Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr, June 1, 2026

Gospel

Mark 12:1-12

Jesus began to speak to the chief priests, the scribes,

and the elders in parables.

"A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it,

dug a wine press, and built a tower.

Then he leased it to tenant farmers and left on a journey.

At the proper time he sent a servant to the tenants

to obtain from them some of the produce of the vineyard.

But they seized him, beat him,

and sent him away empty-handed.

Again he sent them another servant.

And that one they beat over the head and treated shamefully.

He sent yet another whom they killed.

So, too, many others; some they beat, others they killed.

He had one other to send, a beloved son.

He sent him to them last of all, thinking, 'They will respect my son.'

But those tenants said to one another, 'This is the heir.

Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'

So they seized him and killed him,

and threw him out of the vineyard.

What then will the owner of the vineyard do?

He will come, put the tenants to death,

and give the vineyard to others.

Have you not read this Scripture passage:

The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

by the Lord has this been done,

and it is wonderful in our eyes?"

They were seeking to arrest him, but they feared the crowd,

for they realized that he had addressed the parable to them.

So they left him and went away.

Reflection

Every time I read this parable, I find myself wondering why the vineyard owner continued to send servant after servant and eventually his own son, when each one was beaten, rejected, or even killed. It seems almost unreasonable from a human perspective. However, this persistence I believe reveals something profound about the heart of God. He does not give up on His people. Even after repeated rejection, He continues to reach out, offering opportunities for repentance and reconciliation, and ultimately even offering up His only begotten son.

What is also unfathomable to me is how as Jesus tells this story, He knows exactly what awaits Him. He knows that He will be rejected, betrayed, tortured, and killed. The religious leaders listening to Him are already plotting against Him, and Jesus knows this, yet He does not turn away from His mission. He willingly embraces the Father's will, knowing that His suffering and death are part of God's plan for the salvation of the world... “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes”. Through His Passion, Death, and Resurrection, He becomes the cornerstone upon which our faith is built and what appears to be rejection becomes the means of our salvation.