Do You Really Trust?

Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020
Is 5:1-7
Ps 80:9, 12, 13-14, 15-16, 19-20
Phil 4:6-9
MT 21:33-43

by Marc Massery

Do you truly trust that God will provide? The readings for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time assure us that He will. They also teach us to how be free from anxiety. 

In the Gospel reading from the book of Matthew, Christ tells a parable about a landowner who prepares for a fruitful harvest. The landowner in Christ's story leases his vineyard out to tenants and then leaves town. At harvest time, the landowner sends three servants to collect the rent. The tenants, wanting to keep all the money for themselves, beat and kill the rent collectors.

The landowner does not immediately fight back. Showing the tenants tremendous patience, he simply sends more servants. The tenants, however, kill the next group of servants, too. Finally, the landowner sends his own son to collect the rent, thinking, "They will respect my son" (Mt 21:37). In the end, the tenants kill his son as well, in the hopes of stealing his money.

Christ is telling an obvious allegory of the Jewish people of His time and their rejection of God's messengers. This parable, though, tells us more than the story of salvation history. It speaks to us here and now and asks: Why do we refuse to do God's will when He provides us with everything we need? To answer this question, we must contemplate why the tenants became greedy and violent to begin with.

When a new vineyard was planted, it took a minimum of two years for it to produce fruit. The tenants, therefore, had to remain patient in order to reap the benefits of their labor. All that time, though, they wondered if the harvest would provide enough to sustain them. Finally, when the harvest did come, fear influenced them to try to keep it all for themselves. This fear eventually led to them becoming violent. 

Though we do not necessarily have the temptation to kill like the tenants in the Gospel, we might worry if God will provide for us. Will I ever find the right person to marry? Will my marriage issues ever resolve? Will I make enough money to provide for my family? Will my children ever find their way? Will I ever find a job? Will I suffer with this illness forever? Does God really know what I need?

When we worry, we tend to turn from God and try to take our problems into our own hands. When we do, we act like the tenants. We do not recognize all that God has already provided for us, and we refuse to trust that He will provide for us in the future. The second reading from St. Paul says:

Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:6-7)

To combat anxiety, St. Paul suggests that we turn to God in prayer. When we tell God our needs, we can trust that He will provide everything for us. Sometimes, though, we can't help worrying about the future. After all, we are only human. We must, therefore, contemplate what St. Paul continues to say in the second reading:

[W]hatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things ... Then the God of peace will be with you. (Phil 4:8-9)

When we become filled with fear, we should do more than simply ask God to take it away. We must overwhelm the evil in our lives with goodness. Paul tells us how to do this. We must participate in things that are "just ... pure ... lovely ... gracious ... [and] excellent" (Phil 4: 8-9). We can do this by attending Mass, going to Confession, praying the Rosary, saying the Divine Office, and reading Scripture. Even listening to beautiful music can help us realize God's goodness.

We must, therefore, strive to follow God's will, trusting that He will provide for us. As Jesus tells St. Faustina in her Diary, "The graces of My mercy are drawn by means of one vessel only, and that is — trust. The more a soul trusts, the more it will receive." (1578)

We can increase our trust in Him by looking around at all God has already provided for us, and by contemplating holy things. When we do this, fear will no longer consume us, and we will come to appreciate the abuntant fruit God provides.

Photo by Maja Petric on Unsplash

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