THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

Her Doctrine and Morals

Septuagesima Sunday

5 February 2023

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Dear Friends in Christ,

Many are called, but few are chosen.

In Today's Gospel reading (St. Matthew 20. 1-16), Jesus gives us the parable of the householder going out to hire laborers for his vineyard. Each one is offered the standard day's wage, but each worked for different lengths of the day. Some worked the entire twelve-hour day, some nine hours, some six, some three, and some only one hour.

Heaven is the reward for all faithful followers of Jesus Christ. However, some enter His service early and some late. We struggle to find a sense of fairness or equality in this parable. This is because we must lift our hearts and minds to the supernatural far above the limits of this world. From the perspective of this world, life is not fair or equal. No one is the same as any other, so our lives are different, our labors are different, and our rewards are different.

It is a demonic false narrative that suggests that we are all equal or the same. This is far from the truth that any objective observer can see. Men are not women, and women are not men. Adults are not children, and children are not adults. Rich people are not poor, and poor are not rich. We are all different in this life. God gave each of us different gifts or talents. God demands that we employ the skills that He has given us. We cannot develop what we do not have, nor can someone else develop our talents for us.

All of God's creation reflects His Image and Likeness. Because the properties of God are infinite in both quantity and quality, and because His creatures are not God, we find different aspects of the divinity manifested in different creations. We gain glimpses of God in limited or various ways in each of His creatures. Even among humans, we observe different degrees of goodness, beauty, wisdom, understanding, etc. No one person — not even the saints — can reflect all the attributes of God. We can appreciate and give glory to God for the particular goodness manifested in individuals but to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of God, we must look at everyone collectively.

Together we complement and complete the image or reflection of God in this world. Everyone has a part to play in this. Contrary to the materialism of this world, there are no useless people. God creates every person for Himself. Everyone has value, even if no one in this world can see it. It is a tragedy that God had to give us the Fifth Commandment. How depraved we have become to think that the life God created should not be permitted to live! The false compassion of many murderers that pretend to be charitable in preventing the future suffering of babies needs to be exposed.

Suffering, difficulties, and struggles are not evil. These are good and necessary. They permit us to follow Jesus and love God. If we honestly examine this life, we find that the more we try to avoid or protect others from discomfort or pain, the greater the discomfort and pain become.

The love of God shines forth manifestly when the last and the least are brought forth and become the first and the greatest. Jesus put a little child before the Apostles and instructed them to become like little children if they desired to enter Heaven. The poor in this world are to become rich in eternity. The chosen people of Israel were invited to join the Church first, but then the Gentiles answered the call of Jesus before many of Israel. Among the Saints, the greatest in Heaven were the least here on earth.

Humility here on earth is the key that opens the Kingdom of Heaven. The truly humble are obedient, believing, and loving. The virtues work together in varying degrees in the saints, but they are always present. The vices of pride and vanity are likewise always present in those who refuse to enter into the Church and the Kingdom of Heaven.

We must never believe that we have done enough for God, nor must we think that we are not required to do anything. Only those who labored received the reward. All those who received the reward did not truly merit what they received. God is good and rewards us far above our merits, but He is also just and will not open the Kingdom of Heaven for those unwilling to work and strive for It.

We must try not to compare ourselves with others. We do not receive the same graces, the same talents, or the same time. Only God knows what talents each of us has received, what each of us is capable of, and how much is required of us. The role model that we are to compare ourselves to is Jesus Christ. We must always strive to do better and to reach for perfection because Our Father in Heaven is Perfect (St. Matthew 5:48). On Judgment Day, God will not be interested in how well we did in comparison to our neighbors but in how perfectly we conformed our wills to His and employed our talents with all our strength for His honor and glory.