DAILY- HOMILY

MARCH 9, 2012
SAINT FRANCES OF ROME
FRIDAY 2ND WEEK OF LENT – YEAR II

Gn 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a / Mt 21:33-43, 45-46

GENESIS 37:3-4, 12-13A, 17B-28A
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other children, for he
was the son of his old age and he had a coat with long sleeves made
for him. His brothers who saw that their father loved him more than he
loved them, hated him and could no longer speak to him in a friendly
way. His brothers had gone to pasture their father's flock at Shechem,
and Israel said to Joseph, "Your brothers are pasturing the flock at
Shechem; come along, I'll send you to them." Joseph went off after his
brothers and found them at Dothan. They saw him in the distance and
before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. They said to one
another, "Here comes the specialist in dreams! Now's the time! Let's
kill him and throw him into a well. We'll say a wild animal devoured
him. Then we'll see what his dreams were all about!" But Reuben heard
this and tried to save him from their hands saying, "Let us not kill
him; shed no blood! Throw him in this well in the wilderness, but do
him no violence." This he said to save him from them and take him back
to his father. So as soon as Joseph arrived, they stripped him of his
long-sleeved coat that he wore and then took him and threw him in the
well. Now the well was empty, without water. They were sitting for a
meal when they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from
Gilead, their camels laden with spices, balm and myrrh, which they
were taking down to Egypt. Judah then said to his brothers, "What do
we gain by killing our brother and hiding his blood? Come! We'll sell
him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our
brother and our own flesh!" His brothers agreed to this. So when the
Midianite merchants came along they pulled Joseph up and lifted him
out of the well. For twenty pieces of silver they sold Joseph to the
Midianites, who took him with them to Egypt.

MATTHEW 21:33-43, 45-46
Listen to another example: There was a landowner who planted a
vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a hole for the winepress,
built a watchtower, leased the vineyard to tenants, and then went to a
distant country. When harvest time came, the landowner sent his
servants to the tenants to collect his share of the harvest. But the
tenants seized his servants, beat one, killed another, and stoned a
third. Again the owner sent more servants, but they were treated in
the same way. Finally, he sent his son, thinking, `They will respect
my son.' But when the tenants saw the son, they thought, `This is the
one who is to inherit the vineyard. Let us kill him, and his
inheritance will be ours.' So they seized him, threw him out of the
vineyard and killed him. Now, what will the owner of the vineyard do
with the tenants when he comes?" They said to him, "He will bring
those evil men to an evil end, and lease the vineyard to others, who
will pay him in due time." And Jesus replied, "Have you never read
what the Scriptures say? The stone which the builders rejected has
become the cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing, and we marvel at
it. Therefore I say to you: the kingdom of heaven will be taken from
you, and given to a people who will yield a harvest. When the chief
priests and the Pharisees heard these parables, they realized that
Jesus was referring to them. They would have arrested him, but they
were afraid of the crowd, who regarded him as a prophet.

REFLECTION
A parable is an allegory, filled with significant details. In today's
gospel, the landowner represents God; the vineyard, His chosen people;
the tenants are the Jews; the servants that the landowner sent are the
prophets; the son thrown out of the vineyard and killed is Jesus; and
the nation to whom the vineyard will be entrusted are the Gentiles
(from the footnote of the Jerusalem Bible).

Are we like the tenants who murdered God's messengers and His Son?
When we were baptized, we received the gift of faith. We need to
nurture this gift for it to grow and prosper. Our modern-day prophets
like the catechists, bishops, priests, and the Pope are present to
guide us on how Jesus touches our lives. Yet we often listen and
believe more in the lessons of the world, especially media. Media in
its various forms is very useful, especially in informing us of the
events happening around us. But, we need to be careful lest we become
too learned in the ways of the world – we become ignorant of the
richness of our faith.

Why are we Christians? How do we make use of our faith? Do we take our
faith seriously that we want it to bear fruit not only for ourselves
but also that others may benefit from it?

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Tung-Jou Sheh
- Kristen, Maria, Linda O, Mary Ann, Delores, Nick, Netta, Martha,
Maureen, & Jane
- Chief Samrose Anyaugo
- Mon Torres
- Rakkie Villa
- Tonie Lingad
… for the personal intentions of
- Veronica Yap
- Dana, Eugene R, Rita & Pam & Ben
- Dr Ugo Anyaugo, Ogechi Anyaugo, Barr Obinna Okoronkwo, Barr Mrs
Barbara Adaugo Okoronkwo, Ifeanyi Anyaugo, 'Chuba Osi Anyaugo,
Cordelia Anyaugo and Kelechi Ozurumba
… for the eternal repose of the souls of Eliezer Billanes. Eternal
rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine upon them. May they
and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Grace Ganzon
- Birthday: Catherine A. Villanueva
- Birthday: Amie Cerrero
- Birthday: Fr. Manuel Abogado
- Birthday: Msgr. Sabino A. Vengco Jr.
… for families who are in need of healing
… for world peace and reconciliation.

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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