Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13, 17-28
Matthew 21:33-46
Francis Martin writes,
“Today we are brought once again into contact with the mystery of Christ's passion and death. The theme is the rejection of the beloved son. In the first reading we hear of Joseph, the beloved of Jacob, first assaulted and then sold into slavery by his own brothers.
“In the gospel text Jesus tells his own countrymen a parable concerning the rejection and murder of the only son of the vineyard owner.
“There is a mystery hidden here. Why is it that our rejection of Christ has brought about our acceptance by God? The depths of mercy contained in this mystery can take our breath away.
“It is perhaps for this reason that we are given glimpses of this radiant white light only in a refracted form.
"We see it in foreshadowings such as the Joseph story, in parables such as the one today, in cryptic phrases such as Christ's predictions of his passion, and in oblique phrases in the rest of the New Testament.
“The story of Joseph is well-known. The firstborn son of Rachel, whom Jacob loved more than Leah; the object of his father's special attention, symbolized by the beautiful tunic he conferred on him—Joseph was hated by his brothers.
“The text today tells us of their treachery. They first threw Joseph into a dry cistern to die in the desert heat, and then they took him out and sold him as a slave to a caravan bound for Egypt.
“There Joseph rose to prominence but was falsely accused, imprisoned, then finally released and installed over the whole land of Egypt.
“During a severe famine Joseph's brothers came to this ruler of Egypt for aid. On their second visit he made as if to imprison his full brother Benjamin, and then he could bear it no longer. As his brothers pleaded for the life of Benjamin, Joseph began to weep.
“He cleared the audience hall, revealed himself to his brothers, and then enunciated the meaning of his rejection: 'God sent me before you to preserve life.'
“Still later, after Jacob's death, his brothers came to him, afraid that now Joseph would take his revenge.
“Once again we hear pronounced the law of our redemption: 'As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.'
"The chief priests and Pharisees know that Jesus' parable is about themselves. Drawing on conditions in Galilee of the time, with rich absentee landowners and sullen tenant farmers, Jesus tells a story about the vineyard, already declared by Isaiah to be Israel.
“The tenant farmers abuse the agents sent to collect the owner's share of the produce, and finally, when the owner sends what must be his only son, they kill him, expecting to be able to take over the vineyard now that the heir is dead.
“How can we describe the mystery of God's willingness to bring life out of the death we cause?
"Only the Holy Spirit can lead us into the unfathomable depths of God's reckless love for us, the Creator of the universe willing to be rejected in order to transform our depravity into a grateful return of love.”
Posted by John
at 12:01 AM CST
