27th Sunday yearA

27^th Sunday Year A

 

"The stone which the builders rejected has become the keystone of the structure"

Matthew 21:42

 

A small boy was visiting his grandmother for the first time. She lived in a small Wyoming town--cowboy country. On arrival, the boy's initial reaction was to cry out, "Grandma, look at those bowlegged cowboys." The grandmother was shocked and embarrassed, fearful that someone might have heard the outburst. Consequently, she immediately took her grandson to her home and there devoted much of the day trying to refine his vocabulary. The next morning, as they were walking through town, the lad again commented on the local gentry, this time trying his best not to embarrass his grandmother. He said, "Grandma,

 

Hark! What manner of men are these?

Who wear their legs in parentheses!"

 

The story illustrates, among other things, that there can be many different ways of saying the same thing, making the same point. Jesus employed many different ways of communicating the Good News of God's love to his disciples. He instructed them through prayer. He instructed them through miracles. He instructed them through the Scriptures. He instructed them through ordinary conversation. And, He instructed them through parables, as in today's Gospel. The "Parable of the Tenants." 

 

Jesus' reason for speaking this parable in the final weeks of His ministry is clear. Throughout His public life, Jesus, Son of God, had claimed the right to exercise His Father's authority over His people. Instead of respecting this claim the Scribes and Pharisees saw it as a threat to their own dominion over God's people. They adopted a "He's got to go!" attitude and Jesus knew they would soon make their move to dispose of Him. It was in this context then, that Jesus spoke the Parable of the Tenants. Through it, He is saying to the Scribes and the Pharisees, "You may think that getting rid of Me will resolve the matter in your favor. But remember, that is precisely what those wicked tenants imagined. Killing Me will not result in My defeat but in your own ruin. You will never be able to successfully resist My Father's claim to absolute dominion over His people--even if you should kill His Son! Even death has no dominion over God's people. He will never abandon them."

 

 

There was a woman of advanced age began to have hearing problems. Reluctantly she gave in to suggestions from family members that she consult an ear specialist. After the doctor had made a thorough examination of the woman's ears, he said to her, "You have a condition which can be corrected by minor surgery. I suggest we do it as soon as possible." To which she replied, "There will be no operation, thank you. I'm eighty-nine years old and I've heard enough!"

 

That "I've heard enough" feeling is no stranger to many of us. Many of us endure it daily at Six O'clock or Eleven O'clock News Time: reports of murder and other violent crimes--we've heard enough; reports of political corruption in high places--we've heard enough; reports of armed conflict between nations and peoples--we've heard enough; reports of unfair and dishonest business practices--we've heard enough!

 

It is precisely when the bad news of the wicked tenants in our midst seems dominant that we desperately need to let the Good News break through: God is with us and will never abandon us. Hear His voice:

 

Do not limit your search for Me to the sanctuaries, or to the precise words of theologians, or to the calm of the countryside. Look for Me in the places where men are struggling to become more fully human. See Me in this house of worship, but see Me as well in the many faces of mankind. The presence of the wicked tenants to the contrary notwithstanding, I will never abandon you.

 

We need to have that assurance from God. We need to hear this Good News report unceasingly. It is the one news report concerning which we may never say, "We've heard enough!"

FR. Nony.crm