Politically Correct Parables

The Differently Waged Persons
The Labourers in the Vineyard
Matthew 20:1-16

One day at dawn, a vineyard owner went to the marketplace to hire migrant workers to pick grapes. These grapes, of course, were grown without the use of pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, or insecticides. In other words, they were cide-free.

After a short negotiating session, he agreed to pay the workers the usual daily wage: one denarius. They were happy to be working because of the seasonal nature of grape-picking. They went off to the vineyard and started work.

At nine o'clock, the owner went back to the market and saw some unhired workers standing around. He said to himself, "It is not good for these persons to be indefinitely idled. I'll offer them jobs, too." He hired them saying, "I'll pay you a fair wage, even though you won't be working a full day."

He did the same thing at noon and at three o'clock. These workers were all happy to be working, even if only for part of a day. In those unenlightened days, the only way to receive money was to work for it. As yet, there was no such thing as public assistance for involuntary leisured persons.

At five o'clock, only one hour before quitting time, the vineyard owner went back to the marketplace. There were still a few persons milling about.

"Why do you stand here idle all day?" the owner asked.

"Are you sight-impaired or something?" one worker replied.

Another said, "We're here because nobody will hire us, even though we have taken an 'Aramaic as a Second Language' course. We're undocumented workers," they replied.

"Would you like to work in my vineyard?" he asked/

"There's only one hour left before sundown. It doesn't seem worth your while to hire us for such a short time," they said.

"I'm willing if you're willing," he replied.

"Give us a moment to talk it over," they said. They huddled and discussed the owner's offer of work. After much discussion they decided to go. Because of the time it took to reach a decision, they only worked for one-half of an hour before the vineyard whistle blew, ending the workday

As the workers lined up to receive their wages, the owner said to the foreperson, "Line them up in reverse order of how long they worked, beginning with the ones hired at five o'clock."

When the workers who worked for only one-half hour opened their pay envelopes, they jumped for joy. "We got an entire day's wages for only one-half hour's work! This owner is either logic-impaired or generosity-abled!"

Their celebration raised the expectations of the other workers. "Surely, we will receive a denarius an hour for our work, too!" they thought.

But when they opened their pay envelopes, everyone had received the same amount: one denarius. This especially galled those who worked from sunrise to sunset. They organised a delegation and approached the owner.

"We wish to lodge a grievance. You paid us the same as those who worked only one-half hour! Where's the economic justice in this?"

The owner calmly replied, "Where did you acquire this entitlement mentality? Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? I haven't done anything unfair. If I chose to pay those hired last the same, that's none of your business. Or, would you restrict my right to use my money in the way I see fit?"

But the workers complained, "If you want to throw away your money, why don't you throw some our way? What's equal isn't always fair!" They started to invade the owner's personal space by getting in his face.

The owner stood up and said, "Wait a minute! What do you know about fairness? Why do you think those workers were still standing around at five o'clock? They are differently abled with various physical challenges. Some are even chronologically advantaged. Some are undocumented residents. They almost never get hired. What I have instituted is a system of economic equality based on need rather than merit. I call it, 'the last will be first and the first will be last'."

Copyright © 2000 Robert Martin Walker