September 20, 2026; Matthew 20:1-16a; 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time
The parable in today’s gospel is a puzzle. A landowner goes out early in the morning and hires workers for the usual daily wage, and they work all day in his vineyard. And then at 5:00 he goes out and hires more workers who work only one hour. But at the end of the day, all the workers receive the same usual daily wage. What is this parable about? What is Jesus trying to tell us? It certainly is not how to run a business. Any one of us here who has ever worked or been an employer knows that paying everyone the same amount regardless of what they do is a formula for disaster. So, what is Jesus trying to say? What is the point?
The point of this parable becomes clear when we understand what is meant by the “usual daily wage.” This phrase carries a significantly different sense than what it means for us today. For us, the usual daily wage is enough for us to cover our food, rent, mortgage, healthcare, taxes, children’s education, with something left over for our own entertainment. If we work a higher paying job, we might even entertain a second car, a bigger house, or a European cruise. This is very different from “the usual daily wage” at the time of Jesus. Ancient records show us that vineyard workers at that time received a wage that was incredibly low, just barely enough to survive. They would have to work every day and never made enough to set anything aside for the future. If they were not hired, it would soon be forced to beg or steal in order to live. So, the landowner in the parable pays those who have worked one hour the usual daily wage not to reward them for their work but because he knows that if he pays them less, they will not survive.
When we see the parable from this perspective, it is clear that Jesus is trying to make a distinction between compensation and survival, between what is earned and the minimum that is necessary for life. As followers of Jesus, it is important for us to keep this difference, in mind.
Parents know this truth. They rightly encourage their children to excel, and it is good for them to praise and reward their children when they are successful, academically, athletically, or socially. But in every family, there is a minimum owed to every child whether they are successful or not. It is the minimum of love and acceptance. If that minimum is not provided, children will not survive. It is right for us to embrace and celebrate our friends who share life and loyalty with us. But there is a minimum that we owe to every person: to treat each person justly and truthfully. We owe that to each person not because they are our friend but because they are a child of God.
When we look at the society in which we live, it is wise to set up policies that encourage work so that people can earn their own living and provide for their future. But there is a minimum that is owed to every member of our society: food, shelter, and healthcare. Every person deserves that minimum because without it they could not live. So as followers of Jesus we are called to support such minimum care within the social fabric of our society. Giving food to a hungry person is not generosity. Providing medical assistance to someone who is suffering is not charity. It is recognizing their right to the minimum they require to live. We do not provide them with this minimum because they have worked for it, but because without it they cannot survive.
There is a difference between compensation and survival. The landowner in today’s parable knew that difference. So should we.