Catholic lectionary for 20 July 2022

King James Version (en)

King James Version (en)

Jeremiah, Chapter 1, verses 1, 4-10

¹ The time, ³ and the calling of Jeremiah

¹The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:
...

⁴Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

⁵Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

⁶Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.

⁷But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.

⁸Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

⁹Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.

¹⁰See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

Read more:Jeremiah, Chapter 1

Topics:

Matthew, Chapter 13, verses 1-9

³ The parable of the sower and the seed

¹The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.

²And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

³And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;

⁴And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:

⁵Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:

⁶And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

⁷And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:

⁸But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

⁹Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Read more:Matthew, Chapter 13

NOTES

Among the parables about the Kingdom, the parables of the sower occupy a special place. In today's Gospel reading Jesus speaks of what prevents a person from entering the Kingdom. And the first obstacle on this path...

Among the parables about the Kingdom, the parables of the sower occupy a special place. In today's Gospel reading Jesus speaks of what prevents a person from entering the Kingdom. And the first obstacle on this path is the "road," the lack of attention to the words of the One who bears witness to the Kingdom (vv. 4, 19). It would seem that distraction is not characteristic of everyone. But in this case the matter is evidently attention of a special kind, that inner sensitivity which makes a person listen and stop before what he usually passes by without thinking.

In the Gospel period, words about the Kingdom and about the Messiah sounded often, and for many people, especially those living an intense religious life, they had probably already become somewhat stale. Perhaps this is precisely what moved Jesus to address the people in parables: such language always attracts attention, often forcing people to look at well-known and familiar things from an unexpected side, allowing them to see what would otherwise have remained unnoticed. But it is not enough merely to notice and turn; one must also remain faithful even when the enthusiasm of the newly converted passes and the world demands its own, so that the matter may even come to persecution (vv. 5-6, 20-21). Here feelings alone will not suffice, nor reason alone; faith not rooted in the will will hardly withstand strong external pressure, for feelings pass away and reason is pliable.

Yet there is something in the world more dangerous for spiritual life than pressure and even persecution, although compared with them this danger appears unserious: worldly cares and everyday bustle (vv. 7, 22). Can cares and bustle break those whom persecutions did not break?

But during persecutions the situation usually looks completely clear, and the will gathers itself into one by itself. Times of peace and quiet are another matter, when there seems to be no danger and one can relax, drifting with a current that promises no rapids or whirlpools ahead. Meanwhile everyday bustle quietly shifts attention to itself and, if one does not catch oneself in time, easily swallows a person whole, gradually forcing him, if not entirely to forget God and spiritual life, then at least to push them into the background. Only the one who can withstand both persecutions and everyday bustle becomes good soil that bears abundant spiritual fruit (vv. 8, 23).

The parable of the sower is undoubtedly a parable about the Kingdom and about people who enter the Kingdom or try to enter it. It is also about witness and witnesses. Only...

The parable of the sower is undoubtedly a parable about the Kingdom and about people who enter the Kingdom or try to enter it. It is also about witness and witnesses. Only the sowing takes place rather strangely: some falls by the road, some on dry ground, as if the sower works without looking where the seed flies. Yes, at first glance this is strange; but if one thinks about it, it cannot be otherwise. Indeed, does a witness always choose to whom he bears witness? Of course, a true witness is led by God, who indicates to him where, when, to whom, and what to say. But witness often sounds quite broadly: very different people gather to listen to the witness, and no one can be denied the right to hear it. In such a situation some seeds will inevitably fall into soil that is not best suited for them.

Yet the matter is not only, it seems, in the features of witness. The matter is above all in the very nature of the Kingdom, in how it enters our world, transforming it. The breath of the Kingdom touches very different people, and the response to this touch can be extremely varied, from complete ignoring to full acceptance. Some, of course, simply do not notice the breath of the Kingdom, but even those who notice it are not necessarily glad of it. For in a certain sense it is not selective: it often touches many at once, as happened, for example, on the day of Pentecost, when all those gathered in the room sensed it, and then all who were on the street before the house and heard the apostles' preaching. Not everyone who heard the preaching and sensed the breath of the Kingdom then turned, although, judging by the witness of the Book of Acts, there were many such people.

And if the breath of the Kingdom so often touches those who do not expect it, simply because the Kingdom enters our transforming but not yet transformed world, how else is a witness to act? He can only sow the seeds of the Kingdom, as the sower in the Savior's parable sows them. For when the time of harvest comes, the field itself will also be transformed, so that no seeds will be lost.

What has Christ's coming given us? Salvation from evil? Yes, of course... but evil and suffering did not vanish from the world by the wave of a magic wand. Jesus Himself not only endures terrible sufferings on the Cross; He...

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