20200819 PRIVILEGES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
19 August, 2020, Wednesday, 20th Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading | Ezekiel 34:1-11 © |
An oracle against bad and selfish shepherds
The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows: ‘Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them:
‘“Shepherds, the Lord says this: Trouble for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shepherds ought to feed their flock, yet you have fed on milk, you have dressed yourselves in wool, you have sacrificed the fattest sheep, but failed to feed the flock. You have failed to make weak sheep strong, or to care for the sick ones, or bandage the wounded ones. You have failed to bring back strays or look for the lost. On the contrary, you have ruled them cruelly and violently. For lack of a shepherd they have scattered, to become the prey of any wild animal; they have scattered far. My flock is straying this way and that, on mountains and on high hills; my flock has been scattered all over the country; no one bothers about them and no one looks for them.
‘“Well then, shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. As I live, I swear it – it is the Lord who speaks – since my flock has been looted and for lack of a shepherd is now the prey of any wild animal, since my shepherds have stopped bothering about my flock, since my shepherds feed themselves rather than my flock, in view of all this, shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. The Lord says this: I am going to call the shepherds to account. I am going to take my flock back from them and I shall not allow them to feed my flock. In this way the shepherds will stop feeding themselves. I shall rescue my sheep from their mouths; they will not prey on them any more.”
‘For the Lord says this: “I am going to look after my flock myself and keep all of it in view.”’
Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 22(23) © |
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
He guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
You have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:135 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Let your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your decrees.
Alleluia!
Or: | Heb4:12 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
The word of God is something alive and active:
it can judge secret emotions and thoughts.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 20:1-16 © |
Why be envious because I am generous?
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner going out at daybreak to hire workers for his vineyard. He made an agreement with the workers for one denarius a day, and sent them to his vineyard. Going out at about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market place and said to them, “You go to my vineyard too and I will give you a fair wage.” So they went. At about the sixth hour and again at about the ninth hour, he went out and did the same. Then at about the eleventh hour he went out and found more men standing round, and he said to them, “Why have you been standing here idle all day?” “Because no one has hired us” they answered. He said to them, “You go into my vineyard too.” In the evening, the owner of the vineyard said to his bailiff, “Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with the last arrivals and ending with the first.” So those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came forward and received one denarius each. When the first came, they expected to get more, but they too received one denarius each. They took it, but grumbled at the landowner. “The men who came last” they said “have done only one hour, and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day’s work in all the heat.” He answered one of them and said, “My friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius? Take your earnings and go. I choose to pay the last comer as much as I pay you. Have I no right to do what I like with my own? Why be envious because I am generous?” Thus the last will be first, and the first, last.’
PRIVILEGES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Ezekiel 34:1-11; Matthew 20:1-16 ]
In the first reading, God called the shepherds, the rulers of Israel, to account for their role in protecting and guarding the people of God. The Lord reprimanded the rulers for not taking care of their people. “You have failed to make weak sheep strong, or to care for the sick ones, or bandage the wounded ones. You have failed to bring back strays or look for the lost. On the contrary, you have ruled them cruelly and violently. For lack of a shepherd they have scattered, to become the prey of any wild animal; they have scattered far.” Indeed, they had neglected their responsibilities as shepherds of Israel. The people were suffering and losing direction because of weak and irresponsible leadership. They failed to care for them, improve their living conditions, and to rule with justice and compassion. They were corrupt, greedy and self-indulgent.
Not only did they fail to exercise the responsibilities that came with the office of shepherds, they took their privileges for granted. To be appointed as the shepherd of Israel, to shepherd the People of God on behalf of Yahweh was a great honor. Indeed, leadership is a gift from God. It is a position of trust that comes with both responsibilities and privileges. Unfortunately, many leaders abuse their office. They are only interested to enjoy the privileges but not shoulder the burden and responsibilities of the office. This was how the shepherds of Israel conducted themselves. The Lord says, “Trouble for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shepherds ought to feed their flock, yet you have fed on milk, you have dressed yourselves in wool, you have sacrificed the fattest sheep, but failed to feed the flock.” In truth, the privileges accorded to leaders are not so much for the individual personally but for the office. This explains why the privileges are taken away once a person gives up the office. Privileges are given not to boost the ego of the leader but to ensure that the leader can function properly and efficiently without unnecessary inconvenience. The moment a leader thinks that the privileges are meant for him personally, he becomes egoistic and is carried away by pride and arrogance.
This same attitude also prevailed among the Jews during the time of Jesus. They were truly the Chosen People of God. Instead of seeing it as a privilege, it had become a right. They demanded special treatment from the rest of humanity. They thought that their place in the Kingdom of God was their right simply because they belonged to the Jewish place. Most of all, they worked for it by obeying the laws. All other peoples, even if accepted into the kingdom, were at best second-class. Thus, they were against Jesus opening the Kingdom to all; sinners, tax-collectors and even non-Jews. However, this same attitude also prevails among some of us Catholics. We think that just because we are baptized, are involved in church activities, given much donation to the church, helped the church in different capacities, we deserve special treatment by the church authorities. We expect special seats in events, special recognition and honour. We demand to be treated differently from the rest because we have given much to the church.
We must take note of a nuance in difference between the Jews and the Israelite leaders with respect to the way they regarded their privileges and responsibilities. The latter were irresponsible with regard to their office and took their privileges for granted. In the gospel, it was not so much that they were irresponsible but they considered the privileges they received as the People of God their right. However, unlike their forefathers, they worked hard for the privileges. So on both counts; whether the benefits they received came from their privileged position as the People of God, or from their hard work and observance of the laws, they became self-righteous and calculative. They felt that they should be rewarded according to the work they had done. Privileges are not sufficient but merits are required.
In a way, this thinking is not wrong. Enjoying the privileges without living out our responsibilities is an abuse of grace. God pronounced the sentence on the bad shepherds of Israel. “I am going to call the shepherds to account. I am going to take my flock back from them and I shall not allow them to feed my flock. In this way the shepherds will stop feeding themselves. I shall rescue my sheep from their mouths; they will not prey on them any more.” Even St Peter emphasized that grace must be expressed in good works. “Therefore, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble.” (2 Pt 1:10)
However, the gospel wants to underscore the primacy of grace lest we fall into self-righteousness. When we fail to see the position and office given to us as a grace of God, we become arrogant and self-serving. We might not have taken our privileges for granted but worked hard for them. This is where we overlook the fact that even the ability to work hard and do well in life is dependent on the grace of God in the first place. Without the opportunities given to us, we would never have been able to become who we are today. Hence, we must always remain humble and grateful even if we are responsible to our office, for this is God’s grace.
This is why the Lord told them the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. The first batch of workers employed to work in the vineyard agreed to be paid a denarius for a day’s work. But at the end of the day when the landowner paid those who came at the last hour the same amount as those who started to work at the first hour, the latter grumbled. They said, “The men who came last, have done only one hour, and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day’s work in all the heat.” What was the response of the master? “My friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius. Take your earnings and go. I choose to pay the last-comer as much as I pay you.”
The self-righteous failed to realize that being hired to work at the beginning of the day itself is a privilege. To be chosen as the People of God, to be baptized as Catholics is a privilege. Many others also deserve that privilege but were not given that grace. To be chosen as a leader is also a privilege because there are many other equally fit, if not more capable and intelligent, people than us to assume leadership. Regardless whether we are recruited earlier or later, it is always a privilege to begin with. So the Lord was telling them to be grateful that they were called instead of comparing themselves with those who came after them.
There is also ignorance in the way the self-righteous people viewed their responsibilities. They saw it as a burden when it is in fact a blessing. For the workers to start work early means that they were spared the anxiety of waiting idly to be employed the whole day. Furthermore, by putting themselves into the work they did, they grew in experience and skills. So we must never think that because we work longer than others, the payment should just be in monetary terms or in kind. In fact, the tangible payment in terms of personal development, experience and exposure is greater than any other worldly remuneration we get. For those employed later, especially the worker at the last hour, he would have spent the whole day worrying anxiously whether he could bring home money to feed his family. It was not his fault that he was idling in the market because he was waiting for someone to offer him work. It was not because he was lazy but he did not receive the grace of work.
Hence, for those of us who have work or are baptized earlier compared to the latecomers, we should not envy them. Rather, we should rejoice that they were not too late to share the joys which we got to enjoy much earlier. The inability to welcome others to share our joys shows that we lack magnanimity of heart and most of all, the arrogance that we have earned our place and position in life. As the Lord said, “‘Have I no right to do what I like with my own? Why be envious because I am generous?’ Thus the last will be first, and the first, last.'” God is not unjust but we are selfish and narrow-minded. On the contrary, God is more just than us because those who came in late as the grace was received late, was in truth paid less all in all than those who came in earlier.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved. The contents of this page may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission from the Archbishop’s Office. This includes extracts, quotations, and summaries.
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