You may have heard this story before, but please indulge me:
A severe storm was approaching, and local officials sent out an emergency
warning that riverbanks would soon overflow and flood nearby homes.
A certain man heard the warning and began to pray that God
would save him from the flood.
Not long after the rains began, the man’s neighbor came to
his house, and the neighbor pleaded: “Please come with my family! There’s room in our car for you” But the man
declined, saying “I have faith that God will save me.”
As the storm grew more severe and began to flood the
neighborhood, the man stood on his porch and watched the water rise up the
steps of his front porch. Another neighbor, this time in a canoe paddled up to
the house and called to the man, “Hurry and get into my canoe, the waters are
rising quickly!” But the man again said, “No, I have faith that God will save
me.”
The floodwaters rose higher pouring water into his living
room and the man had to retreat to the second floor. A police motorboat rode up
to the house. “We will rescue you!” they shouted. But the man refused, waving
them off saying, “Use your time to save someone else! I have faith that God
will save me!”
The flood waters rose higher and higher and the man had to
climb up to his rooftop.
A helicopter spotted him and dropped a rope ladder. The
rescue squad pleaded with the man, "Grab the roap and we will pull you
up!" But the man STILL refused, folding his arms tightly to his body. “No
thank you! God will save me!”
The ferocious waters destroyed the house and swept the man
away and he drowned.
The man appeared before the Holy Trinity, and he said “I put
all of my faith in You. Why didn’t You come and save me?”
And God said, “I sent you a warning. I sent you a car. I
sent you a canoe. I sent you a motorboat. I sent you a helicopter. You rejected
my help at every turn. What more could
you want?”
A good story.
Reminding us that we often do not recognize God’s hand in our
lives. Sometimes we even reject the good
things God wants for us.
And isn’t that what happened in the Gospel? The vineyard owner sends his servants into
the vineyard to obtain his produce. The
tenants reject the vineyard owner’s servants.
Beat them, kill them. They even
rejected the vineyard owner’s son.
Jesus tells this parable, in Jerusalem, shortly before his
own passion, when he is rejected and killed.
Just like the man in the story who was washed away by the floodwaters,
and just like the wicked tenants who will be punished for betraying the
vineyard owner, Jesus explains that there are consequences for rejecting those
people and those truths God sends into our lives. When we harden our hearts against God, like
the wicked tenants, there are disastrous results.
Isaiah the prophet, 600 years before the birth of Christ
also used the image of a vineyard. Isaiah
preached to a people who had already experienced the ransacking and destruction
of the vineyard. Israel had been invaded
by their enemies, the temple was destroyed, the people carried off into
captivity.
Isaiah explained that the reason for their exile was that
they had heardened their hearts against the commandments of God. And this made them vulnerable to their
enemies. Sin brought division. Sin has real consequences.
This was true for Israel, this was true for ancient Rome, so
obsessed with decadence that they became vulnerable to barbarian invasion. This is true for America and for all of
us. Replacing religion with sports or
entertainment or business has consequences.
St. Francis, whose feast day was yesterday, lived in a time
of decadence; Christians grew ignorant of their faith, they were not going to
Church, not following the commandments, churches were neglected and fell into
disrepair, and Church leaders didn’t seem to be doing much about it.
Francis embraced Gospel poverty and dedicated himself to
preaching in order to help rebuild a Church weakened by sin and ignorance and
worldliness. Remember the wonderful
story of Francis kneeling in prayer in the crumbling chapel of San Damiano. As Francis knelt and prayed in front of the
crucifix, Jesus began to speak to him, saying,
“Francis, rebuild my Church.”.
Francis, initially took this
literally; he and his followers began to repair the chapel of San Damiano. However, the real renewal and rebuilding came
through Francis’ preaching and Gospel living--he devoted himself radically to
Christ and this brought great renewal of faith.
The Church of Francis' time was beset by heresy and also
luxurious and opulent living amongst the clergy and the aristocracy. He and his brothers brought tremendous
renewal to the Church in Europe.
In 1209, Francis traveled to Rome with his little band of
brothers, to meet the newly elected Pope Innocent III; to ask the Pope to
officially recognize his group of friars as a genuine religious order.
At the time, there were many heretical groups in Italy,
particularly dangerous were the Cathari, who were very hostile towards the
institutional Church. So initially, Pope
Innocent was hesitant to approve this group of itinerant preachers calling
themselves the Friars Minor.
The night after meeting Francis, Pope Innocent had a
dream. Pope Innocent dreamt he stood
looking out over the Lateran Church and watched with fear as the proud and
ancient building shook, the tower swung, and the walls began to crack, it was
in danger of collapsing in on itself. Suddenly, a small common looking man came
towards the Lateran. He was dressed in peasant garb, was barefoot, and wore a
rope around his waist for a belt. Rushing to the falling Church, he set his
shoulder in under the wall and with a mighty push straightened the whole
falling church, so that it again stood aright. The pope then recognized the man
as Francis of Assisi.
Pope Francis recognized that
authenticity of Francis’ vocation; that Francis would bring great renewal to
the Church as he attracted people to the radical commitment to the Gospel.
I don't know if these stories were
in the Holy Father's mind when he chose the name Francis. But we pray for Pope Francis, that he, and
along with all bishop, clergy, Church leaders will work for authentic renewal
in the Church.
To reject what God sends us,
particularly the moral and doctrinal teaching of the Church, always has
disastrous results. But when we are
faithful, when we teach our children to accept and profess all the Church
teaches, when we seek to perfect ourselves in the virtues, in the practice of
Christian faith, hope, and charity, the Church is renewed.
May we repent of all that we have rejected from God, and be
strengthened in holiness through the Sacred Mysteries we celebrate today, for
the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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