In the parables of last Sunday Jesus presented two central characters who would discombobulate the scribes and Pharisees. He then turns to the disciples and tells them a story whose central character is a sleazy manager whose shrewd action is commended. This discombobulates us as it has disciples and textural commentators through the years. But if Jesus did not hesitate to critique the failed shepherds and housekeepers of Israel, why should he hesitate to pique us, the stewards of the gospel? Certainly part of what judgment means is that God can and does hand out pink slips in history.
