Reading
Matthew 21:33-43.45
33 “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. 34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
35 “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. 36 Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37 Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
38 “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ 39 So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40 “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
41 “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
“‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
43 “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.
45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them.
Meditation
The parable of the murderous tenants is a strong warning from Jesus to Israel who refused divine favors, first by killing the prophets and now trying to kill the Son of God. However, a more general teaching can also be drawn from the parable, valid for all Christians as a reminder to remain faithful to the Gospel.
The vineyard is a common symbol of the Jewish nation in the scriptures. The servants allude to the prophets sent by God to Israel, while the fruits of the vine are the good works claimed by God. The people who will make the vine bear fruit in place of the unfaithful workers represent the new community of believers, made up of Jews and pagans.
God has given us the precious heritage of the Scriptures, of the apostolic tradition, and of the sacraments, with which he satisfies us with spiritual goods. This is the vine planted in the center of his church, which bears fruit in abundance. We are called to take care of it, to enjoy its fruits, and to make every man participate in it. Faith cannot express itself in an individualistic or sectarian experience. The Church of Christ is an open and missionary community.
There is a temptation lurking at all times: that of the winemakers not to consider themselves simple tenants but, by getting rid of the servants and the son of the owner himself, to set themselves up as owners of the vineyard. It is the temptation to place as a principle of authority in the Church not God, but man, just as the Pharisees had placed their own human traditions above the Mosaic law.
The risk is that of misappropriation of Scripture; to make it one's own to profit from it or to barter it for some human doctrine. But the Lord protects his vineyard and the rebellious forces will not prevail over his Church, planted by his right hand, built on Christ.
Prayer
Come, o Lord, and visit your vineyard; water it with your Spirit so that it will bear fruit in abundance and your Son will find us on his return as faithful and hardworking servants. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
