Oleh Pastor Frandy Lahurus SVD
My dear brother and sister in Christ. In today’s Gospel, Jesus continues last week’s story of “The Vineyard and the Farmer” by talking about living according to God’s will, so that we can walk in the path of righteousness.
In this parable, there are three people that Jesus shows us. They are the father, the eldest son, and the second son. The father came to his two sons and said the same thing. “Son, go work in the vineyard today.”
After hearing his father’s story, the elder brother said, “No,” but then changed his mind and went to work in the vineyard. But the younger brother replied, “Dad, I understand,” but he did not go to work. What we see here is that the two sons have contrasting personalities.
The important point in this parable is the transition from the negative “no” to the affirmative “yes”. The older brother’s case is a shift from negative to positive thoughts and actions, from negation to affirmation. The younger brother’s case was a switch from affirmation to negation, from positive to negative thoughts. Here, when there was an opportunity to “think and reflect back on something that happened before”, the elder brother actively and obediently followed his father’s words.
I guess, there are many “negative things” in our lives. Changing our mindset from negative to positive might be the meaning of “thinking about and reflecting back on something that happened in our lives”. Therefore, take your time to always look back, rethink, and reflect on every event in your life according to God’s will. Who knows, there is something interesting that you can change and do in your life.
My dear brother and sister, following Jesus means not only listening to Jesus’ words but also living according to God’s will. This is a very important point. It is not just a matter of answering “yes” or “no”. God requires us to not only behave and act according to our hearts, but to behave, act, and live according to His will so that we can live and walk the path of true righteousness.
By the way, Last Sunday, I attended Mass at Melbourne Cathedral with the Archbishop of Melbourne, priests, and immigrants and refugees. The Mass was presided over by Archbishop Peter. The atmosphere of the Mass was very international, each country was given a role. The choir was a South Sudanese group, and the Kyrie song was sung in Arabic. The first reading was in Mandarin and the second in Portuguese. The Gospel procession and song were performed by the Tongan community. Common prayers were offered in Syriac, Croatian, Tagalog, Indonesian, Spanish, and Vietnamese. The offering song was performed by the Swahili community. It was very moving to see so many diverse people, even though they come from different countries, come together and offer Mass with one heart. I felt how beautiful and wonderful it is to live in love and peace.
Six years ago, on 2 October 2017, six deacons including myself, were ordained as priests in the Society of the Divine Word, and three deacons were ordained as priests in the Claretian Congregation in Nenuk, Atambua-West Timor, Indonesia. As a member of the Divine Word Society, I want to proclaim and witness God’s love to many people. As a priest, I try to face the twists and turns of my life journey, while surrendering them to God. I believe that only because of the blessings of my parents, siblings, extended family, and everyone who supports me, as well as God’s guidance, protection, and love, I am able to walk in the path of His love.
Carrying out God’s will means devoting everything to God to the fullest extent possible. Let us be people who receive God’s word honestly in our daily lives and live according to God’s will so that we can walk the path of righteousness. I hope everyone is doing well this week.
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