The Son of
God, Jesus Christ, was never Yes-and-No. His nature is all Yes. Therefore it is
through him that we say our Yes to God. May the Lord Jesus be always with you.
R/ And also with you.
Introduction
by the Celebrant
1.
Let Our Yes Be Yes
We admire
parents and educators who are so patient with the young that when they make
mistakes or refuse to take up their responsibilities, they give them the time
to change their minds. That is what God is doing all the time with us. He
patiently waits for us. He gives us new chances. Could we do the same with one
another? Let us ask Jesus in this Eucharist that with him we may always say Yes.
2.
Our Yes Is At Times Reluctant
Quite often
we feel within us the tension between what we know to be right and our own
interests and inclinations. We usually know what our faith demands and yet we
act against it or give only a reluctant Yes. Let us ask Jesus in this Eucharist
that we may always say Yes with him.
Penitential
Act
Too often
we have gone our own ways and done our will rather than God’s. Let us ask
forgiveness from the Lord. (pause)
Lord Jesus,
your Yes was a firm Yes to the will of the Father, even when it led you to
suffering and the cross. Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus
Christ, your word was reliable, for you lived as you believed: Christ, have
mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus,
we owe forgiveness and life
to your Yes
to the Father: Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Lord,
forgive us our hesitations and cowardice in living up to the Gospel. Help us to
serve you with generous love and lead us to everlasting live. R/ Amen.
Opening
Prayer
Let us pray
that we may answer God’s call with love and faithfulness (pause)
Loving
Father, you do not want sinners to die, but to turn away from sin and to do
what is right, so that they may live. You know that we are weak and fragile. Keep
forgiving us, give us the mentality of Jesus, that with him we may say Yes to
you with the deep love of those who have been forgiven. Make us merciful to
others too. We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
First Reading: Ezekiel 18:25-28
We
Are Responsible for What We Do: The prophet Ezekiel
insists in the name of God on personal responsibility for the good or evil we
do. God seeks to forgive us and wants us to live in his love.
Second Reading; Philippians 2:1-11
Be
Self-effacing With Christ: We must have the same
fundamental disposition as Christ our Lord, namely, to be humble and
self-effacing before God and people.
Gospel; Matthew 21:28-32
Which
of These Sons Am I?: The self-righteous leaders of the
people reject Jesus and condemn sinners. The sinners welcome Jesus and are
converted. Who does the will of God? With whom do we identify?
Prayers of the Faithful
Let us not
think of our interests first but pray for the needs of our sisters and brothers
here and everywhere in the world. Let us say: R/ Lord, let your word guide us:
–
With the people of God, the Church in our day, that members and leaders may be
guided by the mentality of Jesus Christ in serving God and people faithfully,
we pray to the Lord: R/ Lord, let your word guide us.
–
With those who refuse to live according to their faith and conscience, that
they may find the way back to God we pray: R/ Lord, let your word guide
us.
– With
those who seek God’s will in everyday life, that we may do so in all humility
and with great love, aware of how fragile we all are, we pray: R/ Lord,
let your word guide us.
–
With those working in the mass media, that they may respect people and the
truth and contribute to peace and understanding everywhere, we pray: R/ Lord,
let your word guide us.
–
With all those who have spoken their “I do” to God or to one another in
marriage, that they may draw strength from the fidelity of Jesus and of the
faithful love of good Christian families, we pray: R/ Lord, let your
word guide us.
Lord our
God, do not let us grow self-satisfied. Make each of us and our communities
question whether we really seek your will or follow our own whims. Be our
faithful and loving God now and forever. R/ Amen.
Prayer over the
Gifts
God our
Father, we bring before you the sacrifice of Jesus your Son. Let our offering
express that we are willing to enter into his dispositions of total loyalty to
your will. Help us to say with him an unconditional Yes to your life and love and
to forget ourselves in the service of our brothers and sisters. We ask this in
the name of Jesus the Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction
to the Eucharistic Prayer
Jesus was
the obedient servant who committed himself totally to the will of the Father to
bring us the Father’s life and love, whatever the cost. With him we now offer
ourselves.
Introduction
to the Lord’s Prayer
With his
obedient servant Jesus Christ we seek God’s will and with him we pray that we
may not refuse to serve our Father well. R/ Our Father...
Deliver
Us
Deliver us
Lord, from the stranglehold of sin and all evil. Let your forgiveness come to
us as a liberation from our doubts and fears and from our self-contented pride at
the expense of others. Help us to seek your will in all we do and to prepare
for the full coming among us of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For
the kingdom...
Invitation
to Communion
This is
Jesus Christ our Lord who accepted death on the cross while saying his Yes to
the Father to make us a free people. Happy are we to receive him as our
glorious Lord. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
Prayer
after Communion
God our
Father, as a friend at table, your Son Jesus has broken for us his bread of
peace and spoken to us your word of forgiveness. Let him be our strength as we
go to you and one another our plodding way of good mixed with evil. Help us to
encourage each other and to grow together nearer to you, our living God, who
have lifted us up through Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Blessing
We have
heard Jesus’ disturbing statement that notorious sinners may be ahead of us in
entering the Kingdom of God. Let these hard words wake us up from our smug
self-contentment and make us aware that our life too is a mixture of Yes and
No, of an honest seeking to do what is right together with moments of
cowardice. May God give you this insight and bless you: the Father, and the
Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Let us go
in the peace and the love of Christ. R/ Thanks be to God.
***
REFLECTIONS: Matthew 21:28-32
When “Yes” Becomes Action
Jesus tells this parable after the leaders challenge his
authority. A father asks two sons to work in his vineyard. The first refuses,
but later changes his mind and goes. The second replies respectfully, “I go,
sir,” yet never appears. When Jesus asks which son did the father’s will, the
answer is clear: the first.
William Barclay titles it “The Better of Two Bad Sons.”
Neither response is ideal. One son begins with disobedience; the other offers
words without action. Barclay’s point is that promises cannot replace
performance and fine words cannot substitute for fine deeds. The second son
calls his father “sir,” displaying respect, but true courtesy is obedience
given.
Jesus applies the parable to tax collectors, prostitutes,
chief priests, and elders. The sinful had said “no” to God through their lives.
Yet they believed John the Baptist, repented, and entered the vineyard. The
religious leaders said “yes” through religious observance, but rejected John’s
call and refused conversion. Their profession concealed disobedience.
Pope Francis teaches that obedience does not consist in
saying “yes” or “no”; it consists in acting, cultivating the vineyard, doing
good, and building God’s kingdom. He warns against religion that remains
external but never changes attitudes or engages the conscience.
The Pope draws attention to sincerity. The first son is
wrong but honest. Admitting resistance, he can reconsider, repent, and change
direction. The second hides behind a false “yes,” protecting his image while
avoiding responsibility. Pope Francis differentiated the sinner, for whom
conversion remains possible, from the corrupt person who disguises disobedience
and silences honest self-examination.
The parable does not praise sin or rude refusal. It
proclaims that no “no” must become permanent. God patiently gives us space to
reconsider and transform refusal into obedience. Yet religious language,
rituals, and good intentions are worthless if they never become action.
The question is therefore not simply what we have promised,
but whether we are working in the vineyard today. Does our faith become
forgiveness, justice, service, honesty, and compassion? God prefers an
imperfect disciple who repents and acts to an impressive believer whose “yes”
remains only words.
