October 04, 2020
by Mary Sellars Malloy
Question of the Week - 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
Throughout the pandemic weeks and months, a close friend and I committed to read together a spiritual book and to send each other our daily reflections on the readings. We chose Macrina Wiederkehr’s The Flowing Grace of Now (Sorin Books, © 2019). Each week we are given a Scripture to ponder and suggestions for focusing our prayer and reflection.
As I considered this week’s question, I returned to Week Nine of the book, in which my friend and I reflected on Luke 13:10-17 (Cure of a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath). Invited to think about the things that bend and break us, Wiederkehr suggests; resentments that crowd out forgiveness, fear that stifles love, indifference that stifles passion, suspicion that dampens trust, selfishness that inhibits generosity, jealousy that dims hospitality, greed that stifles gratitude, and anxiety that shrouds joy. It strikes me that each phrase highlights something that impedes and something that is a sign of cooperation in bringing about the kingdom.
Today’s Gospel (Matthew 21:33-43) is full of behaviors that impede the coming of the kingdom. The lack of loyalty, theft, greed, hatred, and even murder impede the bountiful harvest the landowner desired. He had chosen tenants he should not have trusted. There are simply no signs of cooperation! However, today’s Second Reading (Philippians 4:6-9), one of my favorite New Testament passages, provides some foundations of cooperation as it invites us to pray, give thanks, and to seek what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, excellent, and worthy of praise.
Where do we find ourselves on the spectrum of impeding and cooperating with God, and with the building of God’s kingdom? This week, draw upon the wisdom of Macrina Wiederkehr and Saint Paul. Pray for the strength and grace to cooperate with God, who is always seeking trustworthy tenants for the vineyard he has planted.
Mary Sellars Malloy has over forty years’ experience as a Catholic educator and lay minister. She is a frequent workshop presenter on prayer, liturgy, spirituality, the Sacraments, and the RCIA. Also, Mary leads retreats and parish missions throughout the country. Her goal is to encourage Catholics of all ages to appreciate and to live their Catholic faith.