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Two Sowings
This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. One should note that this parable of the “Weeds among the Wheat” is explained in Mt 13, outside our gospel, but closely placed:
36 Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” 37 He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, 38 the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40 Just as weeds are collected and burned (up) with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear.
The identification of the allegorical characters is not hidden, but what is the intention of the parable as a whole, especially as it pertains to the decision by the Master to leave the wheat and the darnel untouched until the harvest? I would suggest that the meaning may well be connected to the unique element of this parable: there are two sowings.
In the parable of the “Sower and the Seed” (vv.3-9) There is one sowing with seed, a symbol of the good and potent word of God, which generates believers, and the issue is “What kind of soil are you?” But in the parable of the “Weeds Among the Wheat” there are two sowings, and the question is “Are the good seeds sown by the householder/Jesus? Or are you the toxic seed sown by the enemy/Satan. This is an expression of a Matthean view of two kingdoms: of heaven and of the world.
The parable of the “Weeds Among the Wheat” points out the presence of the kingdom in the world: children of the kingdom must coexist with children of the evil one in this world until the end. As mentioned above, this reinforces the themes of on-going conversion (understanding, action, joy, perseverance in suffering brought about by tribulation or persecution, and ultimately bearing fruit superabundantly “in the world,” that place where anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit (v.22).
There are scholars who hold that Matthew’s unique use of the parable speaks primarily to the idea of a community of believers in which true and false disciples coexist – a theme not unknown to Matthew’s gospel. As R.T. France [2007, 532] notes: “See for instance the recruitment of “bad as well as good” guests to the wedding feast…with the result that one of the new invitees had subsequently to be thrown out (22:11–13). The wicked will be picked out “from among the righteous” (13:49). There are false prophets who are wolves dressed up as sheep (7:15–20); there are those who call Jesus “Lord, Lord” with apparent sincerity, but who do not belong to him (7:21–23); there are foolish as well as wise bridesmaids, waiting and sleeping together until the bridegroom arrives (25:1–12); there is a son who sounds more loyal than his brother, but who ultimately fails to deliver (21:28–32). All these passages are peculiar to Matthew, and more could be added.”
As interesting as that might be, here the field is identified as the “world” which indicates that the concern is wider than just what happens inside the Church. Within the “world” believers and unbelievers continue to exist side by side even after the proclamation of the kingdom of heaven and Jesus’ assault on the kingdom of Satan. Then and now some disciples find this a bit unsettling and a little baffling. Where is the kingdom and a new order promised by Jesus? It does not seem to be much of a kingdom when opposition continues unabated? The parable answers that question by a call to patience, directing attention away from the current situation to the coming judgment, when it will be made plain who are the true people of God and who are the “children of the Evil One.” God is not in a hurry, and we must be prepared to wait for his time.
Image credit: Parable of the Weeds among the Wheat, attributed to Isaac Claesz. van Swanenburg, 1590 – 1610, Public Domain
Weeds Among the Wheat
This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. This parable is unique to Matthew and unlike the other evangelists who also tell a pericope of the “Sower and the Seed,” Matthew’s use and placement of this unique parable seems to serve as a reinforcement of the themes of on-going conversion “in the world” that place where anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit (Mt 13:22).
The passage opens: “He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field.” (13:24). What we translate as “proposed” is more literally translated from paratithēmi meaning “to set before.” While the word is sometimes used to mean presenting or teaching laws (in the Greek language OT, Septuagint LXX), it is more typically used in the LXX and NT for serving a meal. R.T. France [2007, 525] suggests that it might mean the more straightforward “propose” but given its use in a parable, the idea of “serving a meal” may be more appropriate in that the listener will not be “spoon fed.” If they want to garner the fuller, deeper meaning from the parable, they are going to have to “chew on it a while.”
The opening of the parable might lead some readers astray: “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man.” It is a standard means of comparison (cf. 7:24; 13:31, 33; 18:23; 22:2; 25:1; 11:16) and reflects a standard Jewish idiom for “It is this way with the kingdom.” In other words, the “way” is the entire parable, not simply a man who sowed good seed in his field (13:24). Yet the man is not unimportant in the story. Unlike the person in the “Sower and the Seed” who may be a worker, a farmer, a hired hand, or the land owner; here in this parable, the man who sowed good seed in his field is clearly the householder (v.27) who is the Master (v.27) and who has his enemy (v.25). The man’s authority suits him as an analogy for God. Both rabbis and Greek philosophers employ a householder as an analogy for God.
Given the agrarian character of much of ancient life, it should not surprise us that fields and harvests figure prominently as settings in parables. How the images are used is not standard but garner meaning from their use in context. In Matthew’s use, context is provided by the earlier parable’s use of the soil in vv.3-9 (The Sower and the Seed). In an apparent re-emphasizing of those earlier themes, it may be that the land represents the “soil” of the people of God for whom Jesus came to bring salvation. In other words, the kingdom of heaven.
Two key figures in the parable are the enemy and the weeds. The weeds are probably darnel, a poisonous plant related to wheat and virtually indistinguishable from it until the ears form. To sow darnel among wheat as an act of revenge was punishable in Roman law, which suggests that the parable depicts a real-life situation. Who would do such a thing? Only an enemy or rival.
With early signs of the infestation, it was perhaps possible to uproot the weeds before their roots were entangled with those of the wheat – something the servants seem willing to propose (v.28). A light infestation of darnel could be tackled by careful weeding, but mistakes would easily be made (v.29). In the case of a heavy infestation the stronger roots of the darnel would be tangled with those of the wheat, making selective weeding impossible.
After the wheat and darnel were grown, they were easily distinguished and reapers could gather the darnel, which did have one use: given the scarcity of fuel, it would be burned.
Image credit: Parable of the Weeds among the Wheat, attributed to Isaac Claesz. van Swanenburg, 1590 – 1610, Public Domain
Why do people not believe
This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. As we covered in the previous post we have moved from the missionary commissioning of the Twelve with the warning that things will not always go well for them. This is part of the message in Matthew 10 and 11. While Matthew 12 is not part of the Sunday cycle of readings, it is covered extensively in the weekday readings – as we covered previously.
Chapter 12 tells how widespread is the opposition (or resistance) to Jesus’ saving message: Pharisees, the people, and perhaps even those closest to Jesus – his disciples and family. Signs of power and healing only lead to requests for more signs. Why do people not believe? Is there any explanation for the condition of things we have arrived at by the end of Matthew 12? Indeed there is; the explanation begins with simple words: “A sower went out to sow” (13:3)
Matthew 13 is a “day of parables.” The parable of the sower is spoken in public to great crowds (vv. 1–3), but its explanation and the teaching about parables are spoken only to the disciples (vv. 10–11). More parables are then spoken to ‘the crowds’ (v. 34), but the crowds are again left behind (v. 36), and the second explanation and further parables are spoken to the disciples in ‘the house’ (which Jesus had left in v. 1). The unresponsive crowds are thus clearly distinguished from the disciples to whom alone explanation is given, and this distinction is spelt out in vv. 11–17.
This short section of the Gospel according to Matthew presents a quick succession of parables:
- Weeds among the Wheat (vv.24-30)
- Mustard Seed (vv.31-32)
- Yeast (v.33) – At this point Jesus leaves the crowd and speaks only to the disciples when he explains the parable of the weeds in the field (vv.36-43)
- The Treasure, the Pearl, and the Net thrown into the Sea (vv.44-50) – 17th Sunday reading.
Last week’s gospel, the parable of the “Sower and the Seed,” began Jesus’ explanation of why people would resist or refuse the word of the Kingdom of heaven (13:19). This “word” is an expression that encapsulates all the proclamations, deeds and miracles given to the people that they might believe (Mt 8-9).
Although our gospel text does not seem to indicate the audience, v.34 (All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables) does make it clear that the hearers are not the disciples alone, but that the crowd is again an active participant. Given the disciples’ question: “Why do you speak to them in parables?” (v.10) and the fact that Jesus is again speaking in parables, it is clear that a larger audience is present.
Image credit: Parable of the Weeds among the Wheat, attributed to Isaac Claesz. van Swanenburg, 1590 – 1610, Public Domain
In the flow of Sunday Gospels
This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time in Lectionary Cycle A. In the flow of the Sunday gospels since the 11th Sunday there was a strong theme of mission. In those five gospel readings we have witnessed Jesus commissioning the Twelve, encouraging them to proclaim the message of Good News from the rooftops, while warning them that all this will come at a cost. On the 13th Sunday gospel Jesus makes clear they will face opposition and pushback from all quarters of life, including their families – and they may well have to choose between family and Jesus. In the course of those three gospels, in a previous post I noted that Mt 10:9-25 was not a Sunday reading but it only emphasizes the opposition, trials, and suffering that they may well face on this mission.
Continue readingTrust me, there is a lot more…
Note: I am traveling to a week long meeting of the Friars of my province and am “one the road” and so am reporting my homily from three years ago. Enjjoy
Just recently we held a mini-course about the people, events and issues of the Protestant Reformations of the 16th century. Among the Reformers there was a far greater emphasis placed on Scripture and preaching upon that Word. John Calvin’s typical Sunday homily seems to have been about 2 hours. John Knox’s homilies often had intermissions. Hard to imagine, eh?
But it was a different era – not just because Sunday was dedicated to church, worship, and little else – but because for that generation of people, Scripture was coming alive for the first time. When the Zurich reformer Zwingli first began to preach he started at the beginning of the Gospel according to Matthew. Sunday after Sunday he worked his way through the whole Gospel, proclaiming, teaching, cajoling, and encouraging people to embrace and be embraced by God. The Word of God set people ablaze.
I have to admit there are times in which I would love to take extra time and share a large portion of Scripture with you. For example, our first reading comes from Isaiah 55. But the whole chapter is awesome, amazing…. It is this wide-open invitation to Grace. And we get just a snippet of it in the first reading. Here is part of what comes before it.
All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, buy grain and eat; Come, buy grain without money, wine and milk without cost! Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what does not satisfy? Only listen to me, and you shall eat well, you shall delight in rich fare. (Is 55:1-2)
There are no preconditions to this invitation. It is not first to make your life pure and holy, then come. There is no entry fee. There is only “come” and “listen.” It is your choice.
Pay attention and come to me; listen, that you may have life. I will make with you an everlasting covenant (Is 55:3)
God is offering a covenant with you that you can have more than water or grain, you can choose life.
Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near…turn to the LORD to find mercy; to our God, who is generous in forgiving. (Is 55:6b-7)
What is in this covenant with God? Grace, mercy and forgiveness – and all you have to do is choose.
And that is just 2 or 3 minutes worth. Imagine what you could unwrap and talk about in 2 hours. And trust me there is a lot more there. A lot more, because that is the power of God’s Word. In Isaiah 55, God tells the prophet Isaiah about the power of His mighty word – irresistible, unstoppable, compelling
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. (Is 55:11)
This is the kind of message where I want to say, “Can I get an ‘Amen’ ?” I mean, here is it in a nutshell. God desires that we be saved, God has spoken the Word that can save us, the Word has gone forth in the person of Jesus to do his Father’s will, and that Word will achieve the end for which he was sent. I mean how great is that? Can I get an “Amen?”
And yet…. in chapters leading up to today’s Gospel, the Living Word, the Son of God, Jesus is experiencing growing opposition, doubt, and “push back.” And so the Apostles are asking Jesus, “What gives? How can people hear your teaching, see your miracles, witness your cures, and still they ask for another sign? What is with that? Why don’t people believe?”
And Jesus responds, “A sower went out to sow” The parable is Jesus’ response to why people do not believe. We have just heard the parable – and I suspect that as it was being proclaimed, lots of us were thinking – “Oh yeah, I have heard this parable before. Right. Jesus is the sower. The seed is the Word of God and we are the soil….” Pay attention and come to me; listen, that you may have life. When explaining the parable to the Apostles, four times, Jesus explains, “ the seed sown…is the one who.”
Think about it. We are already in the hand of Jesus, imbued with his Grace, and then sent into the world – free will and all. And we make choices that position ourselves on pathways, on rocky ground, among the thistles, or in good soil. (a) We have the Word and Sacraments, but we never take the time to understand and love them (b) We receive the Word and Sacraments with great joy, but at some point, that joy is lost. Maybe it became less than cool to be known as faithful or holy. Maybe socially cumbersome. The joy is gone. (c) Perhaps one simply heard the siren’s call of luxury, wealth, power, and privilege. Or the worries of modern life became distracting or overwhelming. (d) Or despite all these things, we are intentional about our journey of faith in the midst of modern living.
Today we are the seed sown in one place. And I do mean “today” – because Jesus and the Word of God are still with us today – in the Eucharist and in the Scriptures – in the power of the Holy Spirit moving among us. We are still in the hands of the Sower. Today we can make new choices. And in every choice, hopefully we are reflective enough to learn anew how God is creating and molding us, tilling the soil of our lives, uprooting thistle and weeds, and preparing us to choose life. The promise is constant: 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. (Is 55:11). But we must choose to let the Word into our lives. Choose to let the love and grace of God flood our lives. Can I get an “Amen?”
Image credit: “The Sower” Vincent van Gogh (June 1888), Van Gogh Museum, Public Domain
Why the varied responses?
This coming Sunday is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time. In the context of Jesus’ ministry the parable serves to explain why it is that the good news of the kingdom meets with such a varied response as we have seen in chapters 11–12, from enthusiastic acceptance to outright rejection. The fault lies not in the message, but in those who receive it.
People are both inadequate in themselves to respond as the word of the kingdom requires (compacted and shallow soil), and also exposed to competing pressures from outside (tribulation and persecution, anxieties and lures, and behind them all the evil one himself). The wonder is not that some do not produce fruit, but that any do. But here lies the parable’s encouragement both to Jesus’ followers then and to all who since then have preached this same gospel; not all will respond, but there will be some who do, and the harvest will be rich.
Image credit: “The Sower” Vincent van Gogh (June 1888), Van Gogh Museum, Public Domain
Sower, seed or ground?
This coming Sunday is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time and we have been considering Jesus’ parable of the sower who went out to sow. In the parable there are three primary images: sower, seed, and ground. While there may be some differences in emphasis or specific details, the general understanding of the three images and their interconnection can be summarized as follows:
The sower draws from the OT prophetic tradition of God sowing his seed in the chosen people in the form of the Covenant Law with the purpose of having that fruit multiply. Fulfilling that prophetic role, now the sower represents Jesus or any person who spreads the message of the Gospel, proclaiming the word of God.
As mentioned above, the seed represents the word of God, in the OT given through the Law and Prophets and now given through Jesus, the fulfillment of the Law and Prophets and the Living Word of God. For Christians this means the message of the Gospel. It refers to the teachings and truths found in Scripture and Tradition that have the potential to take root in people’s hearts and transform their lives. The seed symbolizes the divine truth and the message of salvation through Jesus Christ.
The ground represents the condition of the human heart or the receptivity of the hearers to the message of the Gospel.
In the context of Matthew’s gospel, much of the chapters previous to Mt 13 have, in one way or another, dealt with the people’s reception or rejection of the mission. In this light, while all three elements—the sower, the seed, and the ground—are important to the parable’s message, the primary focus is on the varying responses of the different types of soil to the sower’s scattering of the seed.
As Christians we are responsible to sow the seeds of faith and proclamation of the Kingdom of Heaven – in our place and time and circumstance. We have to “equip” ourselves with “seed,” that is the Word of God and our own relationship with Jesus. We are responsible to “check our feet” to ensure we are planted in fertile, rich soil. And this also means to examine our own heart and consider how we are responding to the Word of God in our lives. Have allowed that Word to take deep root in our life? Are we bearing fruit? Then our example can shine before others!
Image credit: “The Sower” Vincent van Gogh (June 1888), Van Gogh Museum, Public Domain
What did they hear?
What did they hear?
This coming Sunday is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Matthew 13 is a “day of parables.” The parable of the sower is spoken in public to great crowds (vv. 1–3), but its explanation and the teaching about parables are spoken only to the disciples (vv. 10–11). More parables are then spoken to ‘the crowds’ (v. 34), but the crowds are again left behind (v. 36), and the second explanation and further parables are spoken to the disciples in ‘the house’ (which Jesus had left in v. 1). The unresponsive crowds are thus clearly distinguished from the disciples to whom alone explanation is given, and this distinction is spelt out in vv. 11–17.
The structure of our gospel reading is a bit odd:
- the parable of the sower and the seed (vv.1–9)
- a passage explaining parables and the need for their explanation (vv.10–17), and
- lastly an explanation of the parable of the sower and seed (18–23).
Despite the traditional title of the parable, “The Sower and the See,” the real focus is on the seed and their yields. More important than the fate of the four different plantings is the contrast between the three unsuccessful planting and the fourth superabundantly successful one.
The parables focus on the seeds is an allegory for those who hear the word of the kingdom proclaimed. The parables describe the varying receptiveness to what they hear; all hear the same word. Yet each type of person is identified as what was sown in a certain place (v.19). This might strike us as odd since we are biased to understand the “seed” as the Word of God proclaimed, but understanding of the parable rests on the interaction of the unvarying seed with the various types of ground. It is interesting to note that the traditional German title is, Gleichnis vom viererlei Acker, “Parable of the four types of ground.” [France 2007, 503]
- seed sown on the path… without understanding: To understand is more than an intellectual grasp of the message; cf. the contrast in 7:24ff. between hearing and ‘doing’ the word. The word which is only heard is easy prey for the evil one. It is a non-starter.
- seed sown on rocky ground …receives it with joy: But to start is not necessarily to finish. Here the word is received (not ‘understood’) with joy, but joy without understanding and commitment cannot last: lasts only for a time is literally ‘is temporary’. Tribulation is a general term for suffering which comes from outside; persecution is deliberately inflicted, and usually implies a religious motive. Falls away is literally ‘is tripped up’ (cf. 5:29–30); it is not a gradual loss of interest, but a collapse under pressure. This scenario would be familiar to those who farmed the rocky land of Galilee, where the bedrock is often close to the surface.
- seed sown among thorns … This time the soil is good, but it is already taken up. The world (as opposed to the kingdom of God) offers both anxiety and lures (the normal meaning of this word, apatē, is ‘deceit’), each occupying the attention and energy in a way that prevents even good soil from bearing fruit
- seed sown on rich soil: Hearing is matched with understanding, and the consequences are a superabundant yield.
Image credit: “The Sower” Vincent van Gogh (June 1888), Van Gogh Museum, Public Domain
A sower went out to sow
This coming Sunday is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time. “A sower went out to sow.” As France [2007, 504] notes, in a primarily agrarian society the choice of agricultural imagery for parables needs no special explanation; three of the parables in this chapter are set on the farm. It is estimated that 90% of Israelites worked in some aspect of agriculture. There was also already a tradition in the prophetic books of using agricultural imagery, primarily in judgment narratives (e.g., Is 32, 35 and 44; Jer 31 and 51; Joel 3; and Amos 8).
“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.” (Mt 13:4-9)
The seed falling on the beaten earth beside the path, where it could not penetrate, may be the few grains which inevitably go beyond the intended range in broadcast sowing, though it is also possible that the technique envisaged is of sowing before plowing in which case the birds got to the seed before the path could be plowed up and the grain buried. This seed is totally wasted.
The second scenario would be familiar to those who farmed the rocky land of Galilee, where the bedrock is often close to the surface. While there is promising initial growth, the point of the parable focuses on the inability of the growing plants to sustain themselves when the heat is on and the shallow soil is quickly parched.
In the third scenario the danger comes not from the inadequate resources in the soil, but from competition. The luxuriant growth of the thorns shows that there is nothing wrong with the soil here; the problem is that it is already occupied and there is no room for a new type of vegetation. The plants do not necessarily die, but they cannot produce grain because of the competition for light and nourishment. There has thus been a progression in the first three scenes: the first seed never started; the second started well but did not survive; the third may even have survived, but produced nothing. But none of them are of any use to the farmer.
In contrast to the first three scenarios, the seed that lands in rich soil produces a bountiful harvest.
What is Jesus implying with his parable? Maybe a better question is what did the people hear?
Image credit: “The Sower” Vincent van Gogh (June 1888), Van Gogh Museum, Public Domain
What God Sees
Today’s readings for Mass again pair Hosea and Matthew. Both are rich with themes and topics, but one that came to mind was the way in which God views the world. When we view the world and all it contains we easily see what is on the surface and perhaps, from time to time, look more deeply into what we see. God sees all the way to the heart of it.
The prophet Hosea is speaking to the northern kingdom of Israel during a time when, outwardly, things looked quite successful. The nation enjoyed prosperity. It had kings, armies, places of worship, and a thriving economy. If you judged only by appearances, you might conclude that everything was going well. But God saw something very different.
The people saw prosperity; God saw spiritual poverty. The people saw impressive altars; God saw hearts that had wandered from him. The people thought they were secure; God saw a nation drifting farther and farther from the covenant. The people were sowing the seeds of their own destruction.
A farmer who scatters seed into a field may not notice anything happening for a while. The field looks the same the next day and even the next week. But eventually the harvest comes. God sees that Israel has been planting seeds of idolatry, injustice, self-reliance, and empty religion. Through Hosea, the Lord says: “They sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind.” (Hos 8:7) The harvest they have sown has not yet arrived, but it surely will. God sees what we cannot.
In the Gospel, Matthew tells us that Jesus healed a man who had been unable to speak because he was possessed by a demon. The crowds are amazed even as the Pharisees dismiss the miracle. But Matthew invites us to notice something even more important than the miracle itself. “At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Mt 9:36) Again, Jesus sees what others do not.
The crowds simply see people. Jesus sees hearts. He sees burdens that no one else notices. He sees grief hidden behind smiles. He sees fears that are never spoken aloud. He sees loneliness. He sees confusion. He sees people searching for meaning. And what is remarkable is not only what he sees, but how he responds: his heart is moved with compassion. Not irritation. Not condemnation. Compassion.
We spend much of our lives making judgments and assessments based on appearances. We don’t mean to but we do. We assume someone is happy because they are successful. We assume someone is at peace because they smile. We assume someone has no struggles because they appear confident. But we rarely know the whole story.
Only God sees the heart. That realization should make us both humble and compassionate. Humble, because we recognize how limited our own vision is. Compassionate, because we begin to treat people with the same patience that Christ shows us.
There is another comforting truth hidden in these readings. Sometimes we ourselves cannot even see our own hearts clearly. We may not recognize the habits that are slowly pulling us away from God. Or we may fail to see the quiet growth of grace within us. We may think our prayers accomplish nothing. Our small acts of kindness make no difference. Our daily faithfulness goes unnoticed. But God sees all of it.
He sees the seed before it becomes the harvest. He sees the struggle before it becomes holiness. He sees the quiet fidelity that no one else notices. That is why Jesus can say that the harvest is abundant. He already sees what is growing.
In today’s intercessions perhaps we should each ask for one simple grace: “Lord, help me to see as you see.” Help me to look beyond appearances. Help me to recognize the burdens others carry. Help me to notice the quiet work of your grace. And when I cannot clearly see my own path, help me to trust that you do.
In today’s gospel, the people saw a mute man. The Pharisees saw another reason to criticize Jesus. But Jesus saw a human being who was suffering. That is still how Christ looks upon us. He sees beyond our failures, our fears, our confusion, and even our sins. He sees hearts that need a shepherd. And because he sees so deeply, he also loves so completely.
Image credit: Jesus Heals a Mute Possessed Man | James Tissot, c. 1890 | Brooklyn Museum | PD-US
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