Israel as the tenants of God's vineyard, and the messengers are the prophets of God, and the son is clearly Jesus.

 

Jesus is warning the listeners, particularly the chief priests and scribes, that they think they are holy and righteous, but they are in a long line of people who killed God's prophets and have set themselves against God's will.   IT would be shocking to them to hear that. They certainly saw themselves as righteous and doing God's will. It must be everyone else who is doing wrong, not me. Isn't that a familiar cry from so many people… I am right, it's all these other people who are in the wrong!  

 

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When I think of the image of the vineyard, I also can't help but think that God has given us this beautiful world to live in and care for its natural resources. In return, in many ways, we wreck the things given into our care. God would not be impressed by a lack of care for our environment and for the people and creatures that live in it.   We are called to responsible care and management and respect of the resources that God has entrusted to us;  to avoid waste or destruction and pollution and excess and exploitation.

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This gospel also calls upon each of us to consider the gifts God has entrusted to us to nurture and to bear fruit…

 

The Gospel parable reminds us that God is very patient with us and very generous…  But God is also just and won't give us endless time to produce the fruits God wants….   So..  are there areas in our lives where God has been exceedingly patient?   Are week taking that patience for granted in any way?.....

 

  are we producing the fruit?…   what kind of fruit is it?   And is it for the purposes of the Kingdom;   and are the fruits we are producing intended for the King from whom we received these gifts and resources? 

 

• Is God an absentee landlord for you and I……?
• What kind of fruit are we producing.. And if it's not up to the mark, what can we do about it?

Is it overripe?...  are we not producing at the pace we could…

Are we producing sour grapes...afraid to show love, kindness and joy…

Are we producing colourless grapes..hesitant or sparing in showing and sharing our talents

Are we producing wild grapes.. going it alone, not working with the faith community…    not supporting or being challenged by the wider community…. A law unto myself..

Are we producing tasteless grapes….absorbed by our own needs and wants….   ?

May the Son inspire and strengthen us to produce the fruits of the Kingdom…  justice, mercy, peace, and righteousness

 

 

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REFERENCES:

 

<![if !supportLists]>·          <![endif]>FR. PAUL W. KELLY

<![if !supportLists]>·          <![endif]>Revd James M McPherson, Maryborough, 2011

<![if !supportLists]>·          <![endif]>MISSION 2000  – PRAYING SCRIPTURE IN A CONTEMPORARY WAY. YEAR A. BY MARK LINK S.J.

<![if !supportLists]>·          <![endif]>Celebrating the Gospels, 1981-2003.

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For more info, please visit: http://stmaryextras.blogspot.com/2011/08/have-you-signed-up-to-receive-various.html

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Paul's Reflections sixth Sunday of the Year - A. 25th September, 2011

Homily 25th September, 2011. Twenty - sixth Sunday of the Year - A

I think that today's gospel, although very short, is really a key teaching in Christ's gospel.  It goes to the heart of what Our Lord was doing and saying. 

 

Jesus did not come to do away with the religious tradition of his day, but rather to fulfil it. And at the heart of this religious tradition is the core of God's message. However, Jesus taught on several occasions about the danger of a mere outward observance of religion. Much more important, (and ultimately the only thing that really matters), is that one is faithful to the truth of God's message by DOING God's will, irrespective of whether one SEEMS to be living up to the message or not.  Appearances can (so often) be quite deceiving.

 

The irony of today's message is that all of us can say, "well of course! That is common sense."  OBVIOUSLY the son who said no to his father but ended up DOING his will is the righteous one, and the one who SAID he would obey his father but didn't is in the wrong.  It is so blatantly obvious. I imagine that the listeners of Jesus when he first taught this would also have probably responded,  'well of course.'  The trouble is, that we KNOW this teaching is right, but so many people still continue to fall for the trap of it nevertheless..

 

Perhaps we all keep falling into this trap, of judging by appearances and not by realities. Since none of us can see inside the heart of another, we naturally go by what we see and by what people say or how things appear to be. But, I do wonder,  why do we keep falling for the trap of appearances versus realities.  

 

This parable of the two sons is vital.

 

St Paul picks up on this same theme in his famous and popular passage in his first to the Corinthians 12:31, and following….-

"Strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing."

This teaching is so central that Saint Thérèse of Lisieux experienced a most profound and permanent inner conversion of heart whilst reading this same text from St Paul… as well as the earlier chapter 12……

Saint Thérèse writes….. "My eyes fell on the 12th and 13th chapters of the First Epistle to the Corinthians. I read that all cannot become Apostles, Prophets, and Doctors; that the Church is composed of different members; that the eye cannot also be the hand.  Without being discouraged I read on, and found comfort in this counsel: "Be zealous for the better gifts. And I show unto you a yet more excellent way." [14] The Apostle then explains how all perfect gifts are nothing without Love, that Charity is the most excellent way of going surely to God. At length I had found peace of mind.

"When I had looked upon the mystical body of the Church, I recognised myself in none of the members which St. Paul described, and what is more, I desired to distinguish myself more favourably within the whole body. Love appeared to me to be the hinge for my vocation. Indeed I knew that the Church had a body composed of various members, but in this body the necessary and more noble member was not lacking; I knew that the Church had a heart and that such a heart appeared to be aflame with love. I knew that one love drove the members of the Church to action, that if this love were extinguished, the apostles would have proclaimed the Gospel no longer, the martyrs would have shed their blood no more. I saw and realised that love sets off the bounds of all vocations, that love is everything, that this same love embraces every time and every place. In one word, that love is everlasting.

"Then, nearly ecstatic with the supreme joy in my soul, I proclaimed: O Jesus, my love, at last I have found my calling: my vocation is love. Certainly I have found my place in the Church, and you gave me that very place, my God. In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and thus I will be all things, as my desire finds its direction."" [The Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. (1898).Chapter XI ].

 

I have mentioned in a homily last year, but its so key, I will briefly repeat it.  Saint Thérèse (whose insights are so profound but simple, that she was declared to be a Doctor the Church), was all-too-aware of the dangers taught by Christ in this weekend's parable…   So much so, that Thérèse took no comfort from praise and little distress from criticism.   A person could be praised for a particular action that appears heroic and charitable…..but inwardly (perhaps unknown to others) their attitude and desires are not loving or consistent with God's ways…   And also, a person  might conceivably be motivated by deep and selfless concern but their actions are taken wrongly by others and appear to be selfish and worthy of criticism.  The message appears clear….  We are to do what is right and loving irrespective of the appearance… and be cautious in jumping to conclusions about people's motives.  They are known to God alone.

 

As I say, we know this all conceptually…   but Jesus would not have had to repeat this teaching in various forms unless he was well aware of the fact that we so often can fall for the trap of appearances.  This can cause enormous mischief and misunderstanding, and can thwart the real object of Our Lord's teaching.

 

Let us ask the Lord to help purify our inner life… and our inward dispositions and attitudes, so that everything we do, in thought, word and action, be motivated by love of God. Love of neighbour as oneself…    and may we have the strength to continue to do actions (motivated by love)  that could risk attracting condemnation and criticism of other's who base their judgement on merely outward appearances.

 

 

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<![if !supportLists]>•                     <![endif]>FR. PAUL W. KELLY

<![if !supportLists]>•                     <![endif]>The Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. (1898).

 

 

Paul's Reflections Twenty - fifth Sunday of the Year - A. Homily 18th September, 2011

Homily 18th September, 2011      Twenty - fifth Sunday of the Year - A

P Save a tree. Don't print this e-mail unless it's really necessary

We had a Deanery retreat at Ormiston on Friday night and Saturday and representatives from parishes in the deanery gathered to have a time of prayer and reflection. 


The opening scripture for this time of retreat was very pertinent.  It was St Paul to the Ephesians, chapter three:  


 ¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family^[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.


And Our Lord spent his ministry teaching his disciples (and us) about how we might be able to (in some small way) grasp the unimaginable depths of God's generosity, love, forgiveness and care. It is quite beyond the human concept.  this parable, this weekend, is attempting to convey a taste of that depth and breadth of God's love and generosity and inclusion....


 The Gospel this weekend is truly wonderful. Our Lord teaches us this parable to open up for us  what is really the unimaginable depths of God’s generosity, love, kindness and care. 

God’s ways are truly wonderful and they are in marked contrast with many human attitudes. This parable of the generous landowner and the workers in the vineyard really challenges us to accept a new way of thinking and acting that does not measure up what we can get from things – like one who keeps a balance sheet of what they have gotten and what they have given.

In Jesus’ time, and even in this day and age, many people seem to asses what they should put their energy and time into by what they can personally benefit from it.  In many ways, there is nothing wrong with an attitude of ‘win-win’ where everyone ends up benefitting from a situation.  The only trouble is, in this world there are many people who are severely disadvantaged and in need. And all things are not equal.  In a world where people get something only if they can give something of equal value back, there are many people who are in a dire situation because they are so poor or disadvantaged that they are not seen as being able to benefit anyone – so they miss out. They don’t fit into the system and are left on the margins.  Jesus went out to the margins and searched for these people and made special effort to ensure that they too were included in his Kingdom.  This is what the generous landowner is doing.   The workers who were left without any days work after the eleventh hour (still a term we use today) would have gone without a days food.  The landowner knew this and also knew that the harvest is plentiful and the labourers few, so he gave them what they needed  - a days food (pay). Not that they ‘earnt’ it, but that they NEEDED it.  And in any case, when it comes to God’s gifts none of us have really earned God’s favour and love, it is freely and generously given and its offered to all.

God is generous and kind. God gives us love and care and invites us to be part of his family because God is generous and loving, not because  we have earnt it.  Jesus wants us to have that same generosity and welcome to others around. They too are welcome because God is loving, forgiving and generous to them, as God is to us as well.

What a wonderful and quite revolutionary attitude.  A world-changing attitude.

What would the world be like if everyone was striving to outdo eachother in hospitality, welcome, generosity and giving,  and less about what do I get out of this?  But how is this benefitting me?  What can you give me?   Why did he get that, I should have gotten more.. and so on….

To summarise this gospel…  a writer once said….

“the world asks, HOW MUCH did the landowner give ?   But Jesus invites us to ask the better question? WHY did the landowner give as he did, (not how much did he give)?”

The answer is.. because God is generous, God is loving. God gives us what we NEED.

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REFERENCES:

·          FR. PAUL W. KELLY

·          Mark Link.  Vision. Praying Scripture in a contemporary way. Year a.