Word to the Wise
Sunday, September 20, 2020 - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time - A
[Isa 55:6-9; Phil 1:20c-24, 27a; Matt 20:1-16a]"Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous? Thus the last will be first, and the first will be last." [Luke]
I once worked in a diocese where the bishop, who was a wonderful and holy man, seemed to make decisions based on the last person he talked to about a matter. So, the word among the folks in the chancery office was, "Get there last!" In the parable in today's gospel, Jesus tells us that it doesn't matter who is first or last. What matters is God's providence for each one of us.
From the viewpoint of the first group of workers, the owner is not being "fair." Parents know this situation very well. The older kids will always say, "You never let US do that! It's not fair!" Another common (but usually muttered or said inwardly), why did God give him/her "more" than me? The owner puts the finger on it all, "Are you envious because I am generous?" The "green-eyed monster" of envy is ever ready to corrode even the best of relationships, let alone the casual "deals" mentioned in the parable.
Another way of looking at this parable would be to ask which workers had to trust the owner more? The first group had a "contract." The second group had a verbal promise of "justice." The third group had only the promise of work. What could this "last group" expect? God's generosity is simply not dependent on our expectations or what we think we need. There may be something to the advice, "Get there last!" Maybe the more we depend on God, the more dependable God is! AMEN