WORD ALIVE

A man died and went to heaven. At the Pearly Gate, St. Peter welcomed him then gave a tour around. As they were entering a big hall, the man recoiled with fear, seeing so many tongues hanging inside.

“St. Peter, how weird this place is! Why are there so many tongues hanging?” the man said. “Those are the tongues of those who had many good intentions but never acted on them. Only their tongues reached heaven,” St. Peter answered.
 

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In this 26th Sunday’s gospel the Lord relates the parable of the two sons.  The elder son, who was told by his father to work in the vineyard, said that he would go, but never went. Like the owners of those tongues in the above story, he had the good intention but never acted on it.  
 

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The younger son who was also told to work, refused to go, but later regretted it and went. “Which of the two did the will of the father?” Jesus asked. The chief priests and the elders of the temple answered correctly, “the second.”

The younger son represented the tax collectors and prostitutes whose lives had been a “no” to God, but repented and entered the kingdom of God. In contrast, the elder son symbolized the Jewish leaders who professed to be religious but did not respond to John the Baptist’s call for repentance. 
 

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Jesus was proposing this little “quiz” to see not how smart his listeners were but to drive home the point that, in their relationship with God, it is not what you say nor your good intentions that matter most but rather what you do.

There’s a saying that goes, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” We have good intentions about many good things but we do not carry them out. 
 

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For instance, we intend to give up those habits like excessive drinking, eating, and recreations that are destructive to our lives. We intend to get rid of our cheating, selfishness and dishonesty. Husband and wife intend to join a Marriage Encounter or Couples For Christ to enrich their marital relationship. Some intend to re-examine their values and priorities. But they have so many other things on their minds that they do not have time to follow them through. 
 

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Jesus’ parable is a warning. Besides warning us, Jesus also expresses hope. That’s why even public sinners like the prostitutes and corrupt tax collectors, who repented, were forgiven.

We may have been slaves to some sin in the past or have been sensual like Mary Magdalene, dishonest like the tax collector Matthew or violent like Paul who persecuted the early Christians, but we can rise from our sins. We can renew ourselves. There’s always hope — as long as we are alive.
 

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The lighter side. A man approached his priest-friend and bragged, “Father, I got rid of my vices.” “How did you do it?” the priest replied. “I stopped drinking through will power; gambling? will power; smoking? will power.” The priest said, “How about womanizing?” “Err, power failure,” he said sheepishly.
 

“But I’m trying hard to overcome it, father.”
 

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A man to his friend: “I went to see my doctor about my heart ailment. He told me to change my lifestyle. No smoking, no drinking, no meat.”
“So what happened, did you change your lifestyle?” the friend said. “No, I changed my doctor.” (Isn’t that our attitude to God’s prescription for a better life, too?).
 

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Support seminarians. A certain benefactress, Anna Marie Babasa, wrote: “It’s been proven time and again that if you share your blessings with the less fortunate, the Lord will bless you all the more.”
 

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Help our seminarians. Donate any amount or sponsor a seminarian's schooling good for one year? For inquiry, e-mail me at: [email protected].