Come to the wedding

In this final parable in the trilogy of parables that Jesus addresses to the scribes and elders of the people after his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, Jesus draws on the image of the wedding banquet that Isaiah uses as a reminder that God has been inviting his people to share in the fullness of life with him as his Son and the bride (the Church) are united in the covenant of marriage. Just as many ignored or refused the invitation in the time of Jesus, so also many still refuse to come to the feast, or if they come, they fail to allow the hospitality of the Lord to impact upon them to change into the new life garments of justice, grace, mercy, love and peace.

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Recorded at St Paul's Camden, 10am (6'50")
Isaiah 25:6-14; Matthew 22:1-14

The fruit of creation

The parable in today's Gospel from Matthew 21 continues directly from the parable last week (and leads naturally into the final parable of judgement in this trilogy, which we will have next Sunday) and again is addressed to the chief priests and elders gathered in the temple forecourt, while the crowd looks on, on the Monday of Holy Week. The listeners would have immediately thought of the similar parable from Isaiah 5 (our first reading) or Psalm 79(80) which tell the history of the people of God through the allegory of a vineyard. The parable is entirely poignant - especially given the setting and timing and drives home the reality of the pending passion of Jesus. The parable provides the church with an opportunity for a sobering reflection upon our own lives and the call of the Lord to bear good fruit as the tenants of the vineyard.

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Recorded at SJV, 7'30" (the final weekend in the parish)

First and last

The parable that Jesus tells today, from the beginning of Matthew 20, about a landowner hiring workers for his vineyard throughout the day - some who begin work at 6am and work for 12 hours for the agreed standard wage, and then various other groups who are employed at 9am, 12pm, 3pm and 5pm - is probably not your favourite - nor even in the top ten of the 40 parables that Jesus told. Many people find this parable annoying and unfair - particularly people who have been actively involved in the church for a long time!

Strangely, when it comes time to make payment, the owner calls the latest arrivals first and begins by paying them the standard rate - not for an hour's work, but for 12 hours work. Of course, those who had worked longer therefore expected that they would receive a more generous rate of pay - instead they only get what they agreed to in the first place. No matter how much the owner protests that he is not being unfair - he is paying what they had agreed to work for - the parable goes against our deeply ingrained sense of fairness and justice - a sense that even the youngest of children are able to know. To demonstrate this, just try setting unequal portions of icecream before a group of children, or cakes that are different sizes!
So how do we make sense of this parable?

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Recorded at SJV, 8.30am (9'29")

What do we want from God?

Although we know many things about the life of King Solomon, we do not know how old he was when he came to the throne of Israel, to succeed his father David. Solomon is the tenth of David's sons, and as I Kings opens, he is described as not yet being an adult. So it is to a young and vulnerable Solomon , who doesn't "know how to go out or to go in" that the Lord appears in our first reading today, when He says "Ask what I shall give you." This kind of question occurs with some regularity across the pages of the scriptures and throughout Christian history: it seems that God wants to see what it is that we desire. How would we answer this question? What is our treasure hidden in a field? What is our pearl of great price?

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Recorded at St John Vianney Church, Mass with Disciples of Jesus Community (7'36")
Sunday 17, Year A. I Kings 3:5-14; Matthew 13:44-46

Wheat and weeds in the shining sun

How many times have we heard something described as an 'act of God' or a disaster of biblical proportions, and wondered in our hearts - if God is indeed all-loving and all-powerful - then where is he in these times? Why doesn't he step in and prevent these disasters? Why do we see such powerful signs of evil in the world?

The parables that Jesus tells in today's Gospel begin to answer these questions. The wheat and the weeds in the field do grow together; good and bad are not separated by nations or religions - both are present in the world and both are present in our hearts. Our call is to recognise that there will be a judgement day and there will be a separation - the weeds will be gathered and burnt; but the wheat will be the righteous who will shine like the sun in the kingdom of the Father.

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Recorded at Mater Dolorosa, 10am (9'59")
Sunday 16A. Matthew 13

Creative word

The Word of God is so creative, powerful and fruitful, that sometimes we need to go to a high place to see the incredible vista that the Lord provides before us. This is the image that St Paul uses in Romans 8 when he lifts us with him to see the vision of all creation groaning and longing for the revelation of the children of God. The powerful and prophetic Word of God (dabar) never returns empty - that is why the parable that Jesus tells of the sower of the seed is even more intriguing. The scattering of the seed willy-nilly suggests a farmer who is extremely foolish with such a precious commodity in first-century Israel. The grace the Lord offers is never stingy; he is always generous.

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Recorded at St Francis Xavier Cathedral, 10.30am (9'33")
Matthew 13:1-23; Isaiah 55:10-11; Romans 8:18-23

The decision of the dishonest manager

Sunday 25C - Luke 16:1-13

Across the Gospels, Jesus tells something like 40 parables (a good biblical number); there are 23 in Matthew, 9 in Mark, 28 in Luke but none in John; seven are found in all three of the Synoptic Gospels (Mt, Mk, Lk) and various ones are found in two gospels; some are unique to Matthew (10); one is unique to Mark; 15 are unique to the Gospel of Luke. Among these parables that are unique to the Gospel of Luke are some of the most-loved of all the parables that Jesus told - ones like the Good Samaritan and the ones that we had last Sunday - the lost sheep (also told in Matthew), the lost coin and the lost son. But I doubt if there are many people (if any?) who would claim the Parable of the dishonest manager as their most loved parable. Do you?
The parable has perplexed scholars and saints across the centuries - in part because it is not absolutely clear where the parable ends and the words of Jesus begin. Is the master (Greek kyrios) in 16:8 the master in the story or the Lord Jesus? Mostly today the parable is considered to finish at 16:8a, and the words of Jesus begin with "for the children of this age..." which makes sense.
So is it possible to read this powerful parable in a new way so that it may even become your favourite? Probably not, but let's try...

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Recorded at St John Vianney (11'26")