Word to the Wise
Friday, July 26, 2024 - Friday in the 16th Week in Ordinary Time
[Jer 3:14-17 and Matt 13:18-23]"But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold." [Matthew]
JULY 26 STS. JOACHIM AND ANNE [parents of Mary]
Yesterday, Jesus preached the parable of the sower and the seed. Today he explains what he meant by it. Yesterday the image of the sower caught my attention, because a missionary has to be prepared for mixed results from his or her efforts. Agricultural methods in first century Palestine were not guided by GPS in a tractor cab!! Seed was thrown into broken ground and that was that and the results would show it.
Today, however, my attention is on the ground. What does it mean to be one who "hears the word and understands it"? What kind of soil are we? One of the major historical differences between Catholics and other Christians has been in the way the "word" is heard and understood! The Reformation, with a sola scriptura [scripture alone] approach to divine revelation and daily life, placed the Bible at the center of Christian life. The Catholic response to this was to double down on the Eucharist (especially the second part of the Mass] and de-emphasize personal reading and interpretation of scripture. The result of this meant that the ordinary Catholic was caught "flat footed" by the encouragement of the Second Vatican Council to do individual and group reflection on the scriptures. In short, to go back to the image, the ground rarely received the seed because those who were sowing became afraid of the results and insisted only on greenhouse farming where everything could be controlled.
The ranks of the sowers are broader now and the seed can be planted outside the greenhouse. The resources to help with receiving and understanding the word are vastly multiplied. The process of understanding begins with reading and hearing the word. If this only happens at Mass, we are not getting nearly the harvest that the Lord envisions. AMEN