GOD ALONE IS GOOD

XVI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Matthew 13:24-43

With the psalmist, we must proclaim:

“O Lord, you are good and forgiving,

  full of love to all who call.” (Ps 86)

To the rich man who called Jesus “good teacher”, Jesus answered, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” (Mk 10:18) Indeed, only God is good, completely and perfectly good. And God shows his goodness by caring for everything. The first reading, taken from the book of Wisdom, says exactly that: “There is no god, other than you, who cares for every thing.” His caring goodness reveals his power. God’s power is not oppressive. On the contrary, because He is all-powerful, He can show leniency to all: "Your sovereignty over all makes you lenient to all.” Indeed, “disposing of such strength, you are mild in judgement, you govern us with great lenience.” And this is a lesson to us:

“By acting thus you have taught a lesson to your people how the virtuous man must be kindly to his fellow men, and you have given your sons the good hope that after sin you will grant repentance.” (Wisdom 12:13, 16-19).

Recognising that God alone is good, we must accept that our goodness is always full of cracks and holes. Our goodness is always tainted by and mixed with evil. That’s why we should not judge and condemn others. It is easier to see the speck in the other’s eye, ignoring the log that is in ours (Mt 7:3). In our self-righteousness, we are ready to condemn others and absolve ourselves of our misdeeds.

In this Sunday’s gospel, Jesus tells us the parable of the wheat field that has darnel growing together with it. The workers could not understand where it had come from and were ready to uproot the darnel, thus getting rid of it. The owner of the field refused, explaining to the workers that they would not be able to distinguish the darnel from the wheat. As a result, they would do great damage to the crop, confusing the wheat with the darnel, causing a great loss to the owner of the field.

Throughout the centuries, there have been groups and movements that see all those who do not belong to them as evil people who should be eradicated from society so that we remain with a society of the pure, the just and the righteous. In the end, they commit crimes against those they see as outsiders and non-compliant.

The parable is a warning against this attitude, presenting a completely different solution. The darnel will be separated from the wheat – that is, the evil from the good – at the end of times, and that will be done by the angels, not by human beings judging other human beings. And Jesus ended the parable explanation, saying, 'Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!”

YOU HAVE THE MESSAGE OF ETERNAL LIFE

 XV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Matthew 13:1-23

In this time of ours, images seem to take precedence over the word. We learn and transmit ideas and messages through images, and they are present everywhere, being the main media of communication. However, even on social media, images must be accompanied by words to specify the message. In the past, mainly in oral societies, the word was of paramount importance. The word brings into the open my intentions, thus revealing myself. The word facilitates relationships, initiating, strengthening and deepening them. And it may as well weaken them and even destroy them. Not so long ago, a word was enough to assume a commitment, seal a deal and establish an alliance. Nowadays, the word has been cheapened and degraded. In politics, it has become an instrument of deception, used as a ruse to trick the naive. Many politicians never mean what they say. Such devaluation of the word puts at risk international relations, making it impossible to work for peace.

On this Sunday, we are invited to reflect on the Word of God, through which He reveals his plan of salvation, showing forth his mercy and his love. Through His word, He calls us, inviting us to a relationship of love that brings fulfilment to our lives and our world.

In the first reading, through the prophet Isaiah, God compares His word to the rain and the snow that always water the soil and prepare it for the grain which will bring in the harvest.

"The word that goes from my mouth does not return to me empty, without carrying out my will and succeeding in what it was sent to do” (Is 55:10-11). 

In the gospel, through the parable of the sower, Jesus deals with three realities or intervenients: the sower, the seed and the soil upon which the seed falls. The sower is Jesus Himself, who proclaims the Gospel, calling people to the Kingdom of God. There could be no better sower. And there is no better seed as well since the seed is the word of God being proclaimed. Then, the final result depends on the quality of the soil, that is, on the hearts of the listeners. We may ignore and despise the word or we may lack the commitment and the resolve to accept the word and allow it to transform our lives. The word always implies a proclamation of the Kingdom of God and a call to repentance and conversion. The word confronts and challenges us while at the same time putting forward the path to life, a life that is only possible in a deep relationship of love with God.

With all the good listeners of the word of God,

with Samuel’s attitude, let us say:

Speak, Lord, your servant is listening:

you have the message of eternal life.

COME TO ME AND FIND REST

 XIV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Matthew 11:25-30

We live in distressful times with fear and anxiety, uncertain about the future. As the years pass, we become more and more aware that the great technological advances which have become a source of pride are putting in risk our lives and our humanity. We boast about the AI that thinks for us and does the work for us, making us redundant. A machine reasons and decides for us, and we lose the capacity to think. The new generations are becoming more and more ignorant. Thus, we must ask ourselves: What is there in reserve for us? Are we in danger of becoming the servants of AI and of those who own and manipulate it?

Looking around, seeing leaders that constantly prepare for war instead of searching for paths of peace, the future looks very bleak. With all this, our hearts may be filled with pessimism, leading us to question the purpose and meaning of our lives here on earth. It is to us that the words of the prophet Zechariah are addressed. We must not lose hope, because the Lord comes to us:

Rejoice heart and soul, daughter of Zion!

Shout with gladness, daughter of Jerusalem!

See now, your king comes to you;

he is victorious, he is triumphant.

We have reasons to rejoice and be glad because the Lord has not deserted us. He is in charge, and he will lead by ways of peace. Indeed, he comes as Prince of Peace, and “He will proclaim peace for the nations.” He comes to reveal to the nations the Father’s plan of salvation. He is the way to the Father. It is not possible to know God as the Father unless Jesus, the Son, reveals Him to us. The Father has put everything in Jesus’ hands so that in Jesus we find the truth and the life. However, the proud and the self-centred will not be able to access it since he reveals “them to mere children”, that is, to the humble who recognise their smallness and poverty. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” To enter the Kingdom of God, we must be like little children who put their trust in their parents.

By revealing to us the Father’s love, Jesus brings peace to our hearts. And he calls us:

“Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.”

That’s why our hearts are filled with hope. In the Lord Jesus Christ, we find rest, and our hearts remain at peace.