THE LABORERS WHO CAME
TO WORK AT DIFFERENT TIMES
Christ told this
parable: There was an owner of an estate who went to hire workmen
for his vineyard. He hired some early in the morning, others at
mid-morning, then again at noon, mid-afternoon and finally in later
afternoon. He hired those who were idle. At the end of the day he
gave each one his due, a denarius.
The vineyard of the
Lord is a way of life wherewith one works out his salvation by
acquiring a perfect knowledge of the commands of Christ and obeying
those commands. If one's knowledge is imperfect, one's obedience
would be imperfect too. St. Peter states that perfect obedience to
one command is obedience to all the commands. "Bear one another's
burden and in this way you will obey the law of Christ." So merely
bearing patiently all the defects of those around us is considered
obedience to all the commands of Christ...that is, if we do it
perfectly. St. Peter adds however that disobedience to one is
disobedience to all.
Though the invitations
at different times refer to the different times God called peoples
or the Israelites to obey His commands, it also refers to present
day Christians who are personally invited to work in the vineyard at
an early age, some at middle age and others during their old age.
Proof of this is the different ages of the saints in the Catholic
Church.
In Scriptures, we are
aware of two different calls made by God. One may be described as a
general call made to all, like the call Christ made to the
multitude; and there is the more personal or individual call which
Christ made to His disciples. The parable above refers more to the
personal call to follow Christ seriously and is usually made to
those who have already answered the general
invitation.
Those who worked in the
early morning and those who worked late in the afternoon received
the same wage...symbolized by the denarii. This is eternal happiness
in heaven that is equally given to all. But each will shine in
different ways in heaven depending on the degree of
holiness.
The complaining workers
are out of place in the parable because true disciples working in
the vineyard of the Lord never complain nor are they envious of
others. Their work presumes they are charitable. "The first shall be
last and the last shall be first," is also out of place because the
first, in the parable, did not become last nor the last become
first. They were all equal. Christ often adds these thoughts to
remind us how hard it is to enter the kingdom of heaven and
therefore, we should take our salvation seriously.
Blessed
Theoplylact: On Matthew
(updated
02-09-02) |