What if I Wish to Give This Last One the Same as You?
Very often, when I think of the beautiful parable Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel (Matthew 20:1 16a), I reflect not upon the ‘grumbling’ servants at the ‘end of the day,’ but rather the many faithful disciples who have joyfully labored in the LORD’s Vineyard ‘all the days of their lives!’
In the various ‘stages’ of growth in my own faith life, I have been fortunate to have many devout and faithful Catholics surrounding me – even whole families! – who have lived their faith ‘in love of GOD and love of neighbor’ … without grumbling!
In fact, unlike so many faithful laborers (of today) who joyfully go into the vineyard (to spread the Faith) in the ‘early hour’ and work in the ‘heat of the day’ to bring in a daily ‘abundance’ for the Harvest Master, I consider myself someone who went out ‘in the late Hour of the day!’
Truly, for me, these devout laborers include my parents and grandparents – even my great grandparents! – who have role-modeled for me (and my siblings) a faithfulness to GOD ‘in season and out of season’ so that family and friends, neighbors and co-workers, may come to know Jesus Christ!
As a priest now for over 26 years, I have met thousands of people along the way who have lived a vibrant Catholic faith. People who struggle yet persevere or people who come back to their faith with great zeal. I have so much gratitude for their humble example and witness that has helped me become a better Catholic priest in service to the Church.
Today’s parable also gives me ‘pause’ to reflect on many young people who have witnessed a vibrant ‘love for Jesus and love for neighbor’ in a very short lifespan, never ‘reaching’ a ‘long life’ among us.
Recently, we celebrated the one-year anniversary of two of the youngest saints of our time: the young adult Saint Pier Giorgio Frassati and the teenager Saint Carlos Acutis!
In fact, several other young people’s canonization Causes have also been opened or are advancing towards canonization. I believe these new young saints – and countless more! – are a tremendous inspiration to the many young people who have been returning to the Catholic Church by the tens of thousands these past several years, which I myself have witnessed!
Surely, I’d be negligent if I did not mention that very often for any one of us to grow in our faith or come back to our faith, we have had the prayer of a family member – in many instances a mother or grandmother – who has been ever faithfully praying countless Rosaries, daily Masses, and hours of Adoration in front of the Blessed Sacrament, commending us, their children, grandchildren, and even great grandchildren – to the Lord and Our Lady!
Of course, all of us know that one of the youngest ‘saints’ in the life of the Catholic Church – although no canonization Cause has been opened for her and even though she is known to tens of thousands of us – is little Christina Dangond! We will never know in this life – in her brief, joyful earthly life – how much the LORD accomplished through her, but we know that her powerful intercessions are still ‘working’ for all of us today, bringing many children and young people into a deeper Catholic faith!
Therefore, let us be unafraid to ask for the intercessions of all of these great young saints – and so many more! – so that we, too, may ‘run the race,’ being faithful to the ‘last hour of the day,’ able to present to the LORD an abundance of ‘fruit:’ souls in love with the LORD!
May the Heavenly Father bring all of us one day into the Vineyard of Eternal Life! Little Christina, pray for us!
Fr. Ed was ordained to the priesthood in May 2000 for the Archdiocese of Boston. He held three different parish assignments in the Archdiocese from 2000-2010 before his appointment to the Faculty of Saint John’s Seminary as Dean of Men and Director of Pastoral Formation from 2010-2022. In 2022, Fr. Ed was appointed Chaplain to the Catholic School Office, and then Administrator of Sacred Heart Parish in Waltham, MA. In 2025, he was appointed Rector of the Lazarus Center for Healing Shrine in Wakefield, while remaining the Spiritual Director & Liaison for the Office for Homeschooling for the Archdiocese of Boston, and Spiritual Director for the World Apostolate of Fatima within the Archdiocese. He is a perpetually professed member of the Institute of Jesus the Priest of the Pauline Family.
