Since preparing this homily, I've learned that October 9th is "Leif Ericson Day."
Be sure to get some wine and celebrate!
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time A
Fr.
Justin and I were trying to schedule something the other day,
and
I pointed out to him that we have a holiday coming up: Columbus
Day.
“Christopher
Columbus?” he asked.
“Yes,”
I said. “You know—he discovered
America.”
“Oh, I
know,” replied Fr. Justin, with a big smile on his face.
“But
he thought he was in India!”
I
say “myth” for several reasons.
For
one thing, he was so far off track.
For
another,
it’s hard to say he “discovered” the continent
it’s hard to say he “discovered” the continent
when
quite a few folks already called this land home.
Not
to mention most scholars today acknowledge
that
this Italian explorer sailing on behalf of Spain
wasn’t
actually the first European
to lay eyes on North America,
but
was beat to the punch by a Norwegian—a Viking—
almost
500 years before him.
About
the year 1000,
very
shortly after he converted to the Christian faith,
the
Norse explorer Leif Ericson
was
blown off course west of Greenland
and
landed in a lush and fertile place
(quite
possibly modern day Newfoundland)
which
he described as “covered with vines and grapes
that
produce the best wine.”
He therefore called the place Vinland.
This
is our third week in a row in the vineyard,
as
far as parables told by Jesus are concerned.
And
as far as the original planting goes,
this
Sunday’s Psalm makes it clear:
The vineyard of the Lord is
the house of Israel.
Jesus,
however, drastically expands the vineyard's boundaries—
encompassing
not just one small yet chosen nation,
but
instead branching out
to the four corners of the earth.
Despite
the fact that corn, potatoes, and apples
all
grow much better around here than grapes,
Leif
Ericson was right: we
live in Vinland.
And
if this is God’s vineyard,
then
that makes us God's tenant farmers.
Many
words of Scripture are written
encouraging
us to trust in the Lord.
“Have
no anxiety at all,” St. Paul tells the Philippians.
“Make
your requests known to God.”
It
feels good to able to trust somebody—
to
allow them to handle our affairs;
to
believe they’ll always act in our best interests.
But
is also feels good to be trusted—
to
be put in charge of something;
to
know that another had placed their confidence in us.
As
much as we must trust in God,
we’re
reminded this Sunday that God also puts his trust in us:
trusts
us, as he has trusted earlier peoples and generations,
to
be faithful caretakers of his vineyard.
I
think of this at the start of this annual Respect Life Month.
It’s
a rather sad commentary
that
we even have to have such an observance—
that
people today must be reminded
that every human life is a precious gift from God,
immense in its dignity, and worthy of being defended.
that every human life is a precious gift from God,
immense in its dignity, and worthy of being defended.
Whether
it’s the tender new shoot
growing
hidden in its mother’s womb,
or
a bent old vine approaching life’s end;
whether
the threat comes
from
poverty or shame, vengeance or indifference—
God
has placed great trust in us for the ongoing care
of
the most vulnerable plants in his vineyard.
When
the Lord comes looking for his harvest—and he will—
how
shall we answer for this fruit of our human bodies?
I
also think of the trust God has placed in us
as
I’ve been daily reading about unfolding scandal
on
the front page of the local paper,
and
hearing the grapevines rattle
with a whole lot of gossip in the parish of late.
As
we see in this parable of Jesus,
fear,
jealousy, and greed are more than capable
of
working people into a frenzy,
such that they'll believe fantasies instead of facts
and stop at nothing to achieve their mistaken goals.
Ridicule
and character assassination can be just as vicious
as
the stoning of the landowner’s servants and murder of his son.
We betray God’s trust whenever we betray one another.
We betray God’s trust whenever we betray one another.
When
the Lord comes looking for his harvest—as he surely will—
how
shall we answer for this fruit of the human spirit?
God is just.
In
the end, truth and goodness prevail.
The
Lord has no real need to condemn us,
since
we’re more than capable of doing so ourselves.
But
God is also merciful.
The
Lord gives us ample opportunity—
more
chances than we actually deserve—
to
get back on course
and begin to cultivate anew the vast and noble estate
in which he has set us.
and begin to cultivate anew the vast and noble estate
in which he has set us.
We
live in Vinland.
And
God has given us incredible reasonability over it.
We
trust in the Lord.
Let
us likewise prove ourselves trustworthy,
producing
not bitter wild grapes,
but
the good, sweet fruit of the kingdom.
with inspiration
from J. Sacco and A. Lauer
1 comment:
This seems a powerful sermon for me - especially as I have always seen Jesus telling His stories/parables right in the midst of the crowds, about the very things that those same folks are living.
I love the structure of this meditation as well as the nurturing message at the end. Thank you, Friend - and those to whom you gave a bow.
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