Glory be to Jesus Christ!
Are you into family histories? It is always interesting seeing family trees, and learning more about our ancestors. What sort of person was my great grandfather? What was life like for my great great aunt? How did she live a “normal day”? These family histories are not simply disjointed recordings of what happened in a time and place far away, but stories of how we have arrived where we are today. Some are lessons to repeat and some are warnings of what to completely reject. As the famous maxim goes “those who are ignorant of history are doomed to repeat it.”
In our reading today, Our Lord gives an overview of the history of His chosen people and their continual refusal to accept Him. Prophets were continually sent and rejected until finally the Son Himself was sent- and rejected. We read today of both tragedy and great honour. A great gift and an incredible responsibility has been given Christians- to cultivate, till and protect the Lord’s vineyard, His Church here on earth.
What does this mean for us here and now. I would suggest a couple of points:
- Read the Scriptures. Be familiar with the story, our family story. Only then can we appreciate all that was done and is being done for us. Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ, and without knowing where we have been, we have a very difficult time knowing where we are going.
- Consider how your everyday actions affect the vineyard we have been entrusted with. We have received a priceless and eternal gift and responsibility. How are we managing it?
As we continue our pilgrimage to the Nativity of our Lord, let us continue to meet Him in the Scriptures He has gifted to us, and the Church He has entrusted us with!
