The Reading from 1 Corinthians 16:13-24 The Reading from St. Matthew 21:33-42 This Tuesday is the first day of the Church New Year. As such it is the time when I print out the parish calendar for 2026-2027. I don’t have to do this. It is not on the list of things the bishop asks me to do. So why do I do it? Many of you were here last Sunday for the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony when Bogdan and Dominika had their marriage blessed and sanctified by this sacrament. But Fr., weren’t they already married for some 13 years, they have a child! Yes. True. But here is a lesson for all of us catechumen, and we all should consider ourselves catechumen. We never stop seeking, knocking, searching, for ways to become more like Christ. The lesson is: We want Christ to bless all that we do. We want Him on the throne of our hearts, we want to be aware of Him all the time. We want Him always living and abiding in our hearts. So Dominika and Bogdan had a civil marriage in Romania, since then Dominika converted to Holy Orthodoxy from Roman Catholicism and they decided to ask for the blessing of their marriage. This is praiseworthy. This is good. This is meet and right. This is a recognition that the state is not the power on earth that brings sanctification to a marriage. The state cannot give you the grace to truly love each other in a marriage. We need God to be at the center of our lives to save us, to sanctify us, to lead us into all Truth. Only by the blessing of God is this possible. All of you who were here then, and if you have been to an Orthodox wedding, you will have noticed that the first action a newly married couple takes is the Wedding Dance, often called the Dance of Isaiah. Just to remind you I will say: This is when after the Crowning and blessing of the marriage, the priest takes the hands of the couple, lays his stole over their hands and leads them around the table while the singers sing three songs, the first begins with O Isaiah dance your joy… What they are doing is not just a joyful stroll around the table. On the table is the Holy Cross and The Holy Gospel. Their first action as a married couple is to show that their life together will revolve around Christ, His Church, His Cross, His Commandments. Right? Remember this now? So that’s all good Fr., but what has that to do with the New Year in the church and printing a liturgical calendar?? It is for the same reason. So that we as members of His body, as members of a parish community; will center our lives around the Church, the Sacraments, the Services and Prayers of the Church. This is what we do. This is how we work out our own salvation. (Phil. 2:12-13) We all put appointments on our calendars, medical appointments, visitors coming, days off, vacations, birthdays, etc. Why don’t we have the feasts and fasts of the church on our personal calendar.?! That way, when you are seeing a doctor or whomever, and they want to schedule a follow-up appointment in February, you will be aware, “O, I can’t do that day, it is a feast of the Church and I don’t want to miss Liturgy!” Does your life revolve around fun and relaxation and physical problems? Should we not put Christ first? This is a simple to raise awareness in our minds of the liturgical annual cycle of centering our lives around Christ. Every year the liturgical cycle revolves around the Life of Christ. The major events of His life and His teachings are brought before us each year in the Holy Scriptures. We are always being reminded of His plan for our salvation. It is up to us to decide what to do with the medicine that is being offered by The Holy Church for our healing and salvation. So now we listen to the parable from today: And they took him and cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him. When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.” Who are the old tenants who refused to give the fruits to the landowner? The leaders of the Hebrews who killed the prophets, they rejected worship of the True God, they rejected the Word of Truth, they even killed the Prophet John the Baptist. So the vineyard owner sent His Son, surely the tenants will respect Him. But in their love of power, position, and greed, they killed the Son as well. So new tenants were found. Who are the tenants in this parable? You and Me! What fruit is the Landlord Jesus seeking? Fruits of repentance, holiness, the sweet aroma of Christ coming from us. Honoring and worshiping The Holy Trinity is spirit and in Truth. Producing Christian fruit requires more than fun and entertainment, much more effort needs to be exerted for our souls than for our bodies. Hear St. Paul from the epistle reading: Brethren, be watchful, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, and be strong. Let all that you do be done in love. This is a parable that speaks of the Life of Christ, but there is another layer of meaning that is for us. “There was a householder who planted a vineyard, and set a hedge around it, and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and let it out to tenants, and went into another country. When the season of fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants, to get his fruit; … The landlord is the Father. The tenants at the time were the Israelites, The Hebrews. Now as we read this, we are the tenants. We are stewards, nothing we have is ours, we must return all to Christ when He asks or comes for us. The Vineyard is the Church, which He has given everything for in order for it to prosper; to bear much fruit. We learn how to properly offer the fruits to the Landowner by full participation in His Holy Body, The Church of Christ. We become the Bride preparing to meet the Bridegroom. This is the effort of receiving, putting on Christ, in order to be givers. Our world is a world of alienation, fragmentation, and isolation. Rugged individualism does not produce salvation. Being incorporated into the Body of Christ does. Together as a spiritual family, we persons, are part of a body of persons that make up the Church, The Body of Christ. Together we walk the path of Christ. Together we work out our salvation in the presence of our brothers and sisters. Together we learn to keep Christ in our hearts. Together, every year, in the cycle of services, we walk through the Life of Christ, we work at becoming aware of our sins, our distractions, our passions, and we all together, learn a new way of life. We learn how to be proper tenants of the gifts the Landlord has given us, so that we may hear when the Landlord Jesus returns, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” May it be so, by the power of Jesus Christ.