Today’s readings contrast the selfishness of rich shepherds with evil bent, who grow sleek at the expense of their flock, with the Good Shepherd who seeks the strays and heals the sick, tending them with compassion and care. As His sheep, we must bear careful attention to every word uttered by the Lord and strive to emulate Him in our own roles as servant leaders.
Woe to you, Selfish Shepherds
The lesson is clear: Woe to the shepherds who seek only to pastor themselves.
We all have sheep in our flock, and the Lord will ask us to render an account of our shepherding. The Lord sees and observes and cannot be deceived. He sees the tyrants who devour the fat lambs. Also, He sees the negligent who have no concern for those within their sphere of responsibility. He sees those absorbed in their own selfish interests, who ignore the weak, the lost and the straying. He minces no words: Should not shepherds, rather, pasture sheep? Ezekiel 34:2b
Our Lord sees, and he promises the likes of these: ‘I am coming against you, to reclaim what is rightfully mine’. We can feel the righteous indignation welling up as it must in the just Ruler of the World. We cannot escape Our Omniscient Lord.
Envy meets Magnanimity
The Gospel presents us the parable of the generous vintner hiring laborers for his vineyard. The earliest workers are swollen with unwarranted indignation and claim to bear the brunt of injustice when they see the latecomers walk off with the same wages as they do. They judge that the landowner is treating them unfairly and they try to impose their morality on him, but he is having none of it.
[Or] am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous?’ Matthew 20:15
God lavishes all of His children with undeserved graces. Instead of being satisfied, greed can fuel a desire for more in a vicious, endless cycle. God would prefer us to become magnanimous like Him in sharing our own resources with others. Everything we have is from God. Each of us enjoys daily, unmerited graces from God.
All of us are equal in His sight: rich or poor, smart or dull, first or last. Each of us is beloved.
Clocking In
All three readings are excellent fodder for reflection. The tyrannical shepherd is contrasted with the extravagant vineyard owner. Psalm 23 describes the Good Shepherd, the One we are called to emulate with Jesus’ own words: Be Ye Perfect.
Our success as shepherds of our own realities depends on the measure with which we allow the Good Shepherd to lead us, to bind up our wounds, to heal us, to form us and to send us. If we liken working in the vineyard of today’s parable with building the kingdom, the question is: at what hour did we enter? At dawn, 9, noon, 3 or 5? When the sands of time run out, will we be disgruntled like the early bird or thankful like the latecomer?
Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.” Matthew 20: 16
Our generous God relentlessly seeks us out in order to bestow His graces upon us. Working in the Lord’s vineyard is itself our gift. Our reward is to bask in His divine plenitude. The promise is eternity. All we need care about is getting to heaven; surely it would be churlish of us to demand a higher rank in heaven. Our joy stems from loving and being loved by the King.
