26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Sunday, September 28, 2008
St. Clement’s Catholic Church; Saratoga Springs, NY

Isaiah 55: 6 – 9
Psalm 145: 2 – 3, 8 – 9, 17 – 18
Philippians 1: 20c – 24, 27a
Matthew 20: 1 – 16a

As we listened to today’s Gospel, I am sure that there were many parents nodding their heads in agreement with the parable that Jesus shares with us. Many parents in here have probably had the experience of asking their children to do some chore around the house only to get one excuse or another. One of the worse days of the week in the seminary was Saturday – Saturday was everyone’s day off. So, by Saturday evening the dishes were piled a mile high by the dishwasher. Occasionally I would ask one of the seminarians to perhaps do the dishes and sometimes I would get a positive response while other times I’d get the excuses. It was hard to argue with a seminarian who said they were on the way to study at the library and even tougher when they said they were going to spend some time in prayer in the chapel.

But Jesus is not talking to us about children doing or not doing their household chores. (Although it is very bad for children to avoid their chores around the house.) :) The message that Jesus offers us today is that our actions have to match up with our words. At the beginning of Mass we ask the Lord for forgiveness as we said: “Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.” Did we really think about the words as we said them? Did we truly mean that we were asking the Lord for forgiveness for the times when we harmed our brothers and sisters of failed to love our God? They should not be empty words but words that are lived out in our lives. Later on in this Mass we will receive the Body and Blood of Christ. We come forward and myself or a Eucharistic Minister will say to you: “The Body of Christ.” “The Blood of Christ.” Our response will be: “AMEN.” I believe! Yes, I believe. We believe the lord will enter our heart and our soul but when we say Amen are we just mouthing empty words? How does it affect our lives when we leave this church? Do we say ”AMEN” just because that is what we are taught or because we truly mean it?

The son who says Yes to the Father in the Gospel but fails to go into the vineyard fails to live up to what he promised. The son who at first refuses and then does what his father asks shows us that what is more important in our lives is our actions. We are called to live the commandments of Jesus, live them with our lives every moment we are alive. We are called not to just nod our heads in agreement when asked if we are a follower of Christ but we are called to put into action the faith we say we believe in.

Today in the midst of our 9:30am Mass there will be a group of adults who are beginning the year long process of entering the Catholic Church. These adults are saying “Yes” to the Lord. A Yes that they uttered a long time ago and they are now asking to continue to journey deeper with the relationship of the Lord. They should be inspirational to us to continue to utter our own yes to the Lord. Many of us were baptized as infants when our parents and godparents said they would raise us in the practice of the faith. For those of us who have been confirmed it was a time for all of us to stand up and say that we wanted to be part of the Church. The words at our baptisms were spoken for us by others and the words at our confirmation we spoke for ourselves. Those words are not just one time utterances. The Yes the members who are seeking entrance into the church are not just one time words. The words need to be spoken on a daily basis and not just spoken but are lived out in our actions. It is not a onetime event but it is a lifelong process.

The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard who lived in the 19th century once wrote, "There is no such thing as being a Christian; there is only becoming a Christian." In other words, following Jesus is a process during which we journey toward full conversion. We are not just Christians because we say so in words but we become Christians as we live and act on it each and every day.

This is what our faith is all about. We do not wake up the day after saying yes at our baptism and/or confirmation and wipe our hands saying that we are finished. Our yes to the Lord in those sacraments are simply a beginning, the start of a life long journey where we need to say yes to the Lord each and every day when we awake. A yes that does not solely take the form of the words we speak but in the actions we do. We are not simply a follower of Jesus Christ but our daily actions help us to grow into a follower of the Lord.

For anyone who has played sports one knows that to be a good athlete the action needs to be completed. You do not stop halfway through when you throw a baseball, kick a soccer ball or hit a golf ball. There is something important that needs to be done –- one needs to follow through in the action. The throw, kick or hit needs to be completed. The follow through is one of the most important parts of being good at a certain sport. Just as in sports, Jesus is asking his disciples to follow through with what we say. We say yes to the Lord but the words are not enough. Actions need to back up these words. We need to follow through in what we have said. The son who said yes but never went into the vineyard failed to follow through in what he told his father. While the other son may have said no at least he came through in his actions. Actions speak louder than words and that is true in a journey towards following as a disciple.

We often have heard the saying: “You can talk the talk but can you walk the walk.” Anyone can say they are a follower of Jesus, they are just words. The real test is to see that we follow through in saying we are a disciple. We need to daily live out our yes to the Lord. Follow through; backing up our words with our actions. The Lord is not looking for a group of disciples who give him lip service by saying one thing and doing another. The Lord is looking for people who are not afraid to live their faith. Jesus is inviting us to follow him by living lives of faith. It’s easy to say yes in words to being a disciple of Jesus Christ, it’s tough to live it by our deeds. But that is what makes us a Christian – living lives of faith. Remember to follow through, that’s what makes the action worthwhile. That’s what truly makes us followers of the Lord. AMEN!