Thus says the Lord GOD: I, too, will take from the crest of the cedar, from its topmost branches tear off a tender shoot, And plant it on a high and lofty mountain; on the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it. It shall put forth branches and bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind shall dwell beneath it, every winged thing in the shade of its boughs. And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the LORD, Bring low the high tree, lift high the lowly tree, Wither up the green tree, and make the withered tree bloom. As I, the LORD, have spoken, so will I do.
Psalms 92(91) 2-3.13-14.15-16
It is good to give thanks to the LORD, To sing praise to your name, Most High, To proclaim your kindness at dawn And your faithfulness throughout the night.
The just one shall flourish like the palm tree, Like a cedar of Lebanon shall he grow. They that are planted in the house of the LORD Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
They shall bear fruit even in old age; Vigorous and sturdy shall they be, Declaring how just is the LORD, My rock, in whom there is no wrong.
Second Letter to the Corinthians 5,6-10
Brothers and sisters: we are always courageous, although we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord. Therefore, we aspire to please him, whether we are at home or away. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive recompense, according to what he did in the body, whether good or evil.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 4,26-34
Jesus said to the crowds: "This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come." He said, "To what shall we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade." With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. Without parables he did not speak to them, but to his own disciples he explained everything in private.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, The parables, which the Liturgy presents us today — two parables — are inspired precisely by ordinary life and reveal the attentive and deep gaze of Jesus, who observes reality and, through small everyday images, opens the windows on the mystery of God and on the human experience. Jesus spoke in a way that was easy to understand; he spoke with images of reality, of everyday life. In this way, he teaches us that even everyday things, those that sometimes seem all the same and which we carry on with distraction or effort, are inhabited by God’s hidden presence; that is, they have meaning. So, we too need attentive eyes, to be able “to seek and find God in all things”.
Today Jesus compares the Kingdom of God, that is, his presence that dwells in the heart of things and of the world, to the mustard seed, that is, to the smallest seed there is: it is really tiny. Yet, cast upon the ground, it grows until becoming the tallest tree (cf. Mk 4:31-32). This is what God does. At times, the din of the world, along with the many activities that fill our days, prevent us from stopping and seeing how the Lord is conducting history. Yet — the Gospel assures us — God is at work, like a good little seed that silently and slowly germinates. And, little by little, it becomes a lush tree, which gives life and rest to everyone. The seed of our good works too can seem like a small thing, yet all that is good pertains to God, and thus it humbly, slowly bears fruit. Good, let us remember, always grows in a humble way, in a hidden, often invisible way.
Dear brothers and sisters, with this parable Jesus wants to instil us with confidence. In so many of life’s situations, in fact, it may happen that we get discouraged, because we see the weakness of good as compared to the apparent power of evil. And we may allow ourselves to be paralyzed by doubt when we find we are working hard but the results are not achieved, and things seem never to change. The Gospel asks us to take a fresh look at ourselves and at reality; it asks us to have bigger eyes, that are able to see further, especially beyond appearances, in order to discover the presence of God who as humble love is always at work in the soil of our life and that of history. This is our confidence, this is what gives us the strength to go forward every day, patiently, sowing the good that will bear fruit.
How important this attitude also is for coming out of the pandemic well! To cultivate the confidence of being in God’s hands and at the same time for all of us to commit ourselves to rebuilding and starting up again, with patience and perseverance.
In the Church too, weeds of doubt can take root, especially when we witness the crisis of faith and the failure of different projects and initiatives. But let us never forget that the results of sowing do not depend on our abilities: they depend on the action of God. It is up to us to sow, and to sow with love, with dedication and with patience. But the force of the seed is divine. Jesus explains it in today’s other parable: the farmer sows the seed and then does not realize how it bears fruit, because it is the seed itself that grows spontaneously, day and night, when he least expects it (cf. vv. 26-29). With God, even in the most infertile soil there is always the hope of new sprouts.
May Mary Most Holy, the Lord’s humble handmaid, teach us to see the greatness of God who works in the little things and to overcome the temptation of discouragement. Let us trust in him every day!
FAUSTI - "And either he sleeps or watches, and at night or at day, the seed sprouts and grows" It is not man's action that produces the Kingdom, but the very power of God, hidden in the seed. So many of our anxieties about good are not only useless, but destructive. Just as evil has in itself its own death and kills itself, so good has in itself its own life and grows by itself, in an unstoppable way. In these words Jesus highlights the contrast between our inactivity and God's action. But this is only apparent, because He acts precisely where we know we cannot and we wait calmly and confidently. The efficacy of the Gospel is the opposite of worldly efficiency. They tell Jesus that it is necessary to do something before it is too late. It is time to act with urgency and determination - like the Zealots - so that the fruit of His labors is not lost. But He answers that, by pulling the grass, it does not grow. Only it is ripped up. Life has its own rhythm, which you cannot impudently hasten. Once sown, the seed grows by itself, with the calmness of a river going to the sea. The Kingdom of God is God's Kingdom. Our salvation lies in turning to God; our strength lies in trusting abandonment in Him (Is 30:5). The One who saves us is He, the One Lord of all and everything. The believer knows this and is at peace. The wicked, on the other hand, are like a "troubled sea that cannot be stilled, and whose waters bring up mud and slime" (Is 57:20). All our anxieties about good come not from God, but from the enemy. They are a sign of distrust and a cause of perdition. A farmer was sitting at the edge of a vast field without a blade of grass. He sent away the children who wanted to play ball, he diverted a traveler who was trampling it to go straight to his goal, he sent away a priest who asked him to build the parish works. In that field there was nothing, but the farmer contemplated it as already blond with harvests. He was not deceived. Appearances gave reason to the inexpert ones, but reality instead to him, who had sown and who knew that the seed does not disappoint. He who does not have the wise patience of the farmer destroys with two hands what he does with one. Jesus sowed the Word, and He Himself is the seed of God sown into the field of history. It is not further activity that makes it grow. It only needs His passivity: a bare, clean earth that welcomes, a trusting patience that waits.The history of Jesus in His Flesh makes us see the way in which God acts, and gives us the criterion of discernment to read, evaluate and choose according to His Spirit. For this reason we have hope in contradictions, confidence in hiddenness, strength in inefficiency, and courage in smallness. Jesus does not seek success and does not give discounts to the masses: He wants authentic people, who have the same characteristics of that seed which is Himself. A small candle illuminates more than a thousand nights; and at its flame everyone can kindle. Jesus is the greatness of God who made Himself small for us, even to the point of death on the cross. In this way He becomes the great tree where each and everyone can find hospitality.
MAGNIFICAT - St. Karol Wojtyla Exalt, my soul, with song and humility Your Lord, through the hymn: Holy, Holy, Holy! The song , behold, is unified . Poetry - Poetry! the grain yearns like my soul that suffers insatiable - that my paths may lie in the shade of oaks, of birches, That my young harvest may be pleasing to the Lord.
SONG OF THE HIDDEN GOD - ..." Father, I leave your gaze that is filled with a wave of sunshine, I choose the eyes of men - I choose the eyes of men, filled with a light of wheat. ...And it seemed to the open hearts, and it seemed to the simple hearts, vanished in the shadow of the ears of corn. And when for the eager disciples the ears of corn were opened He plunged further into the field. Learn, beloved ones, I pray you, this hiding place of mine. Where I have hidden Myself, there I remain.
Book of Ezekiel
RispondiElimina17,22-24
Thus says the Lord GOD: I, too, will take from the crest of the cedar, from its topmost branches tear off a tender shoot, And plant it on a high and lofty mountain;
on the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it. It shall put forth branches and bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind shall dwell beneath it, every winged thing in the shade of its boughs.
And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the LORD, Bring low the high tree, lift high the lowly tree, Wither up the green tree, and make the withered tree bloom. As I, the LORD, have spoken, so will I do.
Psalms 92(91)
2-3.13-14.15-16
It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
To sing praise to your name, Most High,
To proclaim your kindness at dawn
And your faithfulness throughout the night.
The just one shall flourish like the palm tree,
Like a cedar of Lebanon shall he grow.
They that are planted in the house of the LORD
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
They shall bear fruit even in old age;
Vigorous and sturdy shall they be,
Declaring how just is the LORD,
My rock, in whom there is no wrong.
Second Letter
to the Corinthians 5,6-10
Brothers and sisters: we are always courageous, although we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,
for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord.
Therefore, we aspire to please him, whether we are at home or away.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive recompense, according to what he did in the body, whether good or evil.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ
according to Saint Mark 4,26-34
Jesus said to the crowds: "This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land
and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how.
Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come."
He said, "To what shall we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it?
It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth.
But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade."
With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it.
Without parables he did not speak to them, but to his own disciples he explained everything in private.
POPE FRANCIS
RispondiEliminaANGELUS 13 June 2021
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The parables, which the Liturgy presents us today — two parables — are inspired precisely by ordinary life and reveal the attentive and deep gaze of Jesus, who observes reality and, through small everyday images, opens the windows on the mystery of God and on the human experience. Jesus spoke in a way that was easy to understand; he spoke with images of reality, of everyday life. In this way, he teaches us that even everyday things, those that sometimes seem all the same and which we carry on with distraction or effort, are inhabited by God’s hidden presence; that is, they have meaning. So, we too need attentive eyes, to be able “to seek and find God in all things”.
Today Jesus compares the Kingdom of God, that is, his presence that dwells in the heart of things and of the world, to the mustard seed, that is, to the smallest seed there is: it is really tiny. Yet, cast upon the ground, it grows until becoming the tallest tree (cf. Mk 4:31-32). This is what God does. At times, the din of the world, along with the many activities that fill our days, prevent us from stopping and seeing how the Lord is conducting history. Yet — the Gospel assures us — God is at work, like a good little seed that silently and slowly germinates. And, little by little, it becomes a lush tree, which gives life and rest to everyone. The seed of our good works too can seem like a small thing, yet all that is good pertains to God, and thus it humbly, slowly bears fruit. Good, let us remember, always grows in a humble way, in a hidden, often invisible way.
Dear brothers and sisters, with this parable Jesus wants to instil us with confidence. In so many of life’s situations, in fact, it may happen that we get discouraged, because we see the weakness of good as compared to the apparent power of evil. And we may allow ourselves to be paralyzed by doubt when we find we are working hard but the results are not achieved, and things seem never to change. The Gospel asks us to take a fresh look at ourselves and at reality; it asks us to have bigger eyes, that are able to see further, especially beyond appearances, in order to discover the presence of God who as humble love is always at work in the soil of our life and that of history. This is our confidence, this is what gives us the strength to go forward every day, patiently, sowing the good that will bear fruit.
How important this attitude also is for coming out of the pandemic well! To cultivate the confidence of being in God’s hands and at the same time for all of us to commit ourselves to rebuilding and starting up again, with patience and perseverance.
In the Church too, weeds of doubt can take root, especially when we witness the crisis of faith and the failure of different projects and initiatives. But let us never forget that the results of sowing do not depend on our abilities: they depend on the action of God. It is up to us to sow, and to sow with love, with dedication and with patience. But the force of the seed is divine. Jesus explains it in today’s other parable: the farmer sows the seed and then does not realize how it bears fruit, because it is the seed itself that grows spontaneously, day and night, when he least expects it (cf. vv. 26-29). With God, even in the most infertile soil there is always the hope of new sprouts.
May Mary Most Holy, the Lord’s humble handmaid, teach us to see the greatness of God who works in the little things and to overcome the temptation of discouragement. Let us trust in him every day!
FAUSTI - "And either he sleeps or watches, and at night or at day, the seed sprouts and grows" It is not man's action that produces the Kingdom, but the very power of God, hidden in the seed. So many of our anxieties about good are not only useless, but destructive. Just as evil has in itself its own death and kills itself, so good has in itself its own life and grows by itself, in an unstoppable way.
RispondiEliminaIn these words Jesus highlights the contrast between our inactivity and God's action. But this is only apparent, because He acts precisely where we know we cannot and we wait calmly and confidently. The efficacy of the Gospel is the opposite of worldly efficiency.
They tell Jesus that it is necessary to do something before it is too late. It is time to act with urgency and determination - like the Zealots - so that the fruit of His labors is not lost.
But He answers that, by pulling the grass, it does not grow. Only it is ripped up. Life has its own rhythm, which you cannot impudently hasten. Once sown, the seed grows by itself, with the calmness of a river going to the sea. The Kingdom of God is God's Kingdom.
Our salvation lies in turning to God; our strength lies in trusting abandonment
in Him (Is 30:5). The One who saves us is He, the One Lord of all and everything.
The believer knows this and is at peace. The wicked, on the other hand, are like a "troubled sea that cannot be stilled, and whose waters bring up mud and slime" (Is 57:20).
All our anxieties about good come not from God, but from the enemy. They are a sign of distrust and a cause of perdition.
A farmer was sitting at the edge of a vast field without a blade of grass. He sent away the children who wanted to play ball, he diverted a traveler who was trampling it to go straight to his goal, he sent away a priest who asked him to build the parish works.
In that field there was nothing, but the farmer contemplated it as already blond with harvests. He was not deceived. Appearances gave reason to the inexpert ones, but reality instead to him, who had sown and who knew that the seed does not disappoint. He who does not have the wise patience of the farmer destroys with two hands what he does with one.
Jesus sowed the Word, and He Himself is the seed of God sown into the field of history.
It is not further activity that makes it grow. It only needs His passivity: a bare, clean earth that welcomes, a trusting patience that waits.The history of Jesus in His Flesh makes us see the way in which God acts, and gives us the criterion of discernment to read, evaluate and choose according to His Spirit.
For this reason we have hope in contradictions, confidence in hiddenness, strength in inefficiency, and courage in smallness.
Jesus does not seek success and does not give discounts to the masses: He wants authentic people, who have the same characteristics of that seed which is Himself.
A small candle illuminates more than a thousand nights; and at its flame everyone can kindle.
Jesus is the greatness of God who made Himself small for us, even to the point of death on the cross.
In this way He becomes the great tree where each and everyone can find hospitality.
MAGNIFICAT - St. Karol Wojtyla
RispondiEliminaExalt, my soul, with song and humility
Your Lord, through the hymn: Holy, Holy, Holy!
The song , behold, is unified . Poetry - Poetry!
the grain yearns like my soul that suffers insatiable -
that my paths may lie in the shade of oaks,
of birches,
That my young harvest may be pleasing to the Lord.
SONG OF THE HIDDEN GOD -
..." Father, I leave your gaze that is filled with a wave of sunshine,
I choose the eyes of men
- I choose the eyes of men, filled with a light of wheat.
...And it seemed to the open hearts, and it seemed to the simple hearts,
vanished in the shadow of the ears of corn.
And when for the eager disciples the ears of corn were opened
He plunged further into the field.
Learn, beloved ones, I pray you, this hiding place of mine.
Where I have hidden Myself, there I remain.