Matthew 21:28-32 is one of the most heartening texts in the Bible. Jesus tells a simple story about a man who had two sons. To one he said, “My boy, go and work in the vineyard.” This son answered, “I will not go.” He thought better of it and then quietly went to work on the vineyard. The father made the same request to the second son who said, “I will go.” But he didn’t. When he asked those around him who did the father’s will, they all answered, “The first.”
Jesus draws His audience into the story and then explains the context. He says, “Tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the kingdom of God before you do.” They are like the first son, people who had taken the wrong path in life. But they could understand what John the Baptist was saying to them, that those who lose their way are the ones who truly know what it means to repent and to find the mercy of God. Whereas the so-called holy people are those who fail to understand that conversion is a life-long process, a process whereby we constantly see the need to change our lives. This is particularly the case for all of us as we conclude a month of reflection upon the seasons of creation, as we reflect upon our need for ecological conversion, the need to change our over-indulgent lifestyles in order to restore life to our planet. In our personal lives we can always rely upon the infinite mercy of God. But in our collective lives, it is God’s creation and all that goes to make up our planet, that relies upon our willingness to say we have failed, like the first son, to live up our responsibility to be caretakers of our planet, and yet we can still recognize our need to change and return to the vineyard and work together to protect and restore the beauty and life of our planet.
All of us are called to conversion. The conversion which above Jesus sought to bring about in people was a change of heart. And He succeeded in bringing it about in the most unlikely of people. St Augustine is one that comes to my mind. We need the Lord to touch our hearts with his love and compassion. We need to reawaken within ourselves, our responsibility to be caretakers of the planet.