2022년 7월 20일 연중 제16주간 수요일
제1독서
예레미야서. 1,1.4-10
1 벤야민 땅 아나톳에 살던 사제들 가운데 하나인 힐키야의 아들 예레미야의 말.
4 주님의 말씀이 나에게 내렸다.
5 “모태에서 너를 빚기 전에 나는 너를 알았다.
태중에서 나오기 전에 내가 너를 성별하였다.
민족들의 예언자로 내가 너를 세웠다.”
6 내가 아뢰었다. “아, 주 하느님, 저는 아이라서 말할 줄 모릅니다.”
7 주님께서 나에게 말씀하셨다.
“‘저는 아이입니다.’ 하지 마라.
너는 내가 보내면 누구에게나 가야 하고
내가 명령하는 것이면 무엇이나 말해야 한다.
8 그들 앞에서 두려워하지 마라.
내가 너와 함께 있어 너를 구해 주리라.
주님의 말씀이다.”
9 그러고 나서 주님께서는 당신 손을 내미시어 내 입에 대시며,
나에게 말씀하셨다.
“이제 내가 너의 입에 내 말을 담아 준다.
10 보라, 내가 오늘 민족들과 왕국들을 너에게 맡기니,
뽑고 허물고 없애고 부수며 세우고 심으려는 것이다.”
복음
마태오 13,1-9
1 그날 예수님께서는 집에서 나와 호숫가에 앉으셨다.
2 그러자 많은 군중이 모여들어, 예수님께서는 배에 올라앉으시고
군중은 물가에 그대로 서 있었다.
3 예수님께서 그들에게 많은 것을 비유로 말씀해 주셨다.
“자, 씨 뿌리는 사람이 씨를 뿌리러 나갔다.
4 그가 씨를 뿌리는데 어떤 것들은 길에 떨어져 새들이 와서 먹어 버렸다.
5 어떤 것들은 흙이 많지 않은 돌밭에 떨어졌다.
흙이 깊지 않아 싹은 곧 돋아났지만,
6 해가 솟아오르자 타고 말았다. 뿌리가 없어서 말라 버린 것이다.
7 또 어떤 것들은 가시덤불 속에 떨어졌는데,
가시덤불이 자라면서 숨을 막아 버렸다.
8 그러나 어떤 것들은 좋은 땅에 떨어져 열매를 맺었는데,
어떤 것은 백 배, 어떤 것은 예순 배, 어떤 것은 서른 배가 되었다.
9 귀 있는 사람은 들어라.”
July 20, 2022
Wednesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1
The words of Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah,
of a priestly family in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin.
The word of the LORD came to me thus:
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I dedicated you,
a prophet to the nations I appointed you.
"Ah, Lord GOD!" I said,
AI know not how to speak; I am too young."
But the LORD answered me,
Say not, "I am too young."
To whomever I send you, you shall go;
whatever I command you, you shall speak.
Have no fear before them,
because I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.
Then the LORD extended his hand and touched my mouth, saying,
See, I place my words in your mouth!
This day I set you
over nations and over kingdoms,
To root up and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.
R. (see 15ab) I will sing of your salvation.
In you, O LORD, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
In your justice rescue me, and deliver me;
incline your ear to me, and save me.
R. I will sing of your salvation.
Be my rock of refuge,
a stronghold to give me safety,
for you are my rock and my fortress.
O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked.
R. I will sing of your salvation.
For you are my hope, O Lord;
my trust, O God, from my youth.
On you I depend from birth;
from my mother's womb you are my strength.
R. I will sing of your salvation.
My mouth shall declare your justice,
day by day your salvation.
O God, you have taught me from my youth,
and till the present I proclaim your wondrous deeds.
R. I will sing of your salvation.
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."
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
Working in my yard gives me great pleasure. Gardening is full of surprises about which plants thrive and which are not going to make it. Working on my yard has taught me to break tasks down into smaller components, to be willing to move a plant to a place it might do better, to accept the results of a force of nature such as a hail storm and to appreciate beauty in the most surprising forms.
In these July days as spring flowers have faded away and other plants are bursting forth, I was delighted to center my prayer around the sower and the seed parable Jesus shares in today’s gospel from Matthew. Jesus is such a good teacher who presents a complex concept in an accessible way. He trusts that we will hear what we need to hear.
What I hear today is the seed, the word of God, is a precious gift. Not a fragile gift but one that needs proper attention. In the right conditions the seed thrives as Matthew describes: But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.
As a “self taught” gardener I have learned through experience that rich soil can be attained with some effort. Just as I cannot plunk a shrub in the ground and expect it to grow, I cannot passively hear the word of God and expect my spirit to be animated. In my garden, creating rich soil requires turning the soil and adding compost. Truly hearing the word of God requires turning my heart toward the word and honoring the challenges and affirmations in the word.
Planting in the soil and truly hearing the word of God are both just the beginning. My efforts to provide plants the proper amount of water, to pull weeds, to guard against ravenous insects, to encourage the bee and butterfly pollinators help me focus on ways I can live the word of God. I pray with these questions: How can I make sure I give the proper time and attention to hear the word of God? What temptations distract me and how can I confront those temptations? In what concrete ways do I live the invitation at the end of Mass to “go forth” to live the word of God in the world? When do I celebrate the moments that my life is rich soil?
The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower; all who come to him will live forever.
http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp
RIGHT IN THE MOUTH
“My mouth shall declare Your justice, day by day Your salvation.” —Psalm 71:15
The Lord has promised to place His words in your mouth, as He did for Jeremiah (Jer 1:9; see also Mt 10:20). From that day, He will “set you over nations and over kingdoms, to root up and to tear down, to destroy and to demolish, to build and to plant” (Jer 1:10). With God’s Word in your mouth, you will be a world force. In fact, the Lord will not only occasionally place a word in your mouth; He will fill it (see Ps 81:11) with His words of spirit and life (Jn 6:63). You will be like Samuel in that God will not permit any word of yours to be without effect (1 Sm 3:19; see also Is 55:11).
The Lord will make your mouth a powerful, glorious instrument of His righteousness (Rm 6:13), if you repent. You must cry out as Isaiah did: “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips” (Is 6:5). The Lord will send an angel to touch your mouth with a burning ember (Is 6:6), and then He will say: “Now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged” (Is 6:7). The Lord has promised you: “If you repent, so that I restore you, in My presence you shall stand; if you bring forth the precious without the vile, you shall be My mouthpiece” (Jer 15:19). You can be the mouthpiece of God.
Prayer: Father, use every part of my body for Your glory. Control every part of my body through my purified mouth (see Jas 3:2-3).
Promise: “Part of it, finally, landed on good soil and yielded grain a hundred- or sixty- or thirtyfold. Let everyone heed what he hears!” —Mt 13:8-9
Praise: St. Apollinaris was the first Bishop of Ravenna in Italy. He was beaten and exiled several times. Finally he was sent back to Ravenna and martyred.
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/
Are you hungry for God's word? Matthew tells us that Jesus taught many things to those who came to listen and learn. Jesus' teaching method was a very simple one. He used parables - short stories and images taken from everyday life to convey hidden truths about the kingdom of God. Like a skillful artist, Jesus painted evocative pictures with short and simple words. A good image can speak more loudly and clearly than many words. Jesus used the ordinary everyday images of life and nature to point to another order of reality - hidden, yet visible to those who had "eyes to see" and "ears to hear". Jesus communicated with pictures and stories, vivid illustrations which captured the imaginations of his audience more powerfully than an abstract presentation could. His parables are like buried treasure waiting to be discovered (Matthew 13:44).
Sowing seeds that take root and grow
What does the parable about seeds and roots say to us about the kingdom of God? Any farmer will attest to the importance of good soil for supplying nutrients for growth. And how does a plant get the necessary food and water it needs except by its roots? The Scriptures frequently use the image of fruit-bearing plants or trees to convey the principle of spiritual life and death. Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit (Jeremiah 17:7-8; see also Psalm 1:3).
The shut mind and prejudiced hearer
Jesus' parable of the sower is aimed at the hearers of his word. There are different ways of accepting God's word and they produce different kinds of fruit accordingly. There is the prejudiced hearer who has a shut mind. Such a person is unteachable and blind to what he or she doesn't want to hear. Then there is the shallow hearer. He or she fails to think things out or think them through; they lack depth. They may initially respond with an emotional reaction; but when it wears off their mind wanders to something else.
Too busy and preoccupied to listen
Another type of hearer is the person who has many interests or cares, but who lacks the ability to hear or comprehend what is truly important. Such a person is for ever too busy to pray or too preoccupied to study and meditate on God's word. He or she may work so hard that they are too tired to even think of anything else but their work. Then there is the one whose mind is open. Such a person is at all times willing to listen and to learn. He or she is never too proud or too busy to learn. They listen in order to understand. God gives grace to those who hunger for his word that they may understand his will and have the strength to live according to it. Do you hunger for God's word?
Lord Jesus, faith in your word is the way to wisdom, and to ponder your divine plan is to grow in the truth. Open my eyes to your deeds, and my ears to the sound of your call, that I may understand your will for my life and live according to it.
Psalm 71:1-6,15,17
1 In you, O LORD, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame!
2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me!
3 Be to me a rock of refuge, a strong fortress, to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.
4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man.
5 For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth.
6 Upon you I have leaned from my birth; you are he who took me from my mother's womb. My praise is continually of you.
15 My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is past my knowledge.
17 O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Shallow and rootless minds, by Cyril of Alexandria (375-444 AD)
"Let us look, as from a broader perspective, at what it means to be on the road. In a way, every road is hardened and foolish on account of the fact that it lies beneath everyone's feet. No kind of seed finds there enough depth of soil for a covering. Instead, it lies on the surface and is ready to be snatched up by the birds that come by. Therefore those who have in themselves a mind hardened and, as it were, packed tight do not receive the divine seed but become a well-trodden way for the unclean spirits. These are what is here meant by 'the birds of the heaven.' But 'heaven' we understand to mean this air, in which the spirits of wickedness move about, by whom, again, the good seed is snatched up and destroyed. Then what are those upon the rock? They are those people who do not take much care of the faith they have in themselves. They have not set their minds to understand the touchstone of the mystery [of communion with Christ]. The reverence these people have toward God is shallow and rootless. It is in times of ease and fair weather that they practice Christianity, when it involves none of the painful trials of winter. They will not preserve their faith in this way, if in times of tumultuous persecution their soul is not prepared for the struggle." (Excerpt from FRAGMENT 168)
More Homilies
July 20, 2016 Wednesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
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