Memory of Jesus crucified

Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

This is the Gospel of the poor,
liberation for the imprisoned,
sight for the blind,
freedom for the oppressed.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Matthew 13,18-23

'So pay attention to the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom without understanding, the Evil One comes and carries off what was sown in his heart: this is the seed sown on the edge of the path. The seed sown on patches of rock is someone who hears the word and welcomes it at once with joy. But such a person has no root deep down and does not last; should some trial come, or some persecution on account of the word, at once he falls away. The seed sown in thorns is someone who hears the word, but the worry of the world and the lure of riches choke the word and so it produces nothing. And the seed sown in rich soil is someone who hears the word and understands it; this is the one who yields a harvest and produces now a hundredfold, now sixty, now thirty.'

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

This Gospel passage reports the explanation of the parable of the sower that Jesus himself gave his disciples. The sower generously spreads the seed, which is the "word of the Kingdom," Jesus clarifies. But only the seeds that fall on good soil bear abundant fruit. The seeds that fall on the road are stolen by the Evil One, Jesus says. This is the condition of those who listen but do not understand, who receive the Gospel message but do not let it sink in. Next there is the seed that falls on rocky soil. This is the case of those who listen willingly, but then let themselves be defeated by difficulties, tribulations, and inconsistency. Then there is seed that falls among the thorns: it represents those who listen but then worldly worries prevail over the strength of the seed. Finally, there is the good soil that listens to the Gospel and knows how to make it bear fruit. Jesus does not say who the sower is, but it is clear that it is Jesus himself. He is the one who sows generously, not us or anyone else. He does not pick what kind of field to spread the seed on ahead of time. He seems to trust in fields that are more like roads or piles of rocks than ploughed and ready soil. Every field is important to the sower. And the fields are the hearts of men and women. And perhaps it is important to remember that our hearts are not always one type of field or another. It is easy for our hearts to be sometimes like rocky roads or inconsistent or full of thorns, or sometimes even like good soil. The Lord asks us to be good and welcoming soil. He also asks us to help him sow, everywhere. This is the meaning of the prayer to the Father to send workers into his vineyard, or, in this case, to send workers into the countless fields of our world. And Jesus asks for his same generosity in sowing. In any event, the seed is not ours, it is given to us by the Lord, it is the Gospel.