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And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country. And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard. And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty. And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head,...

He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.(Luke 13:7-9)The Messiah, Jesus,...

Been working on a response for a Quora query, You are a devout Bible-fundamental Jesus believer. Or devout Catholic or Mormon. Why do you and your religious principles support and defend President Trump? Otherwise, why wouldn't you? I only worked on what the alternative to Trump would mean so far. Any suggestions for this? "Devout Bible-fundamental Jesus believer" best fits evangelicals, and even considering the alternative from that overall perspective should suffice for now, as illustrated by this (imperfect) analogy: You are at a port along with many other people, trying to continue on a long journey to get to...

And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them. When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may...

Then said the Lord unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the Lord toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine. So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for an homer of barley, and an half homer of barley: And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee. For the children of...

…but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and...

Some of Jesus’ starkest warnings come in the form of parables. In them, the drama of human life in the valley of decision (Joel 3:14) is vividly proclaimed. Indeed, the parables are mostly about the drama and decisions of human life and the stance we take in the cosmic battle that rages around us. Our decisions point to our destiny. Of Jesus’ 37 parables, 20 are ones that remind us that our decisions can bring blessing or curse, rise or ruin, salvation or condemnation. Let’s review some of them, in order of increasing intensity: The rich fool (Luke 12:16–21): This...

Parables by Jesus on the Day of Judgment and on Our Need to be Ready Msgr. Charles Pope • November 9, 2017 • This is the fifth in a series of articles on the Four Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell.credit: Ashland CTC Jesus was urgent in warning us to be ready for judgment. He did this in many ways, but most notably in the parables. In this post let’s ponder His teachings and hear His urgency.Most casual readers of the Bible tend to view the parables as merely interesting, entertaining stories. While that is so, they are...

For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about...

Decide! Parables on Judgment and the Drama of Human Life Msgr. Charles Pope • August 25, 2016 • Today’s Gospel at daily Mass (Friday of the 21st Week of the Year) features one of the many parables in which Jesus paints a picture of the great drama of human life. We are caught up in a great and cosmic battle and must choose sides; there are only two armies and no third way is given. Sadly, most have lost any sense of this, despite the battle lines being more clearly drawn than ever.Most casual readers of the Bible tend...

What are the parables of Christ? It’s a deceptively simple question, in part because the two dozen or so parables found in the Synoptic Gospels — the Fourth Gospel contains none — are deceptively simple. They are so apparently simple it is easy to think anyone could have produced them. But as Father George William Rutler notes in “Hints of Heaven: The Parables of Christ and What They Mean for You,” an exquisite collection of reflections, “The only proof I have of their literary superiority is that no one has ever been able to match them.” He compares them...

The Gospel from Thursday’s Mass contains one of the most shocking parables Jesus ever told. It is the Parable of the Wedding Banquet a King gives for his Son. Most know it well, but in case you want to review it, the full text of the Gospel is here: Parable of the Wedding FeastIt does not take a degree in biblical theology to understand that the Parable is an allegory. The “King” is God the Father, the “Son” is Jesus, and the Wedding feast is the Great Wedding Feast of the Lamb further described in Revelation:Then I heard what sounded...

So how do the pros trap entire feral pig herds, eliminating them all, from granddads to piglets, in one go? They feed them, most generously. They kill them with kindness. ----------------------------------------------- From #8 The moral of the story: The guy who is starving you may sincerely be trying to feed you, but his best efforts might not be enough. In the end, if you are penned in, you can be killed by simple starvation and neglect, requiring no directly malign intention by your captors. Starvation just happens naturally when insufficient food is coming into the enclosure.

October 16, 2011 Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time   Reading 1 Is 45:1, 4-6 Thus says the LORD to his anointed, Cyrus,whose right hand I grasp,subduing nations before him,and making kings run in his service,opening doors before himand leaving the gates unbarred:For the sake of Jacob, my servant,of Israel, my chosen one,I have called you by your name,giving you a title, though you knew me not.I am the LORD and there is no other,there is no God besides me.It is I who arm you, though you know me not,so that toward the rising and the setting of the sunpeople...

Saturday, March 13, 2010 The Prodigal Son, New Life and Sacramental Imagery This Sunday the Church reads the story of the Prodigal Son in the Liturgy (unless youÂ’re doing the RCIA cycle, in which case you will read from John 9). Here I thought IÂ’d offer a few thoughts on the story. YouÂ’re Dead to Me Jesus begins by telling the story of a man who had two sons. The parable begins with the younger brother going to the father and asking for his inheritance. Of course, an inheritance is usually bestowed upon offspring after the death of the one...

Jesus' Parables   "The Greek word 'Parable,' is rendered in Latin 'Similitude,' by which truth is explained; and an image or representation of the reality is set forth." (Remigius, as quoted by St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church) The Bible on Parables Jesus was known to speak, teach, and reply in parables. The following Scripture passages discuss Jesus' use of parables:MT 13:10-15: The disciples approached him and said, "Why do you speak to them in parables?" He said to them in reply, "Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but...

As I wrote last week, “Most people don’t realize that many if not most of Jesus’ parables were intended not as general morality tales, but as particular pronouncements of coming judgment and change. Jesus was warning Jerusalem to repent and to accept its new King (Jesus) or else fall under ultimate condemnation of God. In fact, much of Jesus’ teaching in the Gospels pertains primarily to that pre-AD 70 crowd, and without reading it in this light, we misunderstand it. And when we misunderstand it, we misapply it.” The following section of Luke requires this understanding. The parables Jesus tells...

Most people don’t realize that many if not most of Jesus’ parables were intended not as general morality tales, but as particular pronouncements of coming judgment and change. Jesus was warning Jerusalem to repent and to accept its new King (Jesus) or else fall under ultimate condemnation of God. In fact, much of Jesus’ teaching in the Gospels pertains primarily to that pre-AD 70 crowd, and without reading it in this light, we misunderstand it. And when we misunderstand it, we misapply it. The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (Weeds) For many (perhaps even most) Christians, the parable...

The futurist interpretation concerning this passage is that the fig tree symbolizes the nation of Israel. Scofield says that the fig tree passage is “a prophecy that Israel shall again bud.” In the year 1948, the present nation called Israel came into existence. Some believe this has been the budding of the fig tree of which Jesus spoke. But was this what Jesus meant? It has been supposed by some that throughout the Bible we might find references to Israel being symbolized by the fig tree. Looking into the Old Testament, there is little — if any — proof that...

LIVING DANGEROUSLY Chapter 12. Matthew 25:14-30 by Ray C. Stedman     Parables can be as exciting and challenging as detective stories. Even more so, for in the end they turn out to be dealing with real life, while detective stories can be pretty far-fetched. But parables, like detective stories, are filled with half-hidden truths and secret meanings and yet with clues to these secrets scattered liberally throughout. Parables are God's exciting way of challenging us to a mystery hunt, and the treasure we are after is a new insight into the nature of life which will enrich us in...