Homily for the Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

Back in the 1980s when Russia was under Communist rule, American president

Ronald Reagan told this joke about a man in Russia who wanted to buy a new

car. He began by explaining that there is a ten year delay in the Soviet Union

when you order a new car, and only one in seven families owns one. So a man

goes through all the bureaucracy and pays his cash in advance for a new car.

The man in charge tells him to come back in ten years to collect it, and the first

man said, “Morning or afternoon?” The fellow behind the counter says, “Ten

years from now, what difference does it make?” And he said, “Well, the

plumber’s coming in the morning”.

Expectations – it’s all about expectations. In the Gospel we have the example

of the servant ploughing or keeping sheep. His job is to serve his master. Once

he’s finished in the field, it’s then time to get his master’s supper ready, not to

leave him waiting, put his feet up, and come back in a few hours’ time. There

was no European Working Time Directive, or Union of Ploughmen and

Shepherds to tell the master not to work him too hard. It was his job, and he

was supposed to get on with it. It’s a bit like today at the supermarket: when

you come to pay for your items, you expect there to be either someone at the

checkout to scan everything for you, or at least for there to be someone around

to assist you if something goes wrong with the self-scan equipment. You don’t

expect to find the staff are going round the store with a trolley doing their own

shopping, telling you to wait until later. Perhaps if we lived in a society where

that had become the norm, we might accept it, just like the Russian not being

surprised at having to wait ten years for a new car. But it’s not the norm here,

so we expect the staff to be around to help, and do their own shopping in their

own spare time.

Part of what the parable is getting at is our own relationship with God: do we

see Him as a servant, or as our master? Because at times things can slip into

acting as if we are the ones in control. In the first reading, the Prophet

Habakkuk is complaining to God about all that is going wrong in the world,

putting the blame at God’s door. Why is there all this destruction and

violence? Why aren’t you doing anything about it? God could perhaps

respond: I am. I made you.

But as this inversion advances, we can then get too high an opinion of

ourselves and think that by doing a few small things for God, we are actually

doing Him a favour, and want praise for it. It’s a bit like an employee wanting

a reward from the management for actually turning up and doing an hour’s

work. As part of your contract, you’re supposed to do that, and more. “So you

also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, “We are

unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.”

But now, here comes the interesting bit. Having told you that God isn’t our

servant, or slave, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ goes against all custom

and waits on us. At the Last Supper, He will tell the Apostles: “For who is the

greater, one who reclines at table or one who servers? Is it not the one who

reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.” (Luke 22:27)

God has the right to expect us to serve Him, yet out of love, He came among us

as Jesus to serve us, and still does so today in the sacraments.

So our response has to be one of complete love and gratitude, and a desire to

serve Him as best as we can. And if we become a saint, and do extraordinary

things, at the end of our lives, we say to God: but that was my vocation, that

was what I was called to do. I have done no more than my duty. And all glory

to You for helping me to be able to carry it it out.

Curious about exploring things further?  If you would like to ask further questions about the topics raised in these homilies (or maybe think it wasn’t explained too well!), please feel free to e-mail Fr Michael at stjoseph.thame@rcaob.org.uk