Equitable? Or All The Same?

What you do for one, you should do for all.

That sounds fair, doesn't it?  And we want to be fair in our dealings with people, but sometimes our approach to fairness can be misunderstood.

Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you.  Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?'  So the last will be first, and the first will be last." - Matthew 20:14-16

In today's Gospel, Jesus tells a story.  He sets us up for a simple fairness challenge.

Workers are hired to go into the vineyard and at the end of the day, all receive the same daily wage, whether they worked one hour or the full day.  Is that fair?

The way the story is told, from the workers' perspective, it doesn't seem fair at all.  If you were one who came early in the day or were hired at day's end, the hourly rate of pay was dramatically different, even though the daily wage was exactly the same.

The issue, obviously, has to do with a greater sense of fairness, fairness on the part of the one who does the hiring, and it is symbolic of God's forgiveness.

What we often miss in this story is the dedication of the owner of the vineyard who continues to go out in search of those who are not working.

Outside the soup kitchen where I work, day laborers come and sign up for jobs.  Some get hired early and are gone all day, but others who are not first in line, wait for the next opportunity to come.

They may wait hours, and in the end, if they get hired at all, they may only work an hour or two.  Each worker is paid a negotiated amount, based on the type of work and the duration.  That seems fair.

At the end of the say, though, those who spent the day waiting without working receive nothing, while those who got a job, worked and hopefully got paid.

In all cases, a day has come and gone and only some are saved.

What we are taught from Jesus is to save all who need to be saved, to help all who need to be helped, to give and to serve.

That's fair.

Yes, it is not equitable the way we see the world, but God doesn't see the world our way.  He hopes we learn to see it His way.

We may never be happy with His way.  It just doesn't seem fair.

That, I believe, is the challenge of the message.  It is how it is.  Get over it!

More to come...