Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church

Homily for September 18, 2005
Liturgical Year A-Cycle I
25th Sunday in Ordinary Time
by Fr. John Carney
Topic: Envy
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Gospel
Mt 20:1-16a
Jesus told his disciples this parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard.  After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard.  Going out about nine o’clock, the landowner saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard, and I will give you what is just.’ So they went off.  And he went out again around noon, and around three o’clock, and did likewise.  Going out about five o’clock, the landowner found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’ When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage.  So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage.  And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying, ‘These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat.’ He said to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you.  Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage?  Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you?  Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money?  Are you envious because I am generous?’ Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
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I’d like to thank you for your expressions of condolences, concerning the tragic loss last night that Notre Dame suffered against Michigan State. Because of that loss, Father Joshua and I got into our first fight, seriously.  He had the 6 o'clock mass and Notre Dame lost in overtime.  I take this seriously.  I was a little upset, and he came in and he said, “Did your team win?”  I said, “No, they lost.”  And he said, “Good.  I wanted to see how you would react.”  And I went on to show him.  True story.  We did not eat together last night.  This morning, Joshua, bless his heart, he said, “I am sorry, Father.  I know I upset you.”  So we reconciled.  I told him, “Never let that happen again.”  Anybody from MSU, Michigan State. Gary, the bank president?  Congratulations.  By the way, if your alma mater plays Notre Dame, it's not a sin to root for your alma mater, because you get a dispensation.  Now, let’s get back to church.
 
This very familiar story, where the laborers go out at 5 in the morning and they are very happy to get the job. Then others go out at 9, and others go out at noon, and others go out at 5.  It looks like a 12-hour day here, from 6 AM to 6 PM.  Every time I read this gospel, even though I get the message that Christ is using in this parable, every time I read it, I kind of take the side of the angry workers, you know what I mean?  How well would you do if you were looking for work, and you needed a day’s pay to survive, and you took the job. Later, you were in line to get your pay, and you see the guy who worked only an hour is paid a full day’s wages?  You’d be going, “All righty, then.  I’m going to get an extra bonus.”  When you receive the same amount, you wouldn’t be happy, would you? Yet, the parable is clear.  You have not been cheated.  You got what you asked for, what you wanted, what you were happy to work for.  Why are you unhappy about another’s good fortune?  But that feeling that we have, even knowing what this story is about, that feeling we have, of being cheated, is in itself, envy.  That’s what that is, that feeling.  That’s envy.  We got what we deserved, what we asked for, what we wanted, what we expected, and yet we even vicariously, through this story, feel that envy. 
 
We know a lot about envy.  We know a lot about envy in the family. A sibling rivalry that starts with toys ends up years later with displeasure over mom’s will.  “She gave us all ten thousand, but I took care of her.  You never even called her.”  Isn’t it mom’s right to give the money as she felt? 

We know about envy at work, don’t we?  We know about envy in the church, believe me.  There was a time, before I began studying for the priesthood, when I thought that the church was this little idyllic perfect society.  I really did – and I’m from New York– I’ve been around.  I’m supposed to be hard to fool.  By the church, I don’t mean the beautiful body of Christ; I mean its ministers, and its people, us.  You ask a bishop, “Why don’t you name many monsignors?”  Well, monsignor is honorific; it has no power to do any thing.  It’s just a way of honoring a priest who has served well.  However, I tell you, they don’t want to name a monsignor because they make one guy happy and a hundred guys angry at his good fortune, at his honor at being named. 

In my former parish, each year at our fiesta time in October, we would pick an individual or a family to honor.  Just lift them up, and say, “Look at this family.  Look what they have done.”  Do you know how much friction that created?  That is envy and it is just part of us. I tell you, nothing makes us uglier than the sin of envy.  There are seven capital sins, one of which is envy, and it makes us ugly.  In fact, what’s the expression, what color goes with envy?  Yeah, “He’s green with envy.”  There are no green people, but if there were, they would be ugly. 
 
It is an ugly thing, this envy.  We know the cure for it is to be aware of our own blessings, and be thankful for them.  If I started to talk about my blessings, we would be here all day.  Is it the same with you?  Are you blessed?  Yes.  So, why should we be envious of anyone else, when we are so richly blessed?  By the way, even those people who suffer so much, through debilitating health problems, you ask them if they are blessed.  If they have faith in Christ Jesus, they feel very much richly blessed, for God has shared His cross with them in a special way.  Then, if we recognize our own gifts, we can then appreciate the gifts that others have, their blessings.  If we really are the Body of Christ, we together will use all our blessings to make this a better church, a better town, a better country, a better world. 
 
This story today, this parable today, is really a story about God’s ways and our ways.  “As far as the sky is above the earth are God’s ways above our ways,” as the scriptures tell us.  We know that.  We just do not understand God.  We try to make God like ourselves, that’s why we want, “Well, if I did more than she did then I should get more than she does.”  That’s not God’s way.  God is incredibly generous to every person, to all of His children.  He is like the loving father when the prodigal son comes home, and he treats him like royalty.  He puts a ring on his finger, sandals on his feet, slaughters the fatted calf, “For the son that was lost is now found.”  He gives him a full share in the family’s life.  The elder son is envious, and angry, because he deserves more. 

So often, we are like the elder son. I think part of the reason we are like this, is that we judge a person’s value based on his wealth or accomplishments, to some degree.  If you took a homeless person home for dinner, that would be nice.  If the president was going to dine with you, or the governor. Oh!  We just place such importance, don’t we, on people’s status, position and wealth.  God doesn’t.  Father O’Connor said, “God does not care one whit about your wealth or accomplishments.  He is not impressed.  He loves you for who you are, His child, made in the image of God from the moment you were conceived in your mother’s womb.  You are sacred and precious.  That’s why God showers so many blessings and gifts upon you.”  If we knew that, we wouldn’t be jealous and envious of one another.  If we understood that, if we could see ourselves like God sees us, we would see our true worth and value, and envy and jealousy would cease. 
 
Here is another parable I’d like to share with you today. It is a true story but it serves as a parable.  It happened in 1998, so it’s a modern story.  It concerns a man named Ed Leonard, who was a drill foreman for a Canadian mining company in Columbia.  The name of the company was Terra Mundo.  Leonard was drill foreman, drilling for minerals and diamonds.  The leftist communist revolutionaries or FARC kidnapped him. He was held for over three months.  The company, Terra Mundo Canada, refused to pay the ransom to the rebels but they still negotiated with the rebels to try to get their employee back.  Finally, they struck a deal for Ed Leonard’s release.  The owner of the company, a Catholic man named Norbid Rinehart, would swap with him. Rinehart organized this deal and he met the rebels. For the first time, Rinehart met Leonard, in the jungle, and they switched.  In fact, Rinehart looked at Leonard and said, “Your shift is over.  You can go home.”  He took his place.  Fortunately, some months later, Rinehart himself was released.  I’m not sure if he was ransomed, perhaps the rebels just admired the fellow so much that they released him.  Now, if you were Ed Leonard, would you say that you are important to your company?  If the boss traded his life for yours, wouldn't you say that you are important?

Do you see where this is going?  Look at the crucifix, that huge crucifix up there.  The Father sent His Son, and He traded His life for yours.  WOW!  Are you important to God?  Are you sacred?  Are you precious?  Indeed you are.  We need to realize that, each and every one of us.  Regardless of wealth, accomplishments or degrees, how sacred the human person is.  If we recognize that, we will support and affirm each other, and we will never be envious of each other.  You do not look good in green. Put on the red of Jesus Christ, His Body and Blood.