Deacon Tom Anthony

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 106

Reading 1WIS 12:13, 16-19

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.

Responsorial PsalmPS 86:5-6, 9-10, 15-16

R. (5a) 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.

Reading 2ROM 8:26-27

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.

AlleluiaCF. MT 11:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;

you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 13:24-43 OR 13:24-30

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.”

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

There needs to be acceptances that whatever we are confronted with either through our own fault or no fault of our own that these things are lived through with God. We are never abandoned by Him and He will never forget us even though, in our humanness, we just might forget that for a period of time especially when times are tough or when we are challenged. We have heard it over and over that life is unfair. There is needless suffering in the world and the world is not lacking with people who will be the first to tell us that they have been treated unjustly. As Christians, we are told that the best way to approach the harder times in life and the obstacles that we are guaranteed to confront is by living through them regardless of the outcome of a situation. We are possessors of the knowledge that whatever is faced is temporary and that through the protection and wisdom of God these things will be overcome. When encountering these things that are challenging to us it should not be with the wish that the burdens will be taken away but instead that we receive the wisdom, strength, and protection so as to overcome them and be better off than before because of the experience.

God does not need to prove that He is all powerful and that He deserves our worship. He further does not need to reveal Himself in such a way that demands love and fear. Him being who He is means that all of these things are beyond Him. Instead, God chooses to display His greatness by lifting up the weak and seemingly unimportant; using those who in the opinion of society are insignificant to positions of prominence and glory. It is in the smallest things that the greatness of God is seen. This smallness includes us as His children. In comparison to the entire universe around us, who are we but small creatures that have absolutely no control over anything yet we have been placed in a position of prominence in God’s Masterpiece. We are at its center unearned as it is but nevertheless we are here. Holding this position of prominence should give us the understanding that we are so important to God that the only kind of hope that we should entertain is the one that is revealed by its very definition: the expectation of things to come. To explain it further, in a more descriptive sense, this means that when we face something in our lives that could be challenging or discomforting there is already an expectation that these things will be overcome. God is all powerful and we as His children are benefactors of that power. 

With God there is also an expectation of expiation of all of our sins and short-comings that define all of us as His children. Wracked with the wounds of sin that we brought on ourselves through our bad behavior and turning away from God us as Christians should know that there is healing through the love of God and entering into relationship with Him. This can be difficult at times but God is patient and understands that, at times, we are conflicted and confused by the temptations of the world. Our own free will is another obstacle that prevents us from being healed. Thinking that we are gods ourselves is when we face the greatest calamities in our life and are at the greatest risk of not being healed. Jesus’ Parable of the Weeds hits directly to this point. We have the capability of being the wheat and producing a bountiful harvest by living in community and in communion with God. The weeds are also present representing those who have turned away from God and are leading others astray. If we are not on our guard we can be choked by the weeds and eventually succumb to their lies and false promises.

Beyond defining ourselves as wheat or labeling others who do not follow Jesus as the weeds within the field there must be an understanding that the characteristics that define the wheat and the weeds are not permanent definitions but can be fluid and change as readily as the weather. There are times that we can be wheat and other times where we can take on the characteristics of the weeds; joined to a particular group based on our behaviors by how we behave: Jesus Christ or the powers of darkness. The powers of darkness and worldly desires can be tempting and Jesus Christ knows this. That is why He allows us time and allows us to experience a relationship with Him and a relationship without Him. His desire is to have everyone within God’s Creation to have a relationship with God and to follow Him; to be loved and to love with abandon. It can be argued that He gives us all the time that we need here in this life and in the next. The offer of salvation and the offer of a beautiful existence are always there for our taking if we want it. The benefits are all ours. The choice is ours. That is part of the divine Plan: all entering into relationship with God.

God will never abandon us unless we want Him to do so. There are frequent reminders of this throughout Sacred Scripture. The Holy Spirit, the Love of God, can be a constant presence in our lives if allow it to be so. Whatever challenges we face God is there with us and Jesus Christ is always guiding us. It is up to us to place our trust in Him and to allow the process of a relationship with Him happen. Entering into a relationship with the Trinity and allow God to do the work He wants to do within us guarantees us the strength to face tough times and the freedom to enjoy the good times in our life while being spiritually fit. There is no downside living a life with God. What kind of experiences, successes, and wisdom gained from our failures will be entirely up to us based on how important we make God in our lives.

Deacon Tom

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS

We are spoiled by God and don’t even know it. As His little children, we act exactly how we are described: We demand everything from Him, we blame Him when things in our lives go wrong, we refuse to take responsibility for our own actions, and we also have our temper tantrums occasionally when we don’t get what we want. Yes, in comparison to Our Father, we will always be viewed as His Little Children, refusing to grow up and change our behaviors. Yet, God still loves us and encourages us to do what is best for us. Just like the role of a father as head of the household here on this earth, God wants the best for us and is willing to make many sacrifices for that hope to manifest itself into reality.

Part of the way that He approaches us with a fatherly love is in the way that He punishes us. The punishments that God may impose on us are not forever. They can be considered chastisements which are intended for us to correct our behaviors and not to inflict everlasting pain. It is through these mortifications that the truth is revealed and what God wants for us. They are an exercise in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. We receive all three in exchange for a period of castigation that will never be forever. I feel that we all can remember a time when one of our parents made the comment, “This is going to hurt me more than it is going to hurt you,” before a scathing discipline was issued. In reality, whatever God inflicts on us does indeed hurt Him more than it hurts us. We are all witnesses to this through His Passion and Crucifixion. Just like the Crucifixion, God approaches the way that He corrects us with the same love and sacrifice. As Christians, we must look at the Crucifixion as who God really is in relation to us and not only a singular event: He gave His only Son over to suffering and death so that we may be healed and obtain eternal life.

The same time that God might punish us, He is also kissing our bruises and healing our wounds. We are comforted and held ever so tightly. He begs us to let Him into our hearts and correct our behavior because we want to come closer to Him. He knows what is best for us and the way to pure joy can be revealed if we only open our hearts to Him; making a commitment to real and fundamental change. Everything is offered to us, we only have to ask.

Entering into a relationship with Jesus Christ is going to cause us to act and react to things differently. This is part of the healing process. We will become vulnerable to some of the most evil acts and hateful manifestations that are present in the world. Yet, we will be protected from those things that we find ourselves fearing the most. We will begin to see the world for what it is: a place that is dysfunctional because of the free will but can be healed through Jesus Christ.

In the Gospel Reading today, Jesus gives us a picture of what we all will face in our lives. There is good and evil in the world. There are those who refuse to embrace Jesus Christ and choose instead to embrace all that the world offers. Many of those who reject Jesus are those who are closest to us. We will be influenced by them, lured by them, and tempted. We must keep focused on that which we hold most important: our salvation and the salvation of our Christian Community. It is through the constant exercise of our Christian Principles and words of Sacred Scripture that we will find faith, hope, and love.

Struggles are expected and mistakes will be made. It is unavoidable. We are human and imperfect. To recover from our errors and not let them overcome us, we must group ourselves with the wheat and push out the weeds all the while praying for some sort of transformation to occur which may indeed bring about a fundamental change in the weeds. Nothing is beyond the reach of God, even when it comes to the conversion of hearts that can bring about a rebirth. This is exactly what happened to us at a time when maybe we felt more like weeds than wheat.

Jesus Christ is calling us to come together. He is ready to provide for us, heal us, and give us what we need. His Spirit dwells within us and is ready to burst forth if only we turn to Him and away from all that which ensnares us and overburdens us. We are being called to come forth, be healed, and be nourished by Him. We are God’s children. Let us allow our Father to take care of us through His Son guided by His Love.

Deacon Tom

In today’s Gospel, Jesus offers three parables to describe the Kingdom of Heaven. He also explains why he speaks to the crowds in parables and interprets the parable of the sower for the disciples. This reading is a continuation of Jesus’ discourse that we began reading last Sunday.
All three parables use commonplace experiences to describe aspects of the Kingdom of Heaven. The first parable is longer and more detailed than the next two, and it alerts us to the two-fold reality of the Kingdom of Heaven. The beginnings of the Kingdom of Heaven can be found in this world. The fruition of the Kingdom of Heaven, however, will not be realized until the final judgment. In the meantime, as Jesus’ explanation to the disciples cautions, any effort to judge the progress of the Kingdom of Heaven is premature. Only God, in the final judgment, will distinguish the fruit of the Kingdom of Heaven and offer its reward.

The second and third parables call to our attention the abundance that will result from the small beginnings of the Kingdom of Heaven. Just as a mustard seed—the smallest of all seeds—will become a large bush, so too God will bring his Kingdom to full bloom. As a small amount of yeast will leaven the entire batch of bread, so too God will bring about the expansion of his Kingdom. In each case the image is of the superabundance that God brings out of even the smallest of signs of the Kingdom.

Contained within these parables are words of caution as well as words of consolation. In the parable of the sower we are warned against judging others. To judge and uproot the “weeds” prematurely will harm the wheat; final judgment rests with God. In the parables of the mustard seed and the yeast, we are consoled by the message that God can work wonders and produce abundance from even the smallest beginnings of the Kingdom of Heaven.
My sisters and brothers in the Lord,

The Letter to the Romans tells us in the second reading today:  “we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.”  That is pretty strong!  Because our world is so messed up, we are often confused about what is right and what is wrong—so we don’t know how to pray as we ought.

The first reading today, from the Book of Wisdom, reminds us that God is all powerful and because of that, God can love and judge and deal with us with leniency and mercy and forgiveness.  Those who are powerful can be generous!  This can remind us that our own personal power should always reflect in mercy, generosity and forgiveness.

The Letters to the Romans reminds us that our prayers are very often just our own prayers and not the will of God.  Instead, we can allow the Spirit to pray within us so that the prayer is God’s prayer.  It is easy to do this.  All we need say is “O God, may I do your will and pray for what you want.”

The Gospel from Saint Matthew today, in the longer version, gives us three parables.  The shorter version gives us only one parable and without its explanation by the Lord.  All three parables are about the kingdom of God.  We can understand from these parables that it is difficult in this life to separate the good and the bad, the wheat and the weeds.  We can see that the Kingdom is a small seed that can grow enormously.  And we can understand that if we live the Kingdom, it becomes like leaven in bread in our lives and in the lives of others.

The teaching today is that we must be slow to judge others, slow to think that we understand the Kingdom and how it is present and slow to presume that we know the ways of God.  Rather, we must look at others as possible Kingdom bearers, we must be still before the mystery of God so that we can begin to be aware of the Kingdom and we must look for God in all that happens to us and to others.
When Jesus tells us parables, it is because He wants us to look at life in ways that are different from our normal ways.  We should never think that we are the wheat and that others are the weeds!  Rather we need to pay attention to the weeds of our lives and be aware of the wheat in the lives of others.  When Jesus tells us that the Kingdom is like a small seed that can grow into a large tree, we should be aware of the gifts of others and aware that we are still small.  When Jesus tells us that the Kingdom is like leaven, we should strive to be aware of how others are leaven already and that we can become leaven.

Let us be aware of God’s love for others and reflect God’s love for others in our own lives through mercy and forgiveness.
Your brother in the Lord,
Abbot Philip