26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Fr Dominic’s Homily

It is said that the whole Christian life could be summed up as the struggle to begin to think as God thinks.

The Gospel today gives a good example of how this works in reality, for how can any of us truly think as God thinks?

So this is a parable about two sons, both of whom change their minds.

We have a young man, asked by his father to spend the day working in the vineyard. The modern equivalent could be to tidy his room, wash the car, or help in the garden.

The boy was very human in his answer, but, he was also very honest. He didn’t want to pretend. He said straight out to his father, 'No. I won’t go. I’m not going to work in the vineyard. This is a familiar experience to us. “I don’t feel like it.”

We don’t feel like it. But that doesn’t mean it’s the best decision. Remember that we can’t always trust our feelings.

The parent in the Gospel leaves him to think about what he said, and the boy starts thinking. We are not told his actual thought process, just that he thought better of it. It’s not that he suddenly changed, or he felt guilty, or he was comparing himself to his brother – he simply “thought better of it” and went off to work.

Last week’s reading from Isaiah said “Let the wicked man abandon his way, the evil man his thoughts.”

The prostitutes and the tax collectors that Jesus mentions, did exactly this. They at first said no to God in their lives and lived away from him. But then, at the sound of Jesus’ voice, they thought better of it and turned towards him.

They have changed their minds – they aren’t static, fixed, frozen – they have “thought better of it” and are now entering the vineyard. (Notice this is like the parable of last week, of sending labourers to the vineyard.)

And it is this change – this about turn which Jesus is highlighting. The Prostitutes and Tax Collectors are changing, their intention had been to make do with the world – to serve the world – but they are changing and beginning to enter the Kingdom and serve God. They are no longer “tax collector” or “prostitute” they become true sons and daughters of the Kingdom.

Jesus compares these repentant people, these converted people, to the Chief Priests and Elders, who with their words say “yes” to God, but “no” with their hearts. They never work, never go to the vineyard.

There’s no need to say too much about the other son, the one who said he would go but didn’t; nor about the chief priests and elders. We are simply told that they refused to think better of it. Refused to think.

The ancient philosopher Aristotle, said that the unreflective life is not worth living. And, in a way, Jesus is saying something similar in his parable.

Jesus is the one who brought mercy, for us all, into the world. We all get a second chance, and a third chance, and more. We know we fall, we know we sin, we know we do not always follow the Gospel, but as long as we don’t despair, don’t give up our faith in Jesus Christ, we will be able to turn around, repent, and have life.

The whole Christian life a process of learning to think better of it … of learning to put on the mind of Christ.

The difference between angels and human beings is that we can change our minds. The angels, look at something, know it, know if they like it, and choose it forever. This is why the angels in heaven serve God faithfully, and the fallen angel have rebelled and can never be saved.

But we human beings, we look, we think, we look again, we chat to our friends – finally we make a choice, and even then we might change our minds. Because we constantly experience new things and new dimensions. We have time to change our minds.

So what is beautiful – and this highlights the goodness and mercy of Jesus, is that people are allowed to change, they are given the freedom to change – to think better of it.

We have to allow ourselves to change – we have to give ourselves space, and give others space to change. We are not angels – our decisions are not perfect.

Sometimes our words and our actions don’t match up and our intentions aren’t fulfilled – that is the time to “think better of it.” To convert through the little conversions of everyday life.

And it is these things ultimately that changes us and makes us slightly more each day true sons and daughters of God.