There was a very young couple who got married. At first, both of them immensely loved each other. However, when the husband was hired to a high paying job, he had dumped his wife and kids then went away with another woman. The wife and the kids were financially and emotionally devastated for years. Until one day, the adulterous husband lost his possessions, women, and health. Nobody came to visit the husband in his death bed except for the family he had abandoned. Seeing this, the man wept and asked forgiveness from his family whom he had neglected for many years. His wife replied, "Even before you asked for forgiveness, I have already forgiven you. You're still the man I love. You're still the father of our children. At best, you are home, with us."
There are certain occasions in our lives wherein we experience this irony: we take things for granted but engage ourselves with the wrong ones. Oftentimes, we disrespect people or circumstances until we realize their worth once they leave. We belittle those janitors only to find their significance in fighting this present epidemic. Then more painfully, we reject the pieces of advice of our parents only to find ourselves in a miserable position at present.
In today's gospel, we find Jesus giving a long parable about the cruelty of the tenants of the vineyard. After hearing Jesus, the people hypothesized that these criminal tenants will be put to a wretched end. Surprisingly, the answer of Jesus was not focused on the judgement of unworthy tenants rather He magnified His relentless love over our sins by citing a scriptural passage which says, "The stone which the builders rejected has become the corner stone." We may have not revered God the way we ought to revere Him in prayer. We may have rejected God by not doing kindness to our neighbors. But just the same, God wants us to understand that His love makes us stand tall despite our unworthiness. May this truth bring us closer to Him. Amen.
TGIFY-Reflection #33
(Thank God It's Fri Yey!)
March 13, 2020