Fr. Vincent Munari, s.x
11th Sunday Ordinary time.
There are 2 parables in the Gospel of the 11th Sunday that the Church wants to propose to our consideration, if we take them united together to our consideration. The first is referred to a man, the second to a seed. The man has a peculiar characteristic: he is a farmer; his task is to spread the seed on the soil, and both seed and soil, when they meet, they start a process that is not depending on the farmer any more.
Who is this man? The answer may be: Jesus, but his Spirit must be always active in the process of making the word bear fruit since we know from other parables that the Word of God is like a seed (see Mark 4, 1 – 20). Excluding Jesus we have other choices: the “man” is the Prophet who speaks in the name of Jesus; he is the Apostle sent by Jesus with this task, he is the missionary arrived in Sierra Leone; he is me.
The task I have is to broadcast the seed, better if I have been able to clear the soil from stones and thorns beforehand. I have to throw the seed also if I do not see results, if all seems a waste of resources, because in the seed and in the soil there is an inner strength that leads to the joy of the harvest. The seed is the protagonist of the second parable. Also this seed has a peculiar characteristic: it is the smallest of all seeds. But it also has to be put in the soil. If the farmer thinks that it is too small and does not sow it, it is the end of it; if it is planted a fine shrub will come out.
These 2 parables together tell me of the importance not only of the big pastoral activity but also of the tiny signs of the presence of the Kingdom of God: a single word, a silent look full of sympathy, a smile, a phrase … I can never say that it is small, not important; there is a force in that small word or action that can develop into something important. This happens not because of my ability or merit but because of the power of the Word of God. If I despise the small seed, that is the small word, the small action, because I consider it not important, surely it will not bear fruit for the Kingdom.
11th Sunday Ordinary time.
There are 2 parables in the Gospel of the 11th Sunday that the Church wants to propose to our consideration, if we take them united together to our consideration. The first is referred to a man, the second to a seed. The man has a peculiar characteristic: he is a farmer; his task is to spread the seed on the soil, and both seed and soil, when they meet, they start a process that is not depending on the farmer any more.
Who is this man? The answer may be: Jesus, but his Spirit must be always active in the process of making the word bear fruit since we know from other parables that the Word of God is like a seed (see Mark 4, 1 – 20). Excluding Jesus we have other choices: the “man” is the Prophet who speaks in the name of Jesus; he is the Apostle sent by Jesus with this task, he is the missionary arrived in Sierra Leone; he is me.
The task I have is to broadcast the seed, better if I have been able to clear the soil from stones and thorns beforehand. I have to throw the seed also if I do not see results, if all seems a waste of resources, because in the seed and in the soil there is an inner strength that leads to the joy of the harvest. The seed is the protagonist of the second parable. Also this seed has a peculiar characteristic: it is the smallest of all seeds. But it also has to be put in the soil. If the farmer thinks that it is too small and does not sow it, it is the end of it; if it is planted a fine shrub will come out.
These 2 parables together tell me of the importance not only of the big pastoral activity but also of the tiny signs of the presence of the Kingdom of God: a single word, a silent look full of sympathy, a smile, a phrase … I can never say that it is small, not important; there is a force in that small word or action that can develop into something important. This happens not because of my ability or merit but because of the power of the Word of God. If I despise the small seed, that is the small word, the small action, because I consider it not important, surely it will not bear fruit for the Kingdom.