by Erin Vader
On the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, we heard the parable of the workers in the vineyard. That Gospel reading has always given me pause, much in the same way the story of the prodigal son does. It seems to punch me right in the “fair” part of my ego. To say I find them challenging is an understatement.
And I have heard a myriad of homilies on both topics: God’s love is not our love; God’s ways are not our ways; God’s mercy is for all. It never really bridged the gap for me. I still felt unsettled whenever those Gospels were read.
But recently, I heard a catechist online talking about how she presented the Gospel reading to her first grade class. She turned the focus from the workers who felt indignant about the newer workers getting paid the same to the latecomers themselves.
She asked: Why do you think they were still waiting for work?
That question stopped me in my tracks. I had never thought about it. Maybe they looked weak. Maybe they had physical problems, or health issues. Maybe it took them longer to do something than someone else.
“Have you ever been picked last for something?” the teacher asked. “Yes,” most of the children replied. Yes, they had been picked last, and it hadn’t felt very good.
That changed everything about how I viewed the story. I was ashamed that I had never thought of it that way. I had always pictured myself as one of the ‘all-day’ workers — how arrogant. And I had always pictured the latecomers as lazy — how judgmental.
I thought more about those workers — the ones who were picked last. And I realized this parable is so very illustrative of what we hope our Catholic schools will be — and cautionary as to what they very easily could become.
We want our schools to be like Christ — like the boss in this story — welcoming all comers, no matter when they get there, no matter what they bring to the table.
Sometimes, we cannot serve students — not because we don’t want to, but because we don’t have the resources available to us. We don’t have the bilingual teacher, or the reading specialist, or the counselor, or an accessible campus. It is heartbreaking when that happens.
We are working to improve our ability to serve all students. Our Perfect Wings Program is committed to expanding our ability to welcome and serve students, no matter how different their abilities may be.
We have beautiful partners in this work: the Catholic Education Foundation (CEF), EMBRACE, the Catholic Foundation of Northeast Kansas (CFNEK), the Brown Family Foundation, and so many individual donors.
Call to Share provides critical funding as well, allowing all of us to be part of this mission. Together, we are helping our schools become places where more students can be welcomed, supported and formed to maximize the gifts God has given them.
This parable encourages me to look at who is sitting at the margin, who is waiting to be picked, who is yearning for an invitation. Am I providing the room, the time, the grace for them to join in the work? Am I supporting their inclusion in the work? Am I encouraging others to welcome them as well?
If we are creating centers of charity and mercy in our schools, I better be. It is what we are called to do.
