You Turn

Sometimes you give the right answer and it gets you into trouble.

Back in high school we took some standardized national tests.

And I had most of the right answers—I scored really well.

But instead of congratulating me, the principal called my parents in for a meeting.

He wanted to know,

If you can do so well on this test, why aren’t you at the top in your classwork?

The priests and the elders in today’s Gospel didn’t get congratulated either.

Jesus asks them which of two sons does their father’s will.

The one who defiantly says he won’t do it, but later changes his mind and does it.

Or the one who agreeably says he will do it, but doesn’t follow through.

The priests and elders answer correctly.

And their reward?  A scolding.

Jesus tells them, 

Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the Kingdom of God before you.

It wasn’t a particularly difficult question.

But their correct answer highlighted the fact that

They understood human behavior.

That they knew they had the option to change their minds—change their hearts.

That they knew a change of mind could be the right thing to do, a good thing to do.

Getting the right answer wasn’t difficult for them.

It showed it was easily within their powers of observation and awareness analysis.

And yet, they hadn’t used those powers to make this most critical decision—

Their assessment of John the Baptist and Jesus himself.

They had made up their minds against John and Jesus.

And even when they saw many others embracing John and Jesus, 

They wouldn’t reconsider.

They weren’t open to changing their minds or their hearts.

Like the first son, they defiantly refused.

Even though God was asking them to change their minds.

Quite directly and quite literally—Jesus, God Himself, was calling them.

But they resisted and wouldn’t recognize his voice.

And unlike the first son, they would not change.

If we listen, we can all hear things that God is calling us to do—

Things big and small.

But we resist, through either defiance or inattention.

We question whether that voice is actually God calling.

In effect, we’ve decided not to do it.

This Advent, let’s listen carefully and let’s change our minds wherever necessary.

Or we can just hop in line with the priests and elders.

Way back there behind the tax collectors and prostitutes.

Tuesday, 3rd Week of Advent

Mt 21:28-32     Read this Scripture @usccb.org