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hiswordsarekisses · 1 year

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This is by John Parsons, and it is so wonderful. Don’t let the length turn you away because this is so good.

Teshuva for Outcasts…

“Yeshua warned that it is possible for people to fool themselves into thinking that they are “spiritual” or “connecting with God” when in fact they are not. He warned that appearances can be deceiving, and he insisted that what matters most is the inner condition of the heart. As it written: כָּל־דֶּרֶךְ־אִישׁ יָשָׁר בְּעֵינָ֑יו וְתֹכֵן לִבּוֹת יְהוָה — “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart” (Prov. 21:2).

In general people want to impress others by appearing attractive, capable, important, or powerful, and to simultaneously cover up their weaknesses and insecurities. This is a common frailty of human nature. We feel unsure of ourselves and often put on a false front. We want to project an impressive image, to appear better than we really are, and so on. We stretch the truth; we make believe, we pretend. We are hypocrites. The word “hypocrite” was originally a theatrical term referring to someone who painted their face to portray a character. A “good” hypocrite was believable, though in some cases, the actor would become so immersed in his role that he would forget who he really was! In real life, however, we realize that a person can appear to be one thing on the outside but be something else on the inside. If the person is conscious of the charade, he is a deceiver; if he is unconscious of it, he is self-deceived. We all know the saying, “all that glitters is not gold.”

Hypocrisy is a special form of temptation to those who feel the need to appear virtuous, or respectable, or moral, or “spiritual,” but it can become “stagecraft of the self,” a superficial profession of allegiance to high ideals or standards that hide the real self behind the mask.

The Pharisees dressed themselves in impressive religious attire and used “insider” religious language to distinguish themselves and impress others, but to them Yeshua said, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15). In their zeal to elevate themselves before men, to be honored as spiritual leaders, they lost sight of their need for God’s forgiveness and deliverance from their own inner corruption of heart. Instead of understanding their common connection with the “poor in spirit,” with the mourners, the lowly, those who hunger and thirst for deliverance, they set themselves apart as holy men whose religious practices essentially scorned the needy and made them outsiders. They “theologized” their sense of entitlement and success as the “blessing of God.” Far from being something that indicated genuine spirituality and heart connection with God, however, the esteem that they gave to themselves was an abomination in God’s sight.

Yeshua came to seek and to save the lost sheep of Israel, but the “leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadduces” that is, their false teaching, undermined his redemptive mission (Matt. 16:11-12). The “halo effect” of the Pharisees (and the religious establishment) must therefore be exposed as an illusion, because their religious practices were a stumbling block and indeed a seduction for those who sought deliverance from God. Man cannot save himself; religious practices and rituals are not the way to be healed from the sickness of spiritual death. Therefore Yeshua had to deflate their conceits and reveal what was essential.

To those who sought to justify themselves before men, those who trusted in their own merits to be made right with God, who elevated themselves as holy by separating themselves from others for the sake of their supposed “godliness” and “purity,” Yeshua told a story that has come to be called the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14).

“Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus to himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men — extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ But the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Note first this parable is addressed to those who “trusted in themselves,” referring here to the Pharisees who regarded themselves as “gate keepers” to the kingdom of God. The Greek term used for those who trusted in themselves (τοὺς πεποιθότας) suggested they were bold and regarded themselves correct in their thinking. In this connection, recall that the Pharisees sought to safeguard their own righteousness by adding further precepts (i.e., gezerot, or "fences") to the law. They reasoned that if they kept these more stringent precepts, then surely they would keep from transgressing the law — and therefore would be “righteous.” For instance, if the law said to give tithes for the relief of the poor (ma'aser), they would give additional tithes for other matters, “mint and cumin,” and the “sacrifice” of a pinch of bread whenever they ate. They were careful to not only abstain from unclean meats, but developed elaborate hand washing rituals and blessings before they would anything eat at all. These additional laws and customs were designed to be safeguards by “going beyond” the commandments of Torah, though in truth they created a religious caste system that missed the point and intent of the law. After all, the Shema clearly affirmed that the first duty of the law was to love God and others wholeheartedly, but these religious customs obscured the weightier matters of God's will and thereby became a distraction…

Right away, then, Yeshua’s parable sets the stage for a radical contrast: “Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.” To the common people, a “parshan” (פַּרשָׁן) or an “interpreter of the law,” was the approved insider, a “man of the cloth” who really understood Torah and godliness, whereas the “tax collector” was an unlearned and profane outsider. Indeed a tax collector for Rome was considered not just unlearned but a traitor to the people of Israel — and therefore to God! As Yeshua describes this scene, the Pharisee is found on his own turf, feeling confident and “at home” in the Temple, donned in his religious garments, trained in the “right” verbiage to use, and comfortable with the rituals and liturgy of the place, whereas the tax collector knew little of these things and undoubtedly felt like a alien and a stranger — awkwardly out of place and unwanted.

Yeshua then lets us listen in to the private thoughts of each respective man: “The Pharisee stood and prayed thus to himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men — extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'" Note first that the Greek for the phrase “he stood prayed thus to himself” could be rendered as either he stood and prayed by himself, that is, apart from others, or (alternatively) that he stood and prayed to himself (πρὸς ἑαυτόν), that is, he prayed about himself — and perhaps out loud — for others to hear. His concern is how he esteems himself in comparison with others, how he is “not like other men” who are unclean, unworthy, defective, etc. He thanks God by congratulating himself that he is better than others, “chosen,” set apart, and made pure by his punctilious religious observance. He cites as merit his “good deeds” of routinely fasting and giving tithes, confident that these deserve approval from God. His identity is concealed beneath his prayer shawl, and his pride is wrapped tightly upon him like the oversized tefillin on his arm and on his head.

“But the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ The tax collector stands “afar off” and thinks to himself: “I am at a distance; far removed from God’s presence... Indeed, I am as one dead, a mourner in this place, and sick of inner grief of the soul besides! I am nothing in the eyes of God and of men, an outcast, with only the guilt and shame that binds to me like sackcloth and ash of the soul. I have no fancy words to say; no memorized prayers or blessings. All I have is the horror of my shame, the roar of my heart, the groan of my pain: “O God, be merciful to me, a sinner...”

“Be merciful to me, a sinner...” The forlorn tax collector knew himself to be entirely unworthy; he sensed his dread and desperate condition; he offered no excuses for himself nor made any appeal to his merit. In his eyes he was undone. His only prayer was the grievous sigh: “Be merciful to me...” The Greek word used for “be merciful” (ἱλάσθητί) here comes from the same root used to translate the kapporet (כפרת) in the LXX, that is, the cover of the Holy Ark where sacrificial blood was presented on Yom Kippur. The tax collector realized that only God could forgive him by making atonement for his life... In this connection Paul used this word to describe the atonement given in Yeshua at the cross: “God set Yeshua forth as an atoning sacrifice (ἱλαστήριον) through faith in his blood (διὰ τῆς πίστεως, ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι) to demonstrate His righteousness” (Rom. 3:25; Heb. 9:5). Likewise the apostle John wrote that Yeshua is the atoning sacrifice (ἱλασμός) for our sins (1 John 2:2).

And the twist of the story is found in its irony, the surprise ending: “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” The word translated “justified” here means "pronounced righteous" (i.e., δίκαιος), that is, declared to be in right relationship with God. It is God’s righteousness that is the focus, not self-righteousness or self-justification. It is the goodness and kindness of God that saves us from ourselves and leads us to do teshuvah, not our so-called “works of righteousness” done on his behalf (Rom. 2:4; Titus 3:5-7; 2 Tim. 2:19; Eph. 2:8-9; Gal. 2:16; Psalm 51:16-17).

The Pharisee’s “prayer” to God was essentially self-congratulatory: “Thank you, God, that there is no need for you to have mercy upon me — for hallelujah! — I am not a sinner.” Tragically his pride blinded his heart to his own need and therefore barred the way of life to him. If he had inverted his prayer: “O God, I am just like all other people, lost, evil-minded, lustful, profane, selfish and unloving ... please have mercy upon me!” then undoubtedly his prayer would have been accepted, just as the tax collector’s prayer was accepted.

Salvation and “justification” come from honestly accepting our spiritual condition as broken and helpless people. William James called this condition "Zerrissenheit," a term that can be translated as "torn-to-pieces-hood," or a state of being demolished and in disarray. It is consciousness of our need for God, our desperate cry for deliverance from ourselves. Blaise Pascal wrote that faith in Yeshua is essentially a confession of irreparable human infirmity, and therefore its message is always directly there — to the place of our pain and desperation. Consequently it has no voice or message to mere triflers - much less to those who seek to justify themselves and to minimize the radical nature of their sinful condition. No, no, never: the Spirit speaks to the heart in its anguish, in its lament over the suffering and agony of life in this world, and there breathes out the haunting question, “Do you want to be healed?”

So let us join the outcasts, the lepers, the tax collectors, remembering that Yeshua is the “friend of sinners” and our only true Savior. “O Lord, I need you so much. Without you I am nothing, even if suppose myself to be something, but with you I am something, even if I suppose myself to be nothing. Whenever I regard myself apart from you, there I am lost, empty, and without purpose, even if it may seem otherwise. When I surrender to you, trusting in you to impart life to me, I come alive and bear witness of your mercy and grace. O Lord, have mercy upon me and let me know how beautiful and wonderful you are. Amen.”

Psalm 51:17:

‎זִבְחֵי אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ נִשְׁבָּרָה

‎לֵב־נִשְׁבָּר וְנִדְכֶּה אֱלֹהִים לֹא תִבְזֶה

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

Psalm 32:5:

‎חַטָּאתִי אוֹדִיעֲךָ

‎וַעֲוֹנִי לֹא־כִסִּיתִי

‎אָמַרְתִּי אוֹדֶה עֲלֵי פְשָׁעַי לַיהוָה

‎וְאַתָּה נָשָׂאתָ עֲוֹן חַטָּאתִי סֶלָה

“I acknowledged my sin to you,

and my iniquity I have not hid; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD’'; and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah.”

Read and/or subscribe here:

https://open.substack.com/pub/hebrew4christians/p/teshuvah-for-outcasts?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

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myremnantarmy · 1 year

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𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟑𝟏, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑

Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest

Gospel Mt 13:31-35

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.

"The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed

that a person took and sowed in a field.

It is the smallest of all the seeds,

yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.

It becomes a large bush,

and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches."

He spoke to them another parable.

"The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast

that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour

until the whole batch was leavened."

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.

He spoke to them only in parables,

to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:

I will open my mouth in parables,

I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

#jesus #catholic #my remnant army #jesus christ #virgin mary #faithoverfear #saints #jesusisgod #endtimes #artwork #Gospel #word of God #Bible #bibleversoftheday #bibleverse #Jesus is coming

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pugzman3 · 1 year

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This is J D. Greear. He is the former PRESIDENT of the SBC, and now "pastor" at a fancy church in Raleigh Durham, NC. Listen how this former president of the SBC, twists scripture worse than an Ohio train wreck.

MATTHEW 12:33 KJV

Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

....until the WHOLE was leavened.

But when you don't know the Bible, you believe this garbage. Go look at 1 Corinthians 7. NO WHERE does Paul talk about relations with the same sex. And people who go to these churches wonder why I don't go to church but call myself a Christian.

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conduit-of-grace · 7 months

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“In the moments of struggle and tribulation, when perhaps the ‘good’ fill your way with obstacles, lift up your apostolic heart: listen to Jesus as he speaks of the grain of mustard seed and of the leaven, and say to him: ‘Edissere nobis parabolam’ - ‘Explain the parable to me.’

And you’ll feel the joy of contemplating the victory to come; the birds of the air under the shelter of your apostolate, now only in its beginnings, and the whole of the meal leavened.”

- St. Josemaria Escriva, “Tribulations” from The Way, #695

#Catholic #Christian #St. Josemaria Escriva #The Way #quotes

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frmartinshomiliesandreflections · 1 year

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23rd July >> Fr. Martin's Gospel Homilies / Reflections on Matthew 13:24-43 for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A: ‘Let them both grow till harvest’.

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

Gospel (Except USA) Matthew 13:24-43 Let them both grow till the harvest.

Jesus put another parable before the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.”’

He put another parable before them: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest shrub of all and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and shelter in its branches.’

He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.’

In all this Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables; indeed, he would never speak to them except in parables. This was to fulfil the prophecy:

I will speak to you in parables and expound things hidden since the foundation of the world.

Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, ‘Explain the parable about the darnel in the field to us.’ He said in reply, ‘The sower of the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the evil one; the enemy who sowed them, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that provoke offences and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!’

Gospel (USA) Matthew 13:24–43 Let them grow together until harvest.

Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying: “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. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. 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.”’”

He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’”

He spoke to them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.” All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:

I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

Homilies (4)

(i) Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

We are all familiar with weeds in our gardens. We have a tendency to root them out immediately. However, sometimes the weeds are so close to the shrub or flower that to take out the weed risks disturbing the plant. We sometimes have to let the weeds be for the sake of the plant. We are also aware in recent times that the flowers which weeds generate can be great pollinators for our bees. We are now being told not to be rooting out our dandelions and other weeks so quickly and ruthlessly. Weeds are making a comeback!

In the first parable that Jesus speaks in today’s gospel reading, the servants of the landowner wanted to pull up the weeds that had appeared among the wheat. However, the landowner himself was a more patient man. He was aware that pulling up the weeds could pull up some wheat as well and he advised letting both weed and wheat grow until harvest time, and then they could be separated. There is always a deeper meaning to Jesus’ parables. He wasn’t primarily talking about gardens or fields of wheat. He began the parable with the words, ‘the kingdom of God may be compared to…’. Jesus was really talking about God and how God relates to us. He is suggesting that God can be patient with our weaknesses because God recognises that they are often closely aligned with our strengths. An angry person may have a passion for justice; an overly anxious person may be very dutiful and conscientious. God recognizes that we are all a mixture of wheat and weed, of strength and weakness and he is patient with our mixture. We need to be patient too with ourselves and with others. In striving too hard to make ourselves perfect, we risk doing as much harm as good. We need to live with the mixture we are, while always allowing the Lord to enhance all that is good in our lives.

In the two other parables in today’s gospel reading, Jesus draws a contrast between the tiny beginnings and the large scale of the final result. The mustard seed is the smallest of the seeds but within a year it has grown into a shrub large enough to provide a place for birds to nest. A tiny piece of yeast can leaven a huge amount of flour, three measures, enough to feed a hundred people. The mustard seed and the yeast are not only tiny but powerful. They go about their work silently and unobtrusively until they produce a result out of all proportion to their size. Jesus may be saying that the same could be said about his ministry. He goes about his work as someone who is humble and gentle of heart, quietly and unobtrusively. Galilee was a tiny region of the vast Roman Empire. Jesus had access to only a relatively small proportion of the people of Galilee itself. Even among those he had access to, he was encountering strong opposition. Such beginnings must have seemed very unpromising to his disciples. Yet, Jesus is assuring them that such small beginnings will bring forth something wonderful that will leave huge numbers blessed. The final outcome of Jesus’ work will be out of proportion to its humble beginnings. Jesus’ words of encouragement are as necessary for us today as they were for those original disciples. We can get discouraged by how things are with the church and with our world. Today’s gospel reading assures us that a seed has been sown by the Lord and its growth is assured, a power for good has been released, the power of the Spirit, and its impact for good is not in doubt. There is no room for complacency, but there is also no room for despondency.

What is true of Jesus’ ministry is also true of our own lives. The good work we do, quietly and unobtrusively, can bear fruit in a way that will often surprise us. The Lord can work powerfully through our good efforts, even though they may seem of little significance to us. There is some good we can all do, no matter how small, that no one else can do, and that can make a difference for the better in the lives of others. Saint John Henry Newman wrote, ‘God has created me to do him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another’. Regardless of where we are on our life’s journey, the Lord can work powerfully through even the smallest service we render to one another. The fact that we are a mixture of the good and the not-so-good does not prevent the Lord from working through us in the service of others. Yes, we often show ourselves to be weak, but as Saint Paul says in today’s second reading, ‘the Spirit helps us in our weakness’. We may be tainted by sin in various ways but we are also touched by grace, and, as Saint Paul says in one of his other letters, the Lord’s power is often ‘made perfect in weakness’. Even though we are not yet all that the Lord is calling us to be, he can empower us through the Holy Spirit to sow mustards seed of goodness that can go on to bear good fruit beyond anything we might imagine.

And/Or

(ii) Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

We have had some beautiful weather recently. Many of us may have been gardening, and part of our gardening work probably involved pulling up weeds. We all long for a weed-free garden. We are not convinced by the view that weeds are really only flowers in the wrong place and that we should learn to appreciate them. We see weeds as a nuisance, as something to be got rid of. Some of us may have discovered that our zeal to get rid of weeds can have unfortunate consequences. In my ignorance I once sprayed a lawn that had weeds among the grass with a weed killer. I succeeded only in killing off the grass; the weeds seemed to have got a new lease of life. In going after weeds, we can do a certain amount of unintended collateral damage.

We can easily identify with the servants in the gospel reading who were poised to pull up the weeds that an enemy had sown in the wheat field of their master. However, the owner of the field was a more patient man. He recognized that at the early stages of growth this particular weed looked very like wheat and that it would be very difficult to distinguish between the two. In going after the weeds, the wheat would suffer too. He saw that it would be better to wait until both the weed and the wheat got much bigger and were ready for harvest. Then it would be possible to distinguish one from the other and to separate them accordingly. The owner knew that there was a time to leave well enough alone and there was a time to act. The time when the servants wanted to act was really the time to leave well enough alone. The servants had zeal but not much insight, and zeal without insight and sensitivity can be a very dangerous thing.

The parable suggests that doing nothing can sometimes be better than doing something. Jesus may have been alerting his followers to the dangers of a certain kind of well-intentioned zeal that demanded immediate action, when patient inactivity would actually be the better option. This was the kind of zeal Jesus’ disciples showed on one occasion when Jesus was refused entry into a Samaritan village. His disciples asked him if he wanted them to call on God to rain down fire from heaven and destroy the village. No doubt the disciples considered that Samaritan village to be the equivalent of the weeds in the wheat field of today’s parable. The evangelist tells us that Jesus rebuked his disciples for their suggestion and went on his way to another village. History, even recent history, is full of the tragic consequences of the kind of attitude displayed by those disciples. It is the attitude that says that the world would be a better place without such and such a person or without such and such a group, and, therefore, the right thing to do, the godly thing to do, is to take zealous action to remove such people or such groups from the world. Weed them out! The zeal of the weed killer can be a frightening thing. Jesus perhaps warned against this kind of purifying zeal because he was well aware that such zeal is not always accompanied by insight, by the wisdom that comes from above.

Jesus in the parable was warning us against a premature separation of the wheat from the weed, of the good from the bad. He was saying that this kind of separation is really God’s work, not our work, and that it will happen at the end of time rather than in the course of time. Just as the servants in the parable would not have been able to distinguish the wheat from the weeds if they had been let loose, we do not always have the necessary insight to distinguish who is good and who is evil. We can get it terribly wrong; we only have to think of those innocent people who have been wrongly imprisoned. How often in our own personal lives have we judged someone harshly only to discover in time that we were very wide of the mark. St. Paul put it very simply and clearly in one of his letters: ‘Do not pronounce judgement before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart’. Unfortunately, the church itself has not always heeded the warning of Jesus about the dangers of premature separation. It could be argued that the inquisition was not in the spirit of the parable that Jesus speaks in today’s gospel reading. Too great a zeal to purify the wheat field risks doing more harm than good.

A weed-free garden may be highly desirable, but the gospel today suggests that we may have to learn to live with weeds. We need to be patient with imperfection in ourselves and in others. As we know only too well, life is not tidy. It is not like a well manicured garden, in which order and harmony prevail. Our own personal lives are not like the garden displays that win prizes at the Chelsea flower show. Each of us is a mixture of wheat and weed; we are each tainted by sin and yet touched by grace. Our calling is to grow in grace before God and others, as Jesus did. We look to him to help us to keep on turning from sin and growing in grace. St Paul assures us in today’s second reading that the Spirit helps us in our weakness. With the Spirit’s help we can grow more and more into the person of Christ and become what Paul in one of his letters calls ‘God’s field’.

And/Or

(iii) Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

We all long for a weed-free garden. We see weeds as a nuisance, as something to be got rid of. Some of us may have discovered that our zeal to get rid of weeds can have unfortunate consequences. In my ignorance I once sprayed a lawn that had weeds among the grass with a weed killer. I succeeded only in killing off the grass; the weeds seemed to have got a new lease of life. In going after weeds, we can do a certain amount of unintended collateral damage.

We can easily identify with the servants in the gospel reading who were poised to pull up the weeds that an enemy had sown in the wheat field of their master. However, the owner of the field was a more patient man. He recognized that at the early stages of growth this particular weed looked very like wheat and that it would be very difficult to distinguish between the two. In going after the weeds, the wheat would suffer too. He saw that it would be better to wait until both the weed and the wheat got much bigger and were ready for harvest. Then it would be possible to separate them. The owner knew that there was a time to leave well enough alone and there was a time to act. The time when the servants wanted to act was really the time to leave well enough alone. The servants had zeal but not much insight, and zeal without insight can be a very dangerous thing.

The parable suggests that doing nothing can sometimes be better than doing something. Jesus may have been alerting his followers to the dangers of a certain kind of well-intentioned zeal for immediate action, when patient inactivity would be the better option. This was the kind of zeal Jesus’ disciples showed on one occasion when Jesus was refused entry into a Samaritan village. His disciples asked him if he wanted them to call on God to rain down fire from heaven and destroy the village. The disciples considered that Samaritan village to be the equivalent of the weeds in the wheat field of today’s parable. The evangelist tells us that Jesus rebuked his disciples and went on to another village. History is full of the tragic consequences of the kind of attitude displayed by those disciples. It is the attitude that says that the world would be a better place without such and such a person or such and such a group, and, therefore, the right thing to do is to take zealous action to remove such people or such groups from the world. Weed them out! The zeal of the weed killer can be a frightening thing. Jesus perhaps warned against this kind of purifying zeal because he was well aware that such zeal is not always accompanied by the wisdom that comes from above.

Jesus in the parable was warning us against a premature separation of wheat from weed, of the good from the bad. He was saying that this kind of separation is really God’s work, not our work, and that it will happen at the end of time rather than in the course of time. Just as the servants in the parable were unable to distinguish the wheat from the weeds if they had been let loose, we do not always have the necessary insight to distinguish who is good and who is evil. We can get it terribly wrong; we only have to think of those innocent people who have been wrongly imprisoned. How often in our own personal lives have we judged someone harshly only to discover in time that we were very wide of the mark. St. Paul put it very simply in one of his letters: ‘Do not pronounce judgement before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart’. The church itself has not always heeded the warning of Jesus about the dangers of premature separation. The inquisition was not in the spirit of the parable that Jesus speaks in today’s gospel reading. Too great a zeal to purify the wheat field risks doing more harm than good.

A weed-free garden may be highly desirable, but the gospel today suggests that we may have to learn to live with weeds. We need to be patient with imperfection, in ourselves and in others. As we know only too well, life is not tidy. It is not like a well manicured garden, in which order and harmony prevail. Our own personal lives are not like the garden displays that win prizes at the Chelsea flower show. Each of us is a mixture of wheat and weed; we are each tainted by sin and yet touched by grace. Our calling is to grow in grace before God and others, as Jesus did. We look to him to help us to keep on turning from sin and growing in grace. St Paul assures us in today’s second reading that the Spirit helps us in our weakness. With the Spirit’s help we can grow more and more into the person of Christ and become what Paul in one of his letters calls ‘God’s field’.

And/Or

(iv) Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

It has often been said that our weaknesses are the shadow side of our strengths. A person prone to anger can have a powerful passion for justice. Someone who tends to be intolerant of others can be very conscientious about doing everything well. The line between the good and the not-so-good within us can be very subtle. If we are overzealous in trying to root out what is not so good in our own life, or in someone else’s life, we might damage what is good there too.

In the first of the three parables that Jesus speaks in today’s gospel reading, the landowner’s servants wanted to root out the weeds that had appeared among the wheat. The landowner had to restrain them. It was not the time for such separation because it is not always easy to distinguish wheat from weeds at an early stage of growth. The separation would come at harvest time. In the meantime, patience was needed with the weeds. Jesus may have been warning against a kind of religious zeal that was too eager to identify weeds, what is considered worthless, and to separate it out from wheat, what is considered good. Saint Paul showed this kind of religious zeal before his conversion on the road to Damascus. He saw the followers of Jesus as weeds in the field of Judaism; they had to be rooted out. He was blind to the presence of God among them. It was only after his meeting with the risen Lord that he could look back and say, ‘I was violently persecuting the church of God’.

We can all get it wrong when it comes to others. We only have to think of those innocent people who have been wrongly imprisoned. In our own personal lives we may have judged someone harshly only to discover in time that we were wide of the mark. The church itself has not always heeded the warning of Jesus about the dangers of premature separation. Too great a zeal to purify the wheat field risks doing more harm than good. We need to be patient with imperfection, in ourselves and in others. As we know only too well, life is not tidy. It is not like a well-manicured garden, in which order and harmony prevail. Each of us is a mixture of wheat and weed; we are each tainted by sin and yet touched by grace. The Lord’s good work is ongoing in our lives, even if it is hindered by the presence of sin. Only beyond this earthly life will we be fully conformed to the image of God’s Son. In the meantime, we need a certain amount of patience with ourselves and others, while seeking to grow more fully into the person of Christ, and helping each other to do so. As we travel this journey, Saint Paul reminds us in today’s second reading that ‘the Spirit helps us in our weakness’.

If we focus only on the ‘weeds’ in our lives, we can easily get discouraged. Sometimes we may feel that our good efforts at something are bearing very little fruit. We can get into a frame of mind that says, ‘What good have I been doing with my life?’ We can feel that we have precious little to show for our endeavours. Yet, we can be doing a lot of good without realizing it. Even a little good can go a long way. That is the message of the other two parables that Jesus speaks in today’s gospel reading. The mustard seed is tiny and yet it grows into a very large shrub. What looks completely insignificant takes on a life of its own and develops in a way that is out of proportion to its small beginning. Sometimes in our own lives, the little good we do can go on to become something that we had never envisaged, and might never even get to see. The little bit of yeast that a woman uses in baking has a huge impact on a large batch of dough. Again, in our own lives, the little good we do can impact on those around us in ways that would surprise us. Jesus says, that is what the kingdom of God is like, how it comes among us. The good deed that seems insignificant can turn out to be powerful and beneficial for many.

These two small parables assure us that humble beginnings can have an extraordinary outcome when the work in question is God’s work. This is an encouragement to us all to keep doing the little bit of good we are able to do. It may not seem much in our own eyes or in the eyes of others, yet God can work powerfully through whatever little good we do, in ways that may surprise us. We can all plant the equivalent of the mustard seed; we can all be the equivalent of the tiny piece of leaven. The little initiative, the small loving gesture, can all bear fruit in ways that we could never have imagined at the time. The Lord can work powerfully through our smallest efforts if they are done out of love for him. Our calling is to keep planting some good seed and to trust that the Lord will do the rest.

Fr. Martin Hogan.

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albertfinch · 1 year

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Luke 13:20,21 - "again He said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? 21“It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three pecks of flour until it was all leavened.”

Some in the church believe that ‘leaven’ always refers to sin and this parable shows how the church will be full of sin and compromise in the last days. The mistake in this line of reasoning is twofold.

1. They are mistaking the church for the kingdom. They are not the same. The church is to live in the realm of the kingdom domain but in itself is not the kingdom. While sin does infect the church, the kingdom is the realm of God’s rule. Sin cannot penetrate and influence that realm.

2. The predisposition to see a weak and struggling church in the last days has made it difficult to see the promise of God for revival. It is impossible to have faith were there is no hope. Such approaches to understanding scripture have crippled the church.

The parable about the leaven illustrates the subtle but overwhelming influence (leaven) of the kingdom in any setting of which it is placed. The bible talks about influence (leaven) on the mind that determines how we interact with the kingdom. These influences (leaven) affect us as we endeavor to become students of miracles.

#jesus #calling #destiny #purpose #bible #devotional #daily word #revelation #inspiration #holy spirit

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roman-catholic-mass-readings · 1 year

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23rd July >> Mass Readings (USA)

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

(Liturgical Colour: Green: A (1))

First Reading Wisdom 12:13, 16–19 You give repentance for sins.

There is no god besides you who have the care of all, that you need show you have not unjustly condemned. For your might is the source of justice; your mastery over all things makes you lenient to all. For you show your might when the perfection of your power is disbelieved; and in those who know you, you rebuke temerity. But though you are master of might, you judge with clemency, and with much lenience you govern us; for power, whenever you will, attends you. And you taught your people, by these deeds, that those who are just must be kind; and you gave your children good ground for hope that you would permit repentance for their sins.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 86:5–6, 9–10, 15–16

R/ Lord, you are good and forgiving.

You, O LORD, are good and forgiving, abounding in kindness to all who call upon you. Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer and attend to the sound of my pleading.

R/ Lord, you are good and forgiving.

All the nations you have made shall come and worship you, O LORD, and glorify your name. For you are great, and you do wondrous deeds; you alone are God.

R/ Lord, you are good and forgiving.

You, O LORD, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and fidelity. Turn toward me, and have pity on me; give your strength to your servant.

R/ Lord, you are good and forgiving.

Second Reading Romans 8:26–27 The Spirit intercedes with inexpressible groanings.

Brothers and sisters: The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings. And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because he intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s will.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

Gospel Acclamation cf. Matthew 11:25

Alleluia, alleluia. Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom. Alleluia, alleluia.

Either:

Gospel Matthew 13:24–43 Let them grow together until harvest.

I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Or:

Gospel Matthew 13:24–30 Let them grow together until harvest.

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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psalmonesermons · 2 years

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The Kingdom of God 1 Are the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of heaven the same thing? The Kingdom of God was so central to the preaching of Jesus Christ that the “Kingdom of God” you could say is like the 'catch-phrase' in Jesus’ preaching. Luke 16:16 The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it. Mark 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Jesus was always talking about the kingdom of God, the kingdom of Heaven and the Gospel of the kingdom. In particular, the synoptic gospels are filled with texts about the kingdom of God. In the New Testament the phrase ‘the Kingdom of God’ occurs 66 times in 65 verses. The phrase ‘the Kingdom of heaven’ occurs in 32 times in 31 verses (Matthew only). Most bible scholars think the phrases kingdom of God and kingdom of heaven are interchangeable although there is a difference in the Greek phrases. The reason scholars think they are the same are, Only Matthew uses Kingdom of heaven and that he was trying to avoid upsetting his Jewish readers by constantly mentioning the name 'God'. 2. Matthew`s usage parallels that of the other Gospel writers i.e. it is used to say the same things, for an example see below, Matthew 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. Compare this to Luke 13:20 And again he said, Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God? 21 It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. The Kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom from heaven, not heaven, not a kingdom in heaven. God reigns supreme in heaven. Heaven is the locus of His authority, the point from which he rules the universe. The words “of heaven” then are referring to the origin of this Kingdom. It is the place from which... https://www.instagram.com/p/Cl5i4tvIBl-/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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salvationcall · 6 days

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Fill in: the parable of the leaven quiz

This quiz is based on Matthew 13:33-34 KJV

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mybeautifulchristianjourney · 4 months

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The Parable of the Weeds

24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Mustard Seed and the Leaven

31 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.”

Prophecy and Parables

34 All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:

“I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.”

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. — Matthew 13:24-43 | English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Cross References: Genesis 18:6; 2 Samuel 23:6-7; Psalm 78:2; Psalm 104:12; Ezekiel 17:6; Daniel 3:6; Daniel 12:3; Zephaniah 1:3; Matthew 5:37; Matthew 8:20; Matthew 12:32; Matthew 13:1; Matthew 13:3-4; Matthew 13:44; Matthew 13:49; Matthew 17:20; Matthew 20:1; 1 Corinthians 15:42

#Jesus #parables #weeds #mustard seed #yeast #explanation #Matthew 13:24-43 #Gospel of Matthew #New Testament #ESV #English Standard Version Bible #Crossway Bibles #Good News Publishers

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myremnantarmy · 1 year

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𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟑, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel Mt 13:24-43

Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying:

"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.

When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.

The slaves of the householder came to him and said,

'Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?

Where have the weeds come from?'

He answered, 'An enemy has done this.'

His slaves said to him,

'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'

He replied, 'No, if you pull up the weeds

you might uproot the wheat along with them.

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."'"

He proposed another parable to them.

"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed

that a person took and sowed in a field.

It is the smallest of all the seeds,

yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.

It becomes a large bush,

and the 'birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.'"

He spoke to them another parable.

"The kingdom of heaven is like yeast

that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour

until the whole batch was leavened."

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.

He spoke to them only in parables,

to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:

I will open my mouth in parables,

I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation

of the world.

Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house.

His disciples approached him and said,

"Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field."

He said in reply, "He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,

the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom.

The weeds are the children of the evil one,

and the enemy who sows them is the devil.

The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.

Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,

so will it be at the end of the age.

The Son of Man will send his angels,

and they will collect out of his kingdom

all who cause others to sin and all evildoers.

They will throw them into the fiery furnace,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

Then the righteous will shine like the sun

in the kingdom of their Father.

Whoever has ears ought to hear."

#jesus #catholic #my remnant army #jesus christ #virgin mary #faithoverfear #saints #jesusisgod #endtimes #artwork #Jesus is coming #Gospel #word of God #Bible #bibleversoftheday #bibleverse #biblevisuals

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pugzman3 · 1 year

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Matthew 13:31-35 KJV

31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:

32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

34 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:

35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world. (Psa 49:4, Isa 42:9, Amo 3:7)

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catolinewsdailyreadings · 2 months

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Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Readings of Monday, July 29, 2024

Reading 1

JER 13:1-11

The LORD said to me: Go buy yourself a linen loincloth; wear it on your loins, but do not put it in water. I bought the loincloth, as the LORD commanded, and put it on. A second time the word of the LORD came to me thus: Take the loincloth which you bought and are wearing, and go now to the Parath; there hide it in a cleft of the rock. Obedient to the LORD's command, I went to the Parath and buried the loincloth. After a long interval, the LORD said to me: Go now to the Parath and fetch the loincloth which I told you to hide there. Again I went to the Parath, sought out and took the loincloth from the place where I had hid it. But it was rotted, good for nothing! Then the message came to me from the LORD: Thus says the LORD: So also I will allow the pride of Judah to rot, the great pride of Jerusalem. This wicked people who refuse to obey my words, who walk in the stubbornness of their hearts, and follow strange gods to serve and adore them, shall be like this loincloth which is good for nothing. For, as close as the loincloth clings to a man's loins, so had I made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to me, says the LORD; to be my people, my renown, my praise, my beauty. But they did not listen.

Responsorial Psalm

DEUTERONOMY 32:18-19, 20, 21

R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.

You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you, You forgot the God who gave you birth. When the LORD saw this, he was filled with loathing and anger toward his sons and daughters. R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.

"I will hide my face from them," he said, "and see what will then become of them. What a fickle race they are, sons with no loyalty in them!" R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.

"Since they have provoked me with their 'no-god' and angered me with their vain idols, I will provoke them with a 'no-people'; with a foolish nation I will anger them." R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.

Gospel

MT 13:31-35

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds. "The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the 'birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.'" He spoke to them another parable. "The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened." All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet: I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

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frmartinshomiliesandreflections · 11 months

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31st October >> Fr. Martin's Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Luke 13:18-21 for Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time: ‘What is the kingdom of God like?’.

Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel (Except USA) Luke 13:18-21 The kingdom of God is like the yeast that leavened three measures of flour.

Jesus said, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? It is like a mustard seed which a man took and threw into his garden: it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air sheltered in its branches.’

Another thing he said, ‘What shall I compare the kingdom of God with? It is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.’

Gospel (USA) Luke 13:18-21 When it was fully grown, it became a large bush.

Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like? To what can I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden. When it was fully grown, it became a large bush and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.”

Again he said, “To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch of dough was leavened.”

Reflections (5)

(i) Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

Both parables in today’s gospel reading suggest that something small can produce effects greatly beyond what one might expect. A mustard seed gives rise to a tree which provides shelter for the birds of the air. A small piece of yeast transforms flower into enough bread to feed a large number of people. The seed is hidden in the ground and the yeast is hidden in the flour, and yet the impact of both is visible in what finally emerges. Jesus is saying that the kingdom of God is like this. We are being reminded that the kingdom of God often comes to earth through gestures and actions that seem very insignificant and that are often invisible to most people. Jesus had just healed a woman in the synagogue who had been bent over for eighteen years. The action of Jesus directly touched only one woman in some Galilean village. Yet, what Jesus did had an impact on many more, and we who read Luke’s gospel today continue to be touched by this event. God continues to speak to us and to touch our lives through it. We can never underestimate the ways that God can work through the smallest of our loving initiatives towards others. We sow a seed of love, justice or truth, and it becomes more than we could ever have imaged. We implant some leaven of goodness into a situation that seems unpromising and more lives are touched than we could possibly have foreseen. The Lord needs us to do the little we can, and sometimes a little is all we can do, for various reasons. Yet, the Lord can work through that little of ours in ways that will very often leave us surprised and humbled. The equivalent of a few loaves and fish can sometimes feed a multitude.

And/Or

(ii) Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

In this morning’s gospel Jesus takes an image from the world of men and the world of women in that culture, a man who takes a mustard seed and throws it in his garden and a woman who takes some yeast and mixes it in with three measures of flour. In each case the small gesture produces significant results. The mustard seed becomes a tree where the birds find shelter; the yeast mixing with the flour produces bread which satisfies human hunger. These are images, Jesus declares, of the kingdom of God. Jesus seems to be saying that the coming of God’s kingdom is not always about grand gestures. The coming of God’s kingdom, the doing of God’s will on earth as in heaven, is often to be found in what to an outside observer seems small and insignificant. Jesus is suggesting that God can work powerfully through the smallest gestures, when they reflect something of God’s Spirit. God is present in our world in and through our small acts of kindness, through our largely unnoticed actions of caring for one another. Jesus would say that even the giving of a cup of cold water has significance beyond our imagining. The eternal can be present in the simplest of gestures. Our daily efforts to be faithful to the gospel in small ways can have consequences that would surprise us. The miraculous is all around us, working through our smallest efforts at goodness, if we have eyes to see.

And/Or

(iii) Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

The two parables that Jesus speaks in this morning’s gospel reading, one parable involving a man and the other involving a woman, have a similar focus. In both cases a contrast is drawn between something very small and the very significant impact it goes on to have. A tiny mustard seed produces a tree which becomes a home for the birds of the air. A tiny piece of leaven transforms a significant amount of flour. In each case, Jesus says that the kingdom of God is like that. Jesus seems to be saying that in the realm of God what is very small can turn out to be very significant. Even our smallest acts of kindness can have an impact for good beyond anything we might imagine. Small initiatives taken in the service of the Lord can create an opening for the Lord to work powerfully. We can be tempted to think that unless some event within the church is big and impressive in the eyes of the world it does not count for much. Yet, the parables in today’s gospel suggest that it is the small actions, the tiny initiatives, what goes unnoticed by most people, that can become the bearers of the kingdom of God.

And/Or

(iv) Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

In using the image of the mustard seed in the soil and of the leaven in three measures of flour for the kingdom of God, Jesus is suggesting that the kingdom of God, the goodness of God, can often be present in small and insignificant ways in people’s lives. Those looking at soil might never suspect that a mustard seed is hidden there; those looking at three measures of flour might never suspect that leaven is hidden there. Yet, the mustard seed in the soil can transform the garden and the leaven in the flour can transform the dough. We can miss the little signs of God’s presence, of God’s goodness in ourselves and in others. Deep within our nature God has planted the seed of God’s life that can grow in surprising ways; deep within our hearts God has placed the yeast of grace that has the potential to transform us into the image of Jesus. We need to keep reminding ourselves of this good news, especially in times of failure, when we may not be living as the Lord is calling us to live. Even at those times when we look unpromising to ourselves and others, we still carry deep inside us a divine treasure whose power at work within us, as Paul reminds us, can do immeasurably more than all we might imagine.

And/Or

(v) Tuesday, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

In this morning’s gospel reading Jesus speaks two parables, one featuring a man and the other featuring a woman. Both suggest that something very small can produce effects far beyond what might have been expected. The farmer threw a mustard seed into his garden and from it grew a tree whose branches provide shelter for the birds of the air. A woman places a small piece of yeast in a batch of dough and the result is a leavened batch of bread which feeds several people. Jesus is saying that the kingdom of God is like that. God can work powerfully through the smallest of gestures. The little good that we do can have consequences far beyond our imagining. The small initiatives we take in the service of another can bear fruit that we could never have intended. The small step to reach out in love towards someone can launch a movement of love that we never anticipated. In the course of his ministry the Lord did not usher in the kingdom of God in a blaze of glory. Rather in his day to day encounters with ordinary people he sowed seeds of the kingdom and eventually those seeds went on to produce a wonderful harvest. We are all called to sow seeds of the kingdom in the day to day circumstances of our lives; we are called to act out of the values of the kingdom in our daily encounters with others. In so doing we are sowing the seeds of a harvest beyond our imagining.

Fr. Martin Hogan.

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