This week’s lectionary text is one of Jesus’ weird parables. Brian and Fr. Shay share their ideas on what it means for queer people to be the stones that the builders rejected. The Kingdom of God belongs to those who bear good fruit so what does that mean for the queer and trans community?

“Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.

“The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.

“But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”

“He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”

Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

‘The stone the builders rejected

“Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.

Photo by Al_HikesAZ

The post The Kingdom Is Ours – Matthew 21:33-43 appeared first on Queer Theology.