Your choice

Posted on July 23, 2023 by Friar Musings

The “enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat.” We really should not be surprised. It’s the way it has always been. The “enemy” – a nice term for Satan, the devil and all the evil minions – are just doing what they have always done – offering us a choice.

In the Garden of Eden, humanity had it pretty good. Everything we could want. God came and walked with us in the cool of the afternoon. We were in communion with God. Imagine that, little ol’ us in communion with the one who is infinitely good, infinitely loving, infinitely just and so much more – and what God seeks is communion with us. God only asked one thing of Adam and Eve: eat of the tree of life, but do not eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Along comes the enemy to offer us a choice. Continue reading →

The Mustard Seed and Yeast

Posted on July 22, 2023 by Friar Musings

This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. In this post we move away from the parable of the “Weeds among the Wheat.”

31 He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. 32 It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’” 33 He spoke to them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.” Continue reading →

Our Impatience with the Weed

Posted on July 21, 2023 by Friar Musings

This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. The landowner (God) is quite patient and accepts that there will be “weeds” among the harvest – it is the lot of the human enterprises. Some people do not/will not/cannot hear the Word sown in their lives. The laborers in the parable are quick to want to eradicate the poison. I think history has shown that we reach beyond our calling – not to simply point out error – but to extinguish the source and root of that error. In the first centuries of the Church, when some of the epic battles over theological orthodoxy and heresy were waged, executions were not part of the Church’s response. There might be condemnation, banishment and loss of position, but people were not put to death. Yet a millennia later the island nation of England has its book of Protestant and Catholic martyrs as witness to our human reaction to “weeds” among us, despite the Gospel message. Continue reading →

Two Sowings

Posted on July 20, 2023 by Friar Musings

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. Continue reading →

Are we missing something?

Posted on July 27, 2021 by Friar Musings

wheat Today’s gospel, the explanation of the parable of the weeds in the field, almost begs the question…. where is the parable? The parable was Saturday’s gospel. When asked to explain the parable, Jesus’ answer is to the point and stark: “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world, the good seed the children of the Kingdom. The weeds are the children of the Evil One, and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age” ….at the end of the age. Continue reading →

Always a chance for conversion

Posted on July 13, 2020 by Friar Musings

Next Sunday is the celebration of the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. You can read a complete commentary on the Gospel here.

²⁴He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. ²⁶When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. ²⁷The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ ²⁸He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ ²⁹He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. Continue reading →

Harvest parables: beyond our calling

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Friar Musings

Our Impatience with the Weeds. The landowner (God) is quite patient and accepts that there will be “weeds” among the harvest – it is the lot of the human enterprises. Some people do not/will not/cannot hear the Word sown in to their lives. The laborers in the parable are quick to want to eradicate the poison. I think history has shown that we reach beyond our calling – not to simply point out error – but to extinguish the source and root of that error. In the first centuries of the Church, when some of the epic battles over theological orthodoxy and heresy were waged, executions were not part of the Church’s response. There might be condemnation, banishment and loss of position, but people were not put to death. Yet a millennia later the island nation of England has its book of Protestant and Catholic martyrs as witness to our human reaction to “weeds” among us, despite the Gospel message. Continue reading →

Harvest parables: wheat and tares

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Friar Musings

Commentary. 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 and 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.

Weeds Among the Wheat. 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 (understanding, action, joy, perseverance in suffering brought about by tribulation or persecution, and ultimately bearing fruit superabundantly. The context of the parable is clearly “in the world” that place where anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit (v.22). Continue reading →

Harvest parables: context

Posted on July 17, 2017 by Friar Musings

Matthew 13:24–33²⁴He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. ²⁶When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. ²⁷The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ ²⁸He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ ²⁹He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. ³⁰Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” ³¹He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. ³²It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’” ³³He spoke to them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.” Continue reading →

Our impatience with weeds

Posted on July 16, 2014 by Friar Musings

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the musings of a Franciscan friar…

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