Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish

FR MICHAEL BOAKYE YEBOAH

CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF KUMASI, GHANA.

JUDGE FOR YOURSELF

The first reading and the gospel passage can be a model for fair self-assessment and quality self-evaluation. It was characteristic of the Prophets, Rabbis, Jesus, and the Apostles to be authoritative in their concluding statements on a prophecy, rabbinic teaching, and apostolic writing, they issued or pronounced. But in the case of today Isaianic prophecy and the rabbinic teaching of Jesus, these two inspired writers tell us that the Prophet and Jesus left the doors open for their listeners and readers to make their own assessment and pronounce judgment.

Self-assessment is a powerful tool in knowing the state of life of a person and passing self-judgment. In a book of mine, yet to be completed and published I build the thesis on how contemporary day formatees can assess themselves and judge for themselves whether they can stay in a house of formation and continue their formation or ask their local ordinaries to withdraw them from the house of formation.

Since Vatican II, the stress on formation has been on auto-formation and self-assessment. One may ask: “then what will be the need for formators in a house of formation?” Formators are meant to accompany the formatees as friends on a journey – with formators serving as experienced friends offering great help and assistance on the journey. Formation houses should not be run like a military barracks neither should it be likened to a house of “slaves” headed by a slave master.

A similar model can be used for parenting to some extent. This system of auto-formation and self-assessment can help the young person to grow, take personal and responsible decisions towards his/her personal development.

This system/model of formation or parenting makes formatees/children responsible for their mistakes and avoids blaming adult guardians for their failures in life.

God has always treated the children of Israel in that way. Throughout scripture we see God journeying with his children and allowing them to exercise their free will but when there is the need for corrections, he would send his prophets to correct them without forcing his laws down their throats. As he gives room for them to make their choices, either to follow his laws and ordinances or chose their own paths, he makes it clear to them the consequences that follows if they were to break his laws.

In fact, when one studies the first reading and the gospel passage carefully, one can see the above idea running through the two texts. The two passages find their confluence in the term – the vineyard of the Lord. Some scripture scholars put the symbolism of the vineyard of the Lord to the “world”. In the scriptures, the vineyard of the Lord usually refers to the house of Israel or the kingdom of God on the earth.

In the case of the Prophet Isaiah, quite apart from its dramatic content, the song of the vineyard is a lesson in rhetoric for preachers and teachers or anyone who needs to communicate an important message. Like the parable of today’s gospel passage, the song of the vineyard asks hearers and readers to draw the conclusion, and in this case to pronounce judgement upon themselves. Like David in Nathan’s story of the rich man’s lamb, the hearers have become convinced of the logic of the argument before recognizing that it applies to them. The readings call for self-assessment from the reader.

Using the first reading, let us reflect on some areas for self-assessment or self-judgment:

• Good Aim of God for his children:

Relying on the choice of poetic words, God planted a good vineyard for the house of Israel. If one is to contextualize this in his/her life, one can conclude that God has good plans for his children in this world. We enjoy free air (quality oxygen), and other things are provided for us freely by God. We sleep and we wake-up and most of us get food and shelter. So, the world can be likened to the vineyard that the Lord has planted and given to us. Now, assess yourself, whether you are appreciative of God’s daily goodness in your life. If you are appreciative, do you express it in daily prayer?

• Decision of Humans to destroy…

In the midst of all these goodness, human beings have decided to destroy this world (the vineyard the Lord planted). Today, we talk of climate change and other things that seem to contribute to the destruction of this common home of ours. In some cases, we have chosen to destroy this beautiful vineyard of the Lord as those hired laborers did to their master’s vineyard.

• The wickedness of Human Beings

Human beings are created in the very image and likeness of God and so we are meant to be good and just, but some of us have chosen to be evil and wayward. Such waywardness finds similarities in the way and manner the inspired writer described the attitude of the vineyard workers in today’s gospel passage. When the workers had killed all the servants of the owner of the vineyard, they saw the owner’s son coming and they said: “…come, let us kill him and acquire the vineyard.”

With the above, one should set his/her mind and heart and do a quality self-assessment. Pursuing evil acts and deeds will not make this world (the vineyard of the Lord) a better common home for us all and so there is the need for personal conversion. Like St. Paul, after his conversion, he assessed himself and put his life on the right track and pursued goodness. After embracing the path of goodness, St. Paul wrote the words we find in today’s second reading: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever 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. Keep on doing what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me. Then the God of peace will be with you.” Please make these words of the learned apostle your measuring rod for self-assessment and self-evaluation, for Socrates once said, “an unexamined life is not worth living.” May God be our help and guide. OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP PRAY FOR US.