In the Parable of the Wicked Tenants, the vineyard is Israel, the owner is God Himself and the tenants are the leaders of the people (the chief priests, scribes and elders). The servants were the prophets and the beloved son is Jesus.

Its focus is on the tenants and their rebellious conduct. They had misused their position. There are 2 christological elements in this parable. The first refers to the 'beloved son' - Jesus as God's only son. The second element (12:10-11) cites Ps.118:22-23 wherein Jesus is the stone rejected by the builders whom God used as the 'cornerstone' of the new building i.e. the community of believers who came into being after the death of Jesus.

What message does this parable have for us Christians - followers of Jesus Christ today? Do we see some leaders in the Church sometimes treat the church as their private property? Do we see how genuine prophets today are being silenced?

In the first reading, Tobit who did what he ought to do in wanting to share the festival meal with the poor and even in the act of burying a dead, he was considered 'unclean'. In spite of his virtues of truth, righteousness and works of mercy like the characteristics of God (3:2,5; 13:6), he was not accepted by his community. Do we see this in our own situations and reality?