Who is your owner?
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Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Mt 21:33-43
My professors in seminary told us not to give a long homily in the parish, so please stop me if I go for more than one hour.Who is your owner? On September 11, 2001, the twin towers collapsed and killed many people. That terrible event shocked the whole world! And people started asking why this great country that is very strong in security let that terrible thing happen. After a series of questions, one of the most important questions was raised: "Why does God allow the terrible disaster to happen?" One man replied: "I think God is very upset about that because, for many years, we have been asking Him to come out of our schools, society, and even our lives. So, how can we expect God to intervene when we asked Him to leave us alone!"
I think that the biggest sin today is not a sin of not believing in God but the sin of seeing ourselves as gods, the sin of removing God from our lives, and the sin of denying God’s ownership in each of us and the world.
Today’s parable tells a story about Jewish people rejecting God’s ownership. The parable speaks not only to the Jews but to all of us. We are like the Jews who are chosen people of God. We are like the vines planted in God's vineyard. God cares for us and waters us with his great love. God protects us through the Church and his workers like priests, nuns, and others. God protects us by placing conscience in our souls as a watchtower to warn of the dangers threatening to destroy the vineyard. God protects us by carefully fencing the vineyard to prevent enemies from entering it. God protects us by setting up rules to guide us. Each of us is a loving vine of God. God loves to care for us, protect us, and even give his divine life to us. God saves us by becoming who we are so that we may become who God is. Unfortunately, like the Jews, many people do not understand that. They deny God's ownership. Many people have abandoned the watchtower of conscience that God has placed in their hearts. Many people have removed the fences of discipline and rules from the Church, turning the vineyard into a wasteland that anyone can trample and destroy. And because they asked God to leave them alone, the devil enters their lives.
We need to let God be the owner of our lives because No man can serve two masters. If we invite God to come into our souls as the owner, He will give us grace to help us do many good things. Therefore, be not afraid; God is on our side. God has chosen us for himself through baptism. The Gospel’s Acclamation today beautifully says, “Ihave chosen you from the world, says the Lord, to go and bear fruit that will remain.” Saint Ambrose said, “There is no reason for us to be in a state of great anxiety when evils threaten; we must remember that God is very near to us as our protector. The Lord is at hand for those troubled in heart, and he will save those downcast in spirit.”
As St. Paul tells us, “Brothers and sisters: Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.” make our request to ask God to be our owner because If God owns our souls, we will be protected and saved. God always desires to protect and save us. If
God is the owner of our soul; we can do what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, and gracious and keep doing what we have learned, received, and heard from Jesus Christ. At the end of our life, he will say to us, “I will give you the kingdom of God because you bear many fruits.”
Who is your owner?
The month of October each year is dedicated to the Most Holy Rosary, so I would like to invite you with me to learn from Mary as the example of following God, who is the owner of her life—Mother Mary, who is our protector. Jesus asks you and me to invite Mother Mary into our home, as St. John Apostle brought her home on the Cross. St. Anselm states, “It is impossible to save one's soul without devotion to Mary and without her protection.”
We can go to Mary when we are in danger. When we are in pain, discouraged, or tempted. Mary is our great protector because a mother always knows how to protect her children. Today, I would like to invite you to pray one Hail Mary together: “Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.