Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 'A'

Saturday July 12, 2008

“Thanks Be To God; Praise To You, Lord Jesus Christ!”

Whenever I am exposed to these readings, I think about a particular massive rock formation out of which a section of I-287 was carved many years ago in Towaco, NJ. Whatever one’s ecological take or tool, we must marvel at the ingenuity that enables us to move mountains. It brings to mind that salient comment of Jesus, “Faith can move mountains!” In this case, it took faith and not a few engineers and some heavy excavation equipment to work this miracle.

At any rate, over the years, I have watched that rock shale become a veritable rock garden. Whenever I pass that section, this is my refrain: “It takes only a little soil, a bit of sunshine and a few drops of rain for God to do what God does best!”

This little story from a reunion of World War II American P.O.W.s is even more poignant:

“Recreation in the concentration camp was limited to a brief period of exercise within a fenced courtyard with a gravel surface. Scanning the surface of the yard one day, a prisoner discovered a small green shoot in the corner. Calling the attention of his fellow prisoners to the tiny sprout, he decided to conceal a small cup of water in his hand each day so that he could water the sapling inconspicuously. Undetected by the Nazi guards, the plant grew. As Easter approached, the prisoner noticed a blossom on the stem. By Easter the lily was in full bloom. The Christian prisoners conducted a service on Easter Sunday around the newborn lily. The Jewish members of the camp managed to distract the guards by walking or grouping in such manner as to block their vision so that the service could take place without interruption.”

“Three weeks later, the prisoners were liberated by the American troops!”

The Word of God is like the seed sown in the earth. The brains and brawn of human energy are the tools that dispose the soil for the generous sower. The grace of God is like the sun that shines on fallow soil and the rain that falls on the fertile earth both of which give life to the seed and enable it to sprout and grow to full harvest. Isaiah captured the metaphor quite well in the first reading for this weekend.

A man very much in touch with his own humanity, Isaiah was also in touch with the awesome presence of God in all of creation. I think he could smell the breath of God in the air. He was a man of deep faith who believed that God’s spirit is present in all things. He understood well that God’s Spirit is rooted in the earth, in the soil and in the forests and yes, in the hearts of men and women of good will in every race and nation.

In the parable of the sower Jesus acknowledged the power of God alive and active within him. Every word he spoke, every act he performed were proclamations of God’s Word. He was in fact the living word of God. “Not on bread alone do we live but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

In Old Testament theology, the spoken word took on a life of its own and became a separate entity, as it were. “God spoke, and the world was created!” (Genesis) And in the New Testament, Jesus is identified as the word of God incarnate: “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us…” (Prologue of John).

Jesus continued this agrarian imagery and acknowledged that there are indeed obstacles to overcome when opening up to God’s word: rocky ground—spiritual density and lack of insight; shallow soil—lack of depth of character; no roots—blindness to tradition; thorns and prickly bushes—preoccupation with status, material wealth and worldly concerns.

But God is generous and with a minimum of openness on our part, God can effect an incredible yield and a rich harvest—the seed that was sown yielded a hundredfold! Even ten-fold would have been a plentiful yield!

Paul’s classic letter to the Romans is a powerful testimony to the struggle between good and evil in the world but he insisted that the struggle bears fruit not only in the life to come but also in this present life. Building on the metaphor of Isaiah and the parable of Christ, he argued for the eventual triumph of good. “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.”

Paul claims that all creation participates in the redemptive process and that the harvest is always imminent and I suppose it would be accurate to say even immanent. “Where sin prevailed, God’s grace did more abound!”

And so as we progress through life, preoccupied with the economy, terrorism and healthcare, we remain attentive to the word of God. This is why we respond to the Scripture readings with the words, “Thanks be to God!” and to the Gospel proclamation, “Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ!” We accept with grateful hearts the power of God’s word. In fact, we are empowered by that word to become the word incarnate, as did Jesus—to live the word of God in all that we say or do.

Although each of us hears the Word a little differently, others will know by the fruit of our efforts how well we have listened. If our words and deeds challenge rather than hassle and if they instill calm rather than fear, then they will know that we have heard rightly.

In the midst of discontent with politics, struggles with the global economy, and disenchantment with religious extremists, we cannot succumb to negative words or deeds nor can we adopt evil means and methods even for a good purpose.

We venture on with singleness of mind, and with hope in our hearts. God’s breath is in the air and so we remain open to the rhythm of God as we search for God’s heartbeat in people of good will. We look for good in ourselves and good in others and when we fail to see it, we do not give in to discouragement but take to heart the words of the psalmist, “Be still and know that I am God!”

As never before do we need to feed on God’s word and on Jesus the living sacrament of God’s inner life.

May the goodness and graciousness of God, the abiding presence of Jesus and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you always!

“Thanks be to God! Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ!”

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