Our readings this weekend focus on two bushes, both of which are entail a vocation. Moses sees a burning bush, and hears a God calling him, instructing him to return to Egypt and to lead the people Israel out of slavery. Through this call, God promises to be with Moses, to continue to give him the words to speak to Pharaoh, words that in the end will turn Pharaoh’s heart.
In the Gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the fig tree that is unproductive being given the mercy of another year, to be challenged to begin to bear fruit. The context of the parable was two news items of the day (coincidentally, neither of which is known of except in this passage of Luke’s Gospel) – the fall of the tower at Siloam, and the bloody slaughter of the Galileans by Pilate in the Temple area. Jesus asks if they deserved such a gruesome and untimely death more than any else, and answers that repentance is necessary for all people. The Greek word is metanoia which means conversion or change of mind. It is a conversion that changes our perspective on life, a conversion that leads to the renewal of our minds to Christ. This parable demonstrates the need for this repentance. Such conversion is the fruit of the human heart responding to the saving grace of God. Just as prayer makes the person more charitable, this kind of repentance leads to fruits of good works.
In our response to the God’s call, we need to bear fruit to share with those around us. A vocation is not given to the individual for his or her own good, but for the good of all. Moses would not have lived his vocation out if he had not returned to Egypt to lead out the nation, just as the unproductive fig tree was not in essence fulfilling its mission by bearing figs. This fruitfulness is the test of our faithfulness to our vocation.
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