"When he found one really valuable pearl, he went back and put up for sale all that he had and bought it."
Lectionary Readings 17th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
http://catholic.pcentral-online.net/lectionary/17th-sunday-a.html
The Kingdom of God is a reality that is beyond our human perception. Even our own limited imagination cannot possibly conceive the greatness and the majesty and the richness of this Kingdom. And yet we experience it. And we do feel it in simple ordinary experiences: in prayer, in our service to others, and in our discovery of the love of God for us.
Many of us have undergone conversion experiences. From a life without Christ to a life in Christ. This I believe is what the gospel is reminding us of what people do when they have discovered Christ and the Kingdom of God. At that point in our life when we choose Christ seriously in our lives, we, as it were, give up everything that we consider less valuable to the ultimate value who is Christ. It could be an unethical job in a disreputable company. Or it could be a friend or a group of friends who is leading us to a life of dissipation. Or it can be our materialistic ways, our consumeristic ways and our worldly ambition that could lead to the ruin of our souls. Whatever it was that we valued before we knew Christ, we now disvalue and give away in order to purchase the "pearl of great price" - Christ and His Kingdom.
Many of those around us are unaware that the Kingdom of God can be found here on earth though not yet in its fullness. Christ said that "the Kingdom of God is within you". And this is true as we steep ourselves in prayer and feel a certain oneness with all those who celebrate with us together in the Eucharist.
This gospel tells us that Jesus is emphasizing through the means of parables how valuable the Kingdom of God is. It is so valuable that those who discover it and find it are truly willing to give up their old life, to sell all their possessions, and maybe to give up worldly ambitions, in order to gain this priceless treasure. We who know this truth, continually choose the Kingdom of God everyday in our daily decisions. If we continue to do so, we shall be good examples to others, and in so doing, create that spirit that will build the Kingdom more and make it more visible on earth until it will finally come to fruition when the Lord returns.
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Sunday, July 17, 2005
16th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
"...collect the weeds and bundle them up to burn, then gather the wheat into My barn"
Lectionary Readings for the 16th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
http://catholic.pcentral-online.net/lectionary/16th-sunday-a.html
The Word of God is sown into the world and into the minds and hearts of every man and woman. For those whose soul is open to God, the Word makes itself anchored in their being that in time, it grows and bears fruit in their lives. Like seed that is sown on good soul, it produces wheat that can feed people and benefit a lot of those who need to be nourished also.
However, the Word of God is not the only one sown in the world. We know that there is an Evil One who sows what is contrary to the Word of God. This is the seed that produces discord and strife, pride and envy, anger and malice, violence and greed, materialism and consumerism, and all those that are contrary to the values taught by the gospel. This can be likened to someone who is an enemy of the farmer, who while the farmer was asleep, sowed weeds in his field.
Thus is the reality of our world and the life we are immersed in. We receive good from God but the enemy of God, the Evil One, seeks to sow His evil also in us. Thus we see the mystery of good and evil fighting each other in the world today. Should the evil be rooted out? Should they be exterminated? The gospel infers the message that judgment ultimately is the authority of God and that it is not good to root out the evil at this present time because the good may be brought along with it. However, when the time comes for the Lord to judge, He will be the One to collect the weeds and bundle them up to burn, then gather all the wheat into His barn.
What is asked of us today is to be aware of the reality of both good and evil that is present in ourselves and in our contemporary society. We are to make sure that we do our part to support the mission of the Church to "sow good seed" in the field of the world. Let us take on the standard of Christ and belong to His army. He will give us the strength and the power to fight those who sow weeds and bad seed in the world. We pray that we shall be faithful to the Lord and to the Church, in the state of life He has called us, by living the gospel in word and deed.
Lectionary Readings for the 16th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
http://catholic.pcentral-online.net/lectionary/16th-sunday-a.html
The Word of God is sown into the world and into the minds and hearts of every man and woman. For those whose soul is open to God, the Word makes itself anchored in their being that in time, it grows and bears fruit in their lives. Like seed that is sown on good soul, it produces wheat that can feed people and benefit a lot of those who need to be nourished also.
However, the Word of God is not the only one sown in the world. We know that there is an Evil One who sows what is contrary to the Word of God. This is the seed that produces discord and strife, pride and envy, anger and malice, violence and greed, materialism and consumerism, and all those that are contrary to the values taught by the gospel. This can be likened to someone who is an enemy of the farmer, who while the farmer was asleep, sowed weeds in his field.
Thus is the reality of our world and the life we are immersed in. We receive good from God but the enemy of God, the Evil One, seeks to sow His evil also in us. Thus we see the mystery of good and evil fighting each other in the world today. Should the evil be rooted out? Should they be exterminated? The gospel infers the message that judgment ultimately is the authority of God and that it is not good to root out the evil at this present time because the good may be brought along with it. However, when the time comes for the Lord to judge, He will be the One to collect the weeds and bundle them up to burn, then gather all the wheat into His barn.
What is asked of us today is to be aware of the reality of both good and evil that is present in ourselves and in our contemporary society. We are to make sure that we do our part to support the mission of the Church to "sow good seed" in the field of the world. Let us take on the standard of Christ and belong to His army. He will give us the strength and the power to fight those who sow weeds and bad seed in the world. We pray that we shall be faithful to the Lord and to the Church, in the state of life He has called us, by living the gospel in word and deed.
Sunday, July 10, 2005
15th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
"Part of it, finally, landed on good soil and yielded grain..."
Lectionary Readings for 15th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
http://catholic.pcentral-online.net/lectionary/15th-sunday-a.html
In our gospel passage for today, we hear Jesus telling about the parable of the sower who sowed seed in four different types of ground. The first three grounds had certain characteristics associated with them that they never were able to bear fruit and yield a harvest. However, the fourth ground was of good soil and thus when the sower sowed the seed, it yielded grain of more than a hundredfold.
The gospel calls us to be like the fourth type of ground - the good soil - that when the Word of God falls into our minds and hearts, it will bear fruit in the Spirit and lead to actions of service and generosity. But it is not always like that. Most often than not, we sometimes are like the first three kinds of soil - and are unable to bear and yield a harvest. What are the things that we should do in order that we may be formed by the Lord to be the good soil that He wants us to be? I believe the answer is simple. We must have faith in His word and apply that faith in our actions towards our brothers and sisters. And faith is a gift we can receive through prayer and a very regular sacramental life. If we have faith in ourselves alone or in others alone, it could lead to a pride that may be well dangerous - as pride is a cardinal sin. But if we never forget to pray, be on our knees, and entreat the Lord who is the source of all life and the power to make us, His good soil, to yield a fruitful harvest, then we are certain that we will always be led in the right direction. Immersing ourselves constantly in prayer and in the liturgical celebrations of the Church will form us to be the good soil that we are really being called to be.
Lectionary Readings for 15th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year A
http://catholic.pcentral-online.net/lectionary/15th-sunday-a.html
In our gospel passage for today, we hear Jesus telling about the parable of the sower who sowed seed in four different types of ground. The first three grounds had certain characteristics associated with them that they never were able to bear fruit and yield a harvest. However, the fourth ground was of good soil and thus when the sower sowed the seed, it yielded grain of more than a hundredfold.
The gospel calls us to be like the fourth type of ground - the good soil - that when the Word of God falls into our minds and hearts, it will bear fruit in the Spirit and lead to actions of service and generosity. But it is not always like that. Most often than not, we sometimes are like the first three kinds of soil - and are unable to bear and yield a harvest. What are the things that we should do in order that we may be formed by the Lord to be the good soil that He wants us to be? I believe the answer is simple. We must have faith in His word and apply that faith in our actions towards our brothers and sisters. And faith is a gift we can receive through prayer and a very regular sacramental life. If we have faith in ourselves alone or in others alone, it could lead to a pride that may be well dangerous - as pride is a cardinal sin. But if we never forget to pray, be on our knees, and entreat the Lord who is the source of all life and the power to make us, His good soil, to yield a fruitful harvest, then we are certain that we will always be led in the right direction. Immersing ourselves constantly in prayer and in the liturgical celebrations of the Church will form us to be the good soil that we are really being called to be.
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