An interesting Yom Kippur sermon ...

 … can be found there (Matthew 20:1-16, KJV):

01 For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.

02 And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.

03 And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,

04 And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.

05 Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.

06 And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?

07 They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.

08 So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.

09 And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.

10 But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.

11 And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,

12 Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.

13 But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?

14 Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.

15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?

16 So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

Let’s write down when the householder called for labourers:

1. Early in the morning (at dawn);

2. At the third hour (at about 9 AM);

3. At the sixth hour (at noon);

4. At the ninth hour (at about 3 PM);

5. At the eleventh hour (at about 5 PM – an hour before sunset).

When are the Yom Kippur services currently set (I have no info about Jesus’ times)?

1. Kol Nidre/Ma'ariv (at the eve’s twilight);

2. Shacharit (at dawn);

3. Mussaf/'Avodah (at about noon);

4. Minchah (early in the afternoon);

5. Neilah (nearing sunset).

4 out of 5 householder’s calls match the Yom Kippur services’ times, and in Hebrew “‘Avodah” means both “work” and “divine service” (much like the Latin word “Opus”) - so I infer that this is a Yom Kippur sermon.

What was Jesus teaching his followers? Many Jewish listeners/readers would easily recognize the “Sitz im Leben = life context”: on Yom Kippur several worshippers fast the whole day and attend synagogue since it opens, but others come later in waves, and many come just for Neilah – the closing service, the last opportunity to atone.

What do rabbis do then? They plead with the more observant Jews not to grumble about the less observant ones – like the householder in the parable.

The usual Christian interpretation says that the labourers of the eleventh hour are the Gentiles, while those of the first hour are the Jews – it may make sense (the Haftarah for Yom Kippur is the Book of Jonah, the prophet who had to be forced to reach out to the heathens of Nineveh and save them), but in my opinion the key is in verses 6-7.

Why did these labourers stand idle even though harvesting grapes required each and every hand available? They were most likely ‘am ha-aretz, people who couldn’t be trusted to tithe properly, not to speak of making kosher bread and wine.

Jesus told them that it didn’t matter to him, that the Kingdom of Heaven will welcome them nonetheless, evaluating them on a par with those strict in observing mitzwot.

Raffaele Yona Ladu

Gendervague humanistic Jew

Member of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Yom Kippur 5781 Edit:

I have been pointed to bKeritot 6b (Steinsaltz Edition, as published by Sefaria.org):

<<Rav Ḥana bar Bizna says that Rabbi Shimon Ḥasida says: Any fast that does not include the participation of some of the sinners of the Jewish people is not a fast, as the smell of galbanum is foul and yet the verse lists it with the ingredients of the incense. Abaye says that this is derived from here: “It is He Who builds His upper chambers in the heavens and has established His bundle on the earth” (Amos 9:6), i.e., when the people are united as a bundle, including their sinners, they are established upon the earth.>>

So making Yom Kippur inclusive has always been imperative for the Jewish community - not just for the author of the parable, according to my interpretation.

Therefore, whatever the author's intent, Jews did not deserve the charge of exclusivity.