Gospel:
Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46
Jesus
said to the chief priests and the elders of the people: “Hear another parable.
There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a wine
press in it, and built a tower. Then he leased it to tenants and went on a
journey. When vintage time drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to
obtain his produce. But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,
another they killed, and a third they stoned.
Again he
sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones, but they treated them
in the same way. Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking, ‘They will respect
my son.’ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is
the heir. Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’ They seized him,
threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
What will
the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?”They answered him,
“He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and lease his vineyard to
other tenants who will give him the produce at the proper times.”Jesus said to
them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures: The stone that the builders
rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is
wonderful in our eyes?
Therefore,
I say to you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a
people that will produce its fruit.” When the chief priests and the Pharisees
heard his parables, they knew that he was speaking about them. And although
they were attempting to arrest him, they feared the crowds, for they regarded
him as a prophet.
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Reflection:
One of
the gifts that Jesus gave us is our Catholic faith, Jesus gave this to us
through our baptism. Does this gift of faith end with our baptism? No, Jesus is
also expecting us to share this gift of our baptism by living and sharing our
faith.
We read
in our gospel this Friday that there was a landowner who leased his vineyard to
some tenants. After a period of time the landowner was now demanding his share
of their produce. But they did not give him his share, the tenants were ruled
by greed that they kept to themselves the fruits of the vineyard.
The same
is true with the gift of faith that Jesus gave us, Jesus expects us to share
the fruits of our faith. Let us not be content with status quo let us move and
do something so that we could share our faith for this is what Jesus demands
from us.
For
example, why don’t you share your faith with the members of your family by
inviting them to go to Holy Mass? Why don’t you share your faith with them by
having a regular time for family reflection about the words of Jesus in the
bible? Or perhaps by praying the Holy
Rosary which can certainly strengthen the unity of your family.
What have
you done so far with this gift of faith that Jesus gave you through the
Sacrament of Baptism? Have you shared it already most especially with the
members of your family? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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