20150919 GRACE AS THE MYSTERY OF THE KINGDOM
Readings at Mass
|
First reading
|
|
1 Timothy
6:13-16 ©
|
Before God the source
of all life and before Christ, who spoke up as a witness for the truth in front
of Pontius Pilate, I put to you the duty of doing all that you have been told,
with no faults or failures, until the Appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who at the due time
will be revealed
by God, the blessed
and only Ruler of all,
the King of kings and
the Lord of lords,
who alone is
immortal,
whose home is in
inaccessible light,
whom no man has seen
and no man is able to see:
to him be honour and
everlasting power. Amen.
|
Psalm
|
Psalm 99:1-5 ©
|
Come before the
Lord, singing for joy.
Cry out with joy to
the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the
Lord with gladness.
Come
before him, singing for joy.
Come before the
Lord, singing for joy.
Know that he, the
Lord, is God.
He made
us, we belong to him,
we are
his people, the sheep of his flock.
Come before the
Lord, singing for joy.
Go within his gates,
giving thanks.
Enter his
courts with songs of praise.
Give
thanks to him and bless his name.
Come before the
Lord, singing for joy.
Indeed, how good is
the Lord,
eternal
his merciful love.
He is
faithful from age to age.
Come before the
Lord, singing for joy.
|
Gospel
Acclamation
|
Ps118:18
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Open my eyes, O Lord,
that I may consider
the wonders of your
law.
Alleluia!
|
Or
|
cf.Lk8:15
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are those
who,
with a noble and
generous heart,
take the word of God
to themselves
and yield a harvest
through their perseverance.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
Luke 8:4-15 ©
|
With a large crowd
gathering and people from every town finding their way to him, Jesus used this
parable:
‘A sower
went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some fell on the edge of the path and
was trampled on; and the birds of the air ate it up. Some seed fell on rock,
and when it came up it withered away, having no moisture. Some seed fell
amongst thorns and the thorns grew with it and choked it. And some seed fell
into rich soil and grew and produced its crop a hundredfold.’ Saying this he
cried, ‘Listen, anyone who has ears to hear!’
His
disciples asked him what this parable might mean, and he said, ‘The mysteries
of the kingdom of God are revealed to you; for the rest there are only
parables, so that
they may see but not
perceive,
listen but not
understand.
‘This,
then, is what the parable means: the seed is the word of God. Those on the edge
of the path are people who have heard it, and then the devil comes and carries
away the word from their hearts in case they should believe and be saved. Those
on the rock are people who, when they first hear it, welcome the word with joy.
But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of trial they
give up. As for the part that fell into thorns, this is people who have heard,
but as they go on their way they are choked by the worries and riches and
pleasures of life and do not reach maturity. As for the part in the rich soil,
this is people with a noble and generous heart who have heard the word and take
it to themselves and yield a harvest through their perseverance.’
GRACE
AS THE MYSTERY OF THE KINGDOM
|
|
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: 1 TIM 6:13-16;
LK 8:4-15
The
parable of the Sower has often been interpreted as a reminder of our
responsibility to respond to the invitation of the Good News of the Kingdom.
To the extent that we receive the Word, to that extent the Kingdom can
become a reality in us. Hence, all of us are exhorted to be the rich soil
so that the Word of God can produce in us the fruits of the Kingdom. This
allegorical interpretation of the parable is attributable to the influence of
the evangelist and his Christian community. However, this is not
the primary intention of Jesus when He told this parable. The fact that
this parable is called the parable of the Sower and not the parable of the soil
or something similar to this theme implies that the emphasis of the parable
does not lie in our efforts or capability to respond to the Word. Rather, the
stress is on the graciousness of God who is the Sower of the seed of the Good
News.
We all
know very well that responding to the Word is not something that we can simply
will. By our efforts alone, we cannot receive the Good News into our
lives. Indeed, like the Jews, many of us “may see but not perceive,
listen but not understand.” Indeed, the mysteries of the Kingdom are not
even revealed to us as parables but more likely as puzzles. At any rate,
which one of us does not wish to be the rich soil which the gospel speaks about
– the soil that produces a bumper harvest. Thus, the truth of life is
that everything is grace. This is not to deny the importance of human
effort, but the mysteries of the Kingdom cannot be attained simply by hard
work, responsibility and discipline. We need grace. This is the
original meaning of the parable of the Sower. It is not so much a
question of whether we are making a responsible decision to accept the
Word. Nay, it is to remind us that the mysteries of the Kingdom can be
summarized in one word: grace. Grace is the mystery of the mysteries of
the kingdom. How is that so?
In the
first place, we need the grace of the Word or the Good News of the
Kingdom. The Word that is sown or given to us is the initiative of
God. That is why the parable commences by saying, “A sower went out to
sow his seed.” And then continuing, we are told that “as he sowed,
some fell on the edge of the path.” Others fell on rock, others among
thorns and some on rich soil. In other words the seed is freely given to
all without discrimination and without conditions. The Sower did not choose to
sow only on rich soil but he sowed the seeds everywhere he went. Like the
sun, the Good News of the Kingdom is given to all without reserve or
distinction. Hence, we must say that the Good News is itself the grace of
God. It is not something that we can earn or merit. It is wholly due to
the graciousness of God.
Secondly,
we need the grace of response, the grace of disposition. We must realize
that given the choice we all want to be that rich soil which the gospel
speaks about. No one wants to belong to the edge of the path, nor
the rock that has hardly any soil, nor the soil that is overgrown with briers
and thorns. Unfortunately, the fact of life is that we cannot choose
where we want to be born. It is not for us to be born in a rich and
talented family or a poor and marginalized family. It is not for us to be
born into a situation where there is faith or lack of it. Very often, some of
us do not have the opportunity to hear the Word, especially when we are living
in a secularized world. We know that many want to become Christians but are
prevented by their race or culture. Others seriously want to be converted
but because of their responsibilities to their family or to society, could not
become converted, or simply because they do not have the time to hear the Good
News. And there are many of us indeed who have heard the Good News but
due to many factors are unable to deepen our faith and spiritual life.
So in
truth, the circumstances of where we are cannot be determined by us. They
are a given. Consequently, for some of us, the ability to make a response
to the Word would be more difficult than others. Just because we can respond
however does not mean that it is due to our efforts alone. It is
ultimately once again the work of grace. There is nothing for us to boast
about except the glory and goodness of God. Instead of feeling superior towards
others, we must be more humble for receiving such blessings from God.
That is why, those who are successful in their studies or in life, those who
have been blessed with talents, wealth, health and opportunities should learn
to be grateful and not despise others who do not have the same privileges as
them. Instead of attributing success purely to our hard work, much
of it has to do with the grace of God more than ourselves and our efforts.
Thirdly,
we need the grace of revelation. We know also that it is not simply by
hearing the Word that we are able to come to realize the mysteries of the
Kingdom. We can be intellectually very bright, and yet not be able to
understand the mysteries of the Kingdom, just as it was the case of the Jewish
priests and leaders. Age and intellectual capabilities are no guarantee
that we can grasp the inner realities of the kingdom. The disciples of
Jesus were more fortunate than us. Christ had revealed the mysteries of
the Kingdom to them. They were given the insight to see the truths of the
kingdom. Certainly not all of them were intellectually superior. However,
most of us are not so privileged to be able to have that gift of revelation and
enlightenment. So, the work of enlightenment is once again the work of grace,
not simply one’s efforts.
If the
mystery of the Kingdom is a mystery of grace, then does it mean that there is
nothing we can do to make the Kingdom a reality in our lives? Are we
condemned to live in resignation to whatever situation we find ourselves
in? No. Such an attitude will result in fatalism. The mystery
of the Kingdom is not simply a mystery of the grace of God; it is also the
mystery of the relationship between grace and work. While it is true that
the kingdom of God is primarily a gift of God, we can certainly do something to
prepare for this gift. Within this context, the allegorical
interpretation of the parable of the Sower becomes tenable. We must,
according to our own situation, live in such a way as to make the best of it,
whether we are living at the edge of the path or the superficialities of life;
or the rocky ground of trials and difficulties; or the soil that is stifled by
the temptations of the world.
Here
too, we must remember that grace is at work. God will somehow, through
His grace, lead us to His Kingdom, not in spite, but because of the
circumstances that we are in. In truth, there is no ideal situation,
ideal community, ideal spouse or family that we can be placed in. But
according to the realities that we are in, if we co-operate with His grace,
then we will certainly be able to reap a rich harvest of life, both for
ourselves and for others. Perhaps, this co-operation between the grace of
God and the efforts of man in coming to the Kingdom is the real heart of the
mystery of the Kingdom.
This is
precisely the advice of St Paul to the young Timothy in his pastoral
ministry. St Paul reminded him that God is the source of life, the ruler
of all, and that everything comes from Him. All that we need to do,
according to Paul, is to be faithful to our duties in life, and as far as we
can, to perform them without any faults or failures on our part. And then
in due time, the mystery of life and of grace will be made known to us with the
appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ. But this is something that we need
not be concerned now. In time to come, He who is unapproachable light,
will make known to us how His grace works with and through us in any condition
that we are in. His grace will ultimately be victorious for He is the
“king of kings and Lord of Lords.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh
Roman
Catholic Archbishop of Singapore
©
All Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment