July 23th 2023. The Sixteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
GOSPEL: Matthew 13, 24-30
Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio
Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel
GOSPEL: Matthew 13, 24-30
Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying:
"The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man
who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The 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?'
He answered, 'An enemy has done this.'
His slaves said to him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
He replied, 'No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let 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."'"
The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ
The readings today warmly welcome us with a passage from the Book of Wisdom, which beautifully expounds on God's indulgence. It describes God's patient nature, which allows us to make mistakes, offering us the opportunity to repent and come to our senses. As the Psalm echoes, 'You are good, Lord, and you forgive.'
In contemplating the theme of God's Forgiveness and His patience with our imperfections, we encounter the parable of the weeds: the sowing of bad seed among the good, performed by an enemy in the vast field which is our world.
Here, we are confronted with the complex nature of reality. Life presents us with a mixture of good and not-so-good aspects. We often face unpleasant or even disturbing circumstances in our everyday lives.
It is in this challenge that we must learn to examine and understand the diverse elements of reality. Reality has various origins. We have what is good and comes from God – the wholesome, beautiful, and constructive aspects – and we also have what is destructive and stifles the good. How often contradictory elements coexist within the human heart! How should we navigate this reality? The first reading presents the theme of God's indulgence, and the parable urges us to grapple with the master's strange decision not to uproot the weeds until they unmistakably reveal themselves as such. In this world, both good grain and weeds coexist. The difference lies in the grain, which turns golden when mature, while the weeds remain green and fruitless. This colour distinction allows for differentiation. There is a risk of uprooting the good grain along with the weeds. The master's idea is to refrain from intervening harshly and violently because there is always something good worth protecting. In all of us, in the world, there is something valuable that must be defended. And it is worthwhile to wait for the good to ripen because goodness has its own timing; it will reveal itself as good, meaningful, and salvific.
This is how we should nurture the new generations: never passing sharp and definitive judgments on those who are still growing. Adolescents may sometimes be difficult and trying, but there is life and goodness in them, and we must trust them. They need time to mature, and eventually, they will be able to distinguish between the weeds and the fruitful grain – the beautiful and significant elements. We must be cautious not to live according to a logic that prioritises justice and the need to fix everything immediately. A tendency towards uncertain intervention, characteristic of a generation focused solely on justice, may push us to intervene prematurely, without giving things time to develop naturally into what they are meant to be. This is especially crucial from an educational and relational standpoint. We need to be vigilant against the impulse to discard everything when negative elements are present. As mentioned before, this impulse is not compatible with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The second reading of the liturgy tells us, 'The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness, for the Spirit Himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.' We, who are inherently weak, might wonder how we could ever pray adequately or relate to God in a presentable and worthy manner. Yet, the Spirit comes to our aid, supporting us in our weakness. Our vulnerability becomes the very space where the Spirit operates, the pivotal aspect of our relationship with God.
Be cautious if you believe that you have everything sorted out, fixed, and adjusted perfectly. That's never the case. It's a trap, a deceptive mindset that can lead us to adopt a harsh attitude, cutting off potentially good things before they have a chance to reveal their true nature. If we were to judge Francis of Assisi based on his youth, we might have dismissed him as immature, pleasure-seeking, disorderly, and focused on trivial pursuits driven by mere desires for quick rewards. Yet, we would have overlooked the fact that he would later become one of the greatest Saints in Church history. Similarly, if we were judged during times of ambiguity and contradiction in our lives, we might have been robbed of the beauty and significance that later emerged. The fruits in our lives, just like in the life of the Church, often take time to mature, and we must have faith in this gradual process.
Our focus should be on what truly matters, which is life itself. It's essential to orient everything towards bearing good fruit, allowing the Holy Spirit to work within us. We should never lose hope or hastily discard something. Instead, we must patiently wait for God's work to come to fruition and completion.
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