Perhaps one way this parable can be reinterpreted in our 21st-century context is : God is the creator and owner of everything. We are only the tenants using the talents God has given us. We are to use our talents for the greater good.
Creation does not belong to us, but like the tenants in the story, we have developed a sense of entitlement and forgotten that we are here as stewards of God’s creation. If we are the tenants of the vineyard of God, then nothing belongs to us except in a sacred trust. We are the ones appointed to care for God’s creation.
God
has sent many people to speak out about the destruction of the vineyard of God’s creation, but we have largely ignored them. These days, we witness daily climate disasters resulting from our lack of stewardship of the vineyard of creation.
We have melting ice caps, polluted water, deforestation, heat waves, and regular reports of wildfires and floods around the world. Deadly flooding has wiped out entire
neighbourhoods in Libya, and close to home, we have seen the impact of the recent floods in the Cape. Wildfires raged in Greece recently, and hundreds were evacuated from coastal towns. In South China, typhoon Talim meant that thousands had to flee their homes, and in India, monsoon flooding has occurred. These are only a fraction of the climate crises of the last few months.
God’s vineyard comprises the created world and its people suffering from abuse, homelessness, poverty, and displacement. People were killed and injured in the inner city fire in Johannesburg, where they were forced to live in unsafe slum conditions.
It is not the original sense of the parable. However, in our context, this Gospel can prompt us to wonder whether we are like tenants who,
with a sense of entitlement and disregard, are mismanaging the vineyard that the owner entrusted us to care for.
How am I caring for the vineyard of God’s creation? What more might I be invited to do?
Reflections by Annemarie Paulin-Campbell
