20170923
GRACE AS THE MYSTERY OF THE KINGDOM
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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1 Timothy 6:13-16 ©
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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.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 99(100) ©
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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.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ps118:18
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Open my eyes, O Lord, that I may consider
the wonders of your law.
Alleluia!
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Or
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cf.Lk8:15
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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!
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Gospel
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Luke 8:4-15 ©
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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 was 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 into 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, cannot
become converted, or simply because they do not have the time to hear the Good
News. And there are many of us 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 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. 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 insights 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 with 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
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