Are we following the Word?

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

                                           Il-Ħmistax-il Ħadd matul is-Sena                                           

Missalin A  p 326

Reading 1                           Isaiah 55:10-11

Thus says the LORD:  Just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; my word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it. This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Ewwel Lezzjoni    -     Isaija 55, 10-11

Dan igħid il-Mulej:  "Bħalma x-xita u s-silġ jinżlu mis-smewwiet, u ma jerġgħux lura mnejn ġew bla ma jsaqqu l-art, imma jġegħluha tnissel u tnibbet, u tagħti ż-żerriegħa lil min jiżra, u l-ħobż lil min jiekol, hekk jiġri minn kelmti: hija toħroġ minn fommi, u ma terġax lura vojta, imma tagħmel dak li jogħġob lili, u ttemm dak li nkun bgħattha tagħmel."  Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Responsorial Psalm       - Psalm 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14

You have visited the land and watered it;
greatly have you enriched it.
God’s watercourses are filled;
you have prepared the grain.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.

Thus have you prepared the land: drenching its furrows,
breaking up its clods,
Softening it with showers,
blessing its yield.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.

You have crowned the year with your bounty,
and your paths overflow with a rich harvest;
The untilled meadows overflow with it,
and rejoicing clothes the hills.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.

The fields are garmented with flocks
and the valleys blanketed with grain.
They shout and sing for joy.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.

Salm Responsorjali       -  Salm 64(65)

Inti żżur l-art u ssaqqiha,

u tagħniha bil-ġid tiegħek.

Il-wied ta' Alla mimli bl-ilma,

il-qamħ tagħhom ħejjejtilhom.               

R/   Iż-żerriegħa waqgħet f'art tajba, u għamlet il-frott.

Hekk int tħejjiha;

issaqqi r-raddiet u twitti t-tub tagħha,

bl-irxiex trabbatha u tberkilha ż-żerrieragħ.

Fawwart is-sema bi tjubitek,

triqatek bil-ġid joqtru.                 

R/   Iż-żerriegħa waqgħet f'art tajba, u għamlet il-frott.

Joqtru bin-nida l-mergħat tad-deżert,

u bil-ferħ jitħażżmul-għoljiet.

Il-mergħat jimtlew bl-imrieħel,

il-widien jinksew bil-qamħ;

jgħajtu lkoll  u jgħannu bil-ferħ.

R/   Iż-żerriegħa waqgħet f'art tajba, u għamlet il-frott.           

Reading II           -              Romans 8:18-23

Brothers and sisters:  I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us.  For creation awaits with eager expectation the revelation of the children of God; for creation was made subject to futility, not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it, in hope that creation itself would be set free from slavery to corruption and share in the glorious freedom of the children of God.  We know that all creation is groaning in labour pains even until now; and not only that, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, we also groan within ourselves as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. This is the Word of The Lord.

It-Tieni Lezzjoni   -  Ittra lir-Rumani 8, 18-23

Ħuti, jiena għadni persważ li t-tbatijiet ta' issa ma għandhom xejn x'jaqsmu mal-glorja li għadd trid trid tidher fina.   Il-ħlejjaq kollha qegħdin jistennew ħerqana r-rivelazzjoni ta' wlied Alla, għax il-ħolqien jinsab taħt il-frugħa – mhux minn rajh, imma minħabba dak li xeħtu taħtha – bit-tama li l-ħlejjaq huma wkoll għad ikunu meħlusa mill-jasar tat-taħsir u jiksbu l-ħelsien tal-glorja ta' wlied Alla. Aħna nafu li l-ħolqien kollu għadu s'issa  jitniehed  bl-uġiegħ tal-ħlas; u mhux hu biss, imma wkoll aħna li għandna l-ewwel frott ta' l-Ispirtu, aħna wkoll nitniehdu fina nfusna waqt li nistennew l-adozzjoni ta' wlied, il-fidwa ta' ġisimna. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Gospel     -    Matthew 13:1-23

On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood along the shore.  And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up.  Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil.  It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep,  and when the sun rose it was scorched,  and it withered for lack of roots.  Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it.  But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.  Whoever has ears ought to hear.” The disciples approached him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”  He said to them in reply, “Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.  To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.  Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You shall indeed hear but not understand, you shall indeed look but never see. Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears,  they have closed their eyes,  lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted, and I heal them.  “But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear.  Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. “Hear then the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart. The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy.  But he has no root and lasts only for a time.  When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away.  The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit.  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.”  This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Evanġelju   -   skond San Mattew 13, 1-23

Dakinhar Ġesu' ħareġ mid-dar, mar f'xatt il-baħar u qagħad bilqiegħda hemm.  U nġabru madwaru folol hekk kbar ta' nies li kellu jitla' fuq dgħajsa u jinżel  bilqiegħda fiha;  in-nies qagħdu lkoll wieqfa fuq ix-xatt,  u hu beda jkellimhom fuq bosta ħwejjeġ tal-parabboli. U qalilhom:  "Darba wieħed bidwi ħareġ jiżra'.  Huwa u  jiżra' xi żerrigħat waqgħu mal-mogħdija, ġew l-għasafar u naqqruhom kollha.  Oħrajn waqgħu f'art kollha blat,  fejn ma kienx hemm wisq ħamrija, u malajr nibtu, għax  il-ħamrija ma kinitx fonda; iżda mbagħat telgħet ix-xemx, u nħarqu  unixfu, għax ma kellhomx għeruq.   Oħrajn waqgħu qalb ix-xewk, u x-xewk kbir magħhom u  ħonoqhom.   Imma oħrajn waqgħu f'art tajba, u għamlu  l-frott, min mija, min sittin, u min tletin.  Min għandu  widnejn, ħa jisma!"  Resqu lejh id-dixxipli u staqsew:  "Għaliex tkellimhom  bil-parabboli?"  Hu weġibhom:  " Għax lilkom  ingħata  li tagħrf l-misteri tas-Saltna tas-Smewwiet, iżda lilhom  dan ma kienx mogħti.  Għax kull min għandu, jingħatalu, u jkollu żżejjed ukoll;  iżda min ma għandux, jitteħidlu saħansitra dak li għandu.  Jien għalhekk inkellimhom  bil-parabboli;  għax iħarsu kemm iħarsu ma jaraw; u jisimgħu kemm jisimgħu ma jifhmux.  U hekk isseħħ fihom il-profezija ta' Isaija li tgħid:  "Tisimgħu kemm tisimgħu ma tifhmux, u tħarsu kemm tħarsu ma tarawx.  Għax il-qalb ta' dan il-poplu twebbset; kienu tqal biex jisimgħu b'widnejhom, u għalqu għajnejhom, li ma jomorrux jaraw b'għajnejhom, u jisimgħu b'widnejhom u jifhmu b'moħħhom, u hekk ibiddlu ħajjithom u jiena nfejjaqhom."   Intom, iżda, henjin għajnejkom, għax qegħdin jaraw; ħenjin widnejkom, għax qegħdin jisimgħu.  Tassew,  ngħidilkom, li bosta profeti u nies ġusti xtaqu jaraw dak li qegħdin taraw  intom u ma rawħx, u jisimgħu dak li qegħdin tisimgħu intom, u ma semgħuxh!  Mela isimgħuha intom il-parabbola ta' dak li ħareġ  jiżra'.  Kull min jisima' l-kelma tas-Saltna u ma jifhimhiex, jersaq il-Ħażin  ujisraqlu dak li jkun  inżera' f'qalbu;  dan huwa dak li nżera' mal-mogħdija.   Dak li nżera' f'art kollha blat huwa dak li jisma'  l-kelma u jilqagħha minnufih bil-ferħ;  imma għeruq ma jkollux fih innifsu,u għalhekk ftit idum;  imbagħad jiġi  fuqu  l-għawġ, jew isib min iħabbtu minħabba  l-kelma, u malajr jitfixkel.  Dak li nżera'  qalb ix-xewk  huwa dak li jisma' l-kelma iżda l-inkwiet  zejjed għall-ħwejjeġ tad-dinja u l-ġibda għall ġid ta' l-art joħonqulu l-kelma, li għalhekk ma tagħmilx frott.  Dak imbagħad li nra' f'art tajba huwa dak li jisma'  l-kelma u jifimha; u tassew hu jagħmel il-frott; dan jagħmel mija, dak sittin, u l-ieħor tletin."  Il-Kelma tal-Mulej 

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Commentary:  By Larry Broding (word-Sunday.com)

The Goodness of God

The parable of the sower and the seed stood as a favorite parable in the early church. This shortened version from Matthew can be divided into three parts: the gathering of the crowds, the waste of the sower, and the abundant harvest.  The contemporaries of Jesus gathered around him to learn about the Kingdom. In this gospel passage, the crowd was so great, Jesus had to sit in a boat off shore to teach. But Jesus taught in such a way to cause frustration and insight. Instead of teaching clearly, he allowed the listener to but the pieces together. In this way, the listener (and the reader) could grow spiritually.

What are your favorite parables? Why are they your favorite?

The parable of the sower and the seed shocked Jesus' audience for wasteful planting and the abundant harvest. Ancient people saw waste as an abuse of the rich. When they discussed economics, most ancient people agreed on two points. First, there was only a limited amount of wealth in the world. Second, God (or the gods) willed the distribution of that wealth within a rigid social class system. The rich (five percent of the population) held ninety percent of the wealth and the poor battled for survival. The ancients would consider our modern notions of creating wealth and individual betterment absurd.

Imagine the audience's attitude toward waste. They would recycle any useful object and pick up any useful seed so they could replant it in good soil. Yet the farmer in the parable threw seed around without thought. Did he flaunt his wealth? Or, did he totally lack common sense?

How do you view wealth? The rich? How do you use your money wisely?

Do you have any hobbies or charities others might see as wasteful?

What satisfaction do you derive from spending money on them?

In the end, however, the harvest vindicated the farmer's sowing practices. When most people gained yields of two to five times the amount of grain planted, the farmer in the parable gained 30 to 100 times! The yield boggled the mind of the ancients.

Jesus considered this parable important enough to give it two emphatic statements: "Look!" at the beginning and "Those who have ears, listen!" at the end. Why? To emphasize the blessings of God's Kingdom. God's blessings seemed as irrational to Jesus' audience as they do today. God blessed the wicked with riches while the good suffer. Yet, the suffering of the good led to much greater blessings. Such was God's Kingdom.

Like any good story, the parables of Jesus had many levels of meaning. Jesus interpreted this parable for the missionary ministry of the apostles. In 13:18-23, he viewed the sower as the missionary preaching to the crowds. Some in the crowd reject the message outright (like seeds on the hardened path). Others receive the message but are immature and quickly lose interest in the face of opposition (like the seeds on rocky soil which the sun burnt). A third group become Christians but never enjoy spiritual growth, since worries of the world get in the way (like the seeds sown with thorn weeds). The last group grows abundantly in Christ, since they willingly place themselves at risk (like seeds in a deep, rich soil that is turned over and over).

Jesus meant his parables to shock and befuddle his audience for a reason. He told parables to make his audience think. Applied to our modern life, the parable of the sower and the seed still poses a challenge.

How can waste and abundance describe blessings in God's kingdom?

How can we risk our hearts (like the soil in the parable) to receive God's Word (like the seeds)?