by Faith Central & Steve Welsh
“R. (52b) Glory and praise for ever!
‘Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name,
praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages.’ …”
“… The name ‘James’ is the translation of Iakobos, the Graecised form of the name of the famous Patriarch, Jacob. The Apostle of this name was the brother of John and in the above-mentioned lists, comes second, immediately after Peter, as occurs in Mark (3: 17); or in the third place, after Peter and Andrew as in the Gospels of Matthew (10: 2) and Luke (6: 14), while in the Acts he comes after Peter and John (1: 13). This James belongs, together with Peter and John, to the group of the three privileged disciples whom Jesus admitted to important moments in his life. …”
“… Jesus summoned them and said,
‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.'”
“We live in difficult times for the Church; from many sectors the very legitimate cry for reform goes up frequently. Beyond the sexual abuse scandal there are also deep concerns regarding the uncertain trumpet of Catholic preaching, lukewarm and nominal Catholics, an overall lack of self-discipline among Catholics, and a lack of disciplining by the bishops and clergy of those Catholics (lay and clergy) who cause scandal. The list of concerns is long, and in general I have been sympathetic on this blog to the need for reform and greater zeal in the Church.The Gospel this Sunday, however, featuring the Parable of the Wheat and Tares, cautions against overzealousness in the attempt to root out sin and sinners from the Church. The Lord’s warning to the farmhands who wanted to tear out the weeds was that they might harm the wheat as well. He wants them to wait until the harvest. There will come a day of reckoning, but it is not now.
This does not mean that we are never to take notice of sin or to rebuke a sinner. There is certainly the need for discipline in the Church; other texts call for it as well. But today’s Gospel is meant to warn against a scouring that is too thorough, a puritanical clean sweep that overrules God’s patience and seeks to turn the Church from a hospital for sinners into a germ-free (and hence people-free) zone. …”
“I am writing to you, my brothers, so you might know that, since the day when Adam was created until the end of the world, the Evil One wages war against the saints without respite (Rev 13,7)… You should know, then, beloved brethren, that in all those who have prepared their soul to provide good soil for the heavenly sowing, the enemy makes haste to sow his tares … But now, brothers, take heart and don’t be afraid of anything. Don’t allow yourselves to be frightened by the imaginations stirred up by the enemy. Don’t give in to a confused restlessness in prayer by multiplying unnecessary petitions, but receive the Lord’s grace with contrition and repentance … Take heart, be comforted, hold fast, concern yourselves with your souls, persevere in prayer with all zeal … For all those who seek God in truth will receive divine strength in their soul and, in receiving this heavenly unction, they will feel within themselves the taste and sweetness of the world to come. May the peace of the Lord, that peace which was with all the holy fathers and kept them safe from every temptation, be also with you.”
“… ‘The Kingdom of Heaven may be likened to a man
who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
* * *
‘… Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
“First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn.'”‘”
“… ‘”Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take My Yoke upon you and learn from Me,
for I am Meek and Humble of Heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For My Yoke is easy, and My Burden light.'”
“O Lord my God, how you possess the words of eternal life, where all mortals will find what they desire if they want to seek it! But what a strange thing, my God, that we forget your words in the madness and sickness our evil deeds cause! O my God,…, author of all creation! And what is creation if You, Lord, should desire to create more? You are almighty; Your works are incomprehensible. Bring it about, then, Lord, that my thoughts not withdraw from Your words. * * * … Have mercy, Creator, on these Your creatures. Behold, we don’t understand or know what we desire, nor do we obtain what we ask for. Lord, give us light * * * …. Let Your mercy shine upon evil that has so increased; behold, Lord, we are Your handiwork. May Your goodness and mercy help us.”
“… In this Sunday’s Gospel (Mt 13:1-23), Jesus recounts to the crowd the well-known Parable of the Sower. In a certain way it is an “autobiographical” passage, for it reflects the very experience of Jesus, of his preaching. He identifies himself with the sower who scatters the good seed of the Word of God and notes the different effects it obtains, in accordance with the way in which people hear the proclamation.
Some listen superficially to the Word but do not take it in; others accept it at the time but are unable to persevere and lose it all; there are those who are engrossed by worldly concerns and enticements; and those who listen receptively, like the good soil: here the word bears an abundance of fruit.
However this Gospel also puts the accent on Jesus’ preaching “method”, that is, on his use of parables. …
Basically, God’s true “Parable” is Jesus himself, his Person who, in the sign of humanity, hides and at the same time reveals his divinity. In this manner God does not force us to believe in him but attracts us to him with the truth and goodness of his incarnate Son: love, in fact, always respects freedom.
Dear friends, tomorrow we shall be celebrating the Feast of St Benedict, Abbot and Patron of Europe. In the light of this Gospel reading let us look to him as to a master of listening to the Word of God, a profound and persevering listening. We must always learn from the great Patriarch of Western monasticism to give God his proper place, the first place, offering him in morning and evening prayer our daily work.
May the Virgin Mary help us, through her example, to be “good soil” where the seed of the Word may bear fruit in abundance.”
“… [we] think back to the parable of the sower. We know the parable, but we can re-read the words of the Gospel over and over again and still find new light. So the sower comes out to sow. As he sows, some seeds fall on the path, some on rocky ground, some among thorns, some finally on good soil, and only these last gave fruit (cf. Mt 13:3-8).
Jesus did not limit himself to presenting us with a parable, he explained it. Let us hear then the explanation of the parable of the sower. The seeds that fell on the path represent those who hear the word of the Kingdom of God but do not understand it. The Evil One comes and takes away what has been sown in their hearts (cf. Mt 13:19). The Evil One often uses this tactic and he tries to prevent the seed from germinating in people’s hearts. This is the first comparison. The second is the seed fallen on rocky ground. This ground represents the people who hear the word and welcome it immediately with joy, but they do not have roots in them and are inconstant. When tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, they fall away immediately (cf. Mt 13:20-21). What psychological insight in this comparison made by Christ! We know well from our experience and the experience of others the inconstancy of people deprived of the roots which would enable the word to grow! The third case is the seed fallen among thorns. Christ explains that he is thinking of those who hear the word but who, because of the worries of the world and their attachment to riches, stifle the word so that it does not bear fruit (cf. Mt 13:22).
Finally, the seed fallen on fertile ground represents those who hear the word and understand it, and the word bears fruit in them (cf. Mt 13:23). All of this magnificent parable speaks to us today as it spoke to the listeners of Jesus two thousand years ago. In the course of this world meeting of youth, let us become the fertile ground which receives the Gospel and bears fruit!
4. Bearing in mind that the human soul hesitates to welcome the word of God, let us address the Spirit with this ardent liturgical prayer:
Veni Creator Spiritus
Mentes tuorum visitas,
Imple superna gratia,
Quae tu creasti pectora.
Come, O Creator Spirit,
Visit the souls of those who belong to you;
Fill with your grace from on high
The hearts which you have made.
In this prayer we open our hearts, imploring the Spirit to fill them with light and life.
Spirit of God, make us ready to receive your visit. Make faith in the word which saves grow in us. Be the living source of the hope which blossoms in our lives. Be in us the breath of love which transforms us, and the fire of charity which impels us to give ourselves to the service of our brothers and sisters. …”