DAILY- HOMILY

July 20, 2014
16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Wis 12: 13, 16-19 / Ps 86: 5-6, 9-10, 15-16 (5a) / Rom 8: 26-27 / Mt 13: 24-43 or 13:24-30

First Reading: Wisdom 12: 13, 16-19
For there is no other god besides you, one who cares for everyone, who could ask you to justify your judgments; your strength is the source of your justice and because you are the Lord of all, you can be merciful to everyone. To those who doubt your sovereign power you show your strength and you confound the insolence of those who ignore it. But you, the Lord of strength, judge with prudence and govern us with great patience, because you are able to do anything at the time you want. In this way you have taught your people that a righteous person must love his human fellows; you have also given your people cause for hope by prompting them to repent of their sin.

Second Reading: Romans 8: 26-27
We are weak, but the Spirit comes to help us. How to ask? And what shall we ask for? We do not know, but the spirit intercedes for us without words, as if with groans. And He who sees inner secrets knows the desires of the Spirit, for he asks for the holy ones what is pleasing to God.

Gospel: Matthew 13: 24-43 or 13:24-30
Jesus told them another parable, "The kingdom of heaven can be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and left. When the plants sprouted and produced grain, the weeds also appeared. Then the servants of the owner came to him and said: 'Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? Where did the weeds come from?' He answered them: 'This is the work of an enemy.' They asked him: 'Do you want us to go and pull up the weeds?' He told them: 'No, when you pull up the weeds, you might uproot the wheat with them. Let them just grow together until harvest; and at harvest time I will say to the workers: Pull up the weeds first, tie them in bundles and burn them; then gather the wheat into my barn." Jesus put another parable before them, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, that a man took and sowed in his field. It is smaller than all other seeds, but once it has fully grown, it is bigger than any garden plant; like a tree, the birds come and rest in its branches." He told them another parable, "The kingdom of heaven is like the yeast that a woman took and buried in three measures of flour until the whole mass of dough began to rise." Jesus taught all this to the crowds by means of parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. So what the Prophet had said was fulfilled: I will speak in parables. I will proclaim things kept secret since the beginning of the world. Then he sent the crowds away and went into the house. And his disciples came to him saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field." Jesus answered them, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world; the good seed are the people of the Kingdom; the weeds are those who follow the evil one. The enemy who sows them is the devil; the harvest is the end of time and the workers are the angels. Just as the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so will it be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom all that is scandalous and all who do evil. And these will be thrown in the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the just will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. If you have ears, then hear.

Reflection:
     When was the last time we were gentle? When was the last time we made a hasty decision? These are the questions we see today in the Gospel on the parable of the weeds. Jesus said that the kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed but an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat. When it grew the weeds started to bother the grains. The servants asked the master if they should pull the weeds but the master said no because the wheat might be damaged. He said to just let them be and wait for harvest time. 
     The sower was gentle in his approach but the servants made hasty decisions without thinking of the outcome. This is the way we solve our problems sometimes. Because of our eagerness to have results, some of our decisions are not well thought of. The parable is teaching us to be more careful, more mature and more calculating. We cannot solve problems by using force and destruction. We are to be more caring lest we hurt others. Be more patient and be more loving. We are not saying we become pacifist but we have to do everything at the proper time. And the proper time is the harvest time when we can separate the weeds from the wheat - the weeds to be thrown and burned and the wheat to the barn.
     As we reflect on the gospel reading, let us be more appreciative of the way Jesus has taught us. We know our life here on earth is a time to build the kingdom of God. We try our very best to follow the teachings of Jesus so that we can merit eternal life. We know that Jesus Christ will come again to judge us according to how we lived our life. The second coming is the harvest time when people will be judged according to how they lived. Some will go to the right together with the sheep and some will go to the left together with the goats. Now is the time to ask ourselves: Where do we want to go? If we want to be with the sheep then we should start now to care for the poor, the sick, the hungry. Did we show concern or compassion? Have I been faithful to my duties as mother, father, son or daughter. If we can say yes to these questions, then we are not far from the kingdom of heaven.

Prayer Requests:
We pray ...
... for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
... for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
... for families who are in need of healing.
... for world peace and reconciliation.
... for birthday intentions - Michael Uy

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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