Kings Without Kingdoms 

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

St. Gerard Majella Church

Baton Rouge, LA

October 5, 2014

Jesus tells another parable to the “chief priests and the elders of the people” and also to us. He tells about a landowner who leased his vineyard out to tenant farmers before embarking on a journey. While he was still away, he sent his servants to collect the rent, but the tenants turned on them with aggression and violence. Finally, the landowner sent his own son, thinking, “they will respect my son.” But on sighting his son, the tenants said to each other, “This is the heir to everything; if we kill him, we will have his inheritance!” So, they seized him, dragged him outside the vineyard, and killed him. Then Jesus asks his listeners, “When the owner of the vineyard returns, what do you think he will do to those tenants?” They answered him, “He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and lease his vineyard to other tenants who will make sure he gets his share when it is due.” Jesus ends the story with a warning, “Didn’t you ever read in the Scriptures, ‘The stone which builders rejected has become the keystone of the arch?’ Let me tell you something here: the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruits” (Matthew 21:33-43).

It’s not theologically wrong to assume that the landowner in this parable is God. The vineyard is the earth. The tenants are the chief priests, the elders of the people and God’s people in general. Before the advent of Jesus, God had sent several prophets to preach, teach, warn, straighten, and to guide his people. But several of these prophets were abused, ignored, and even killed by the Jewish leaders. Finally, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ. As soon as he began his ministry, he was an instant hit. He became a polarized figure: ordinary folks loved him, but the religious and political leaders hated him and sought for a way to put him to death. The chief priests and the elders of the people that Jesus spoke to in today’s Gospel were among those that hated him. They are the ones who would arrest him, judge him, accuse him before Pilate and get him executed. They would eventually throw the son out of the vineyard and kill him- a reference to Jesus being taken outside the city of Jerusalem to be crucified. But Jesus warns them that they would soon find themselves no longer in charge and others would be given the responsibility of leading God’s people and teaching them the ways of holiness. 

Jesus’ warning in today’s Gospel, “…the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruits” should be taken seriously by all and sundry. Professing Christianity, being outwardly pious, having an outward show of religion cannot guarantee anyone heaven unless they are matched by doing what is true, what is honorable, what is just, what is pure, what is lovely, what is gracious, what is excellent, and what is worthy of praise as St. Paul suggested in Philippians 4:8-9. When people ask what it means to be Catholic, we may attempt to answer such a question simply by making a reference to religious faith and practices like Mass, prayer, the sacraments etc. But being Catholic goes deeper than Mass attendance, saying the prayers and receiving the sacraments. Beyond these religious expressions must be an honest desire for justice, that is, living as God expects, doing as God wants, and thinking as God desires. Being a Catholic means welcoming God’s unsettling message and not seeking to silence God’s messengers. It means, not just looking at the quality of our religious practices, but at how these practices reflect and influence our lifestyles. It means allowing the Word of God we read in the Scripture and hear at Mass during preaching to confront our lives, influence the choices we make, challenge our attitudes and prejudices, expose our selfishness, and question our commitments. If we desire to be part of God’s kingdom, then our lives must be characterized by justice and integrity. We must bear the fruits of the kingdom which is living according to Jesus’ law of love. Christians who do not live according to the Lord’s law of love: “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34) are like a king without a kingdom. Christians who live under a different set of rules, rules not founded in love and compassion are like a king with no kingdom to call his own. Nominally, they are still Christians but they have left the fold and the Master. They may still be in the Church but they are out of the track. They are like a strayed flock of sheep that are no longer following the Shepherd.