St. Bridget of Sweden. religious

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Exodus 20:1-17

 God spoke all these words.  

 He said, “I am Yahweh your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.  Do not have other gods before me.

 Do not make yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything in heaven, or on the earth beneath, or in the waters under the earth; you shallnot bow down to them or serve them. For I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God; for the sin of the fathers, when they rebel against me, I punish the sons, the grandsons and the great-grandsons; but I show steadfast love until the thousandth generation for those who love me and keep my commandments.

Do not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain for Yahweh will not leave unpunished anyone who takes his name in vain. Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. For six days you will labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath for Yahweh your God. Do not work that day, neither you, nor your son, nor your daughter nor your servants, men or women, nor your animals, nor the stranger who is staying with you. 

For in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, but on the seventh day he rested; that is why Yahweh has blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.  Honor your father and your mother that you may have a long life in the land that Yahweh has given you.

 Do not kill.  Do not commit adultery.  Do not steal.  Do not give false witness against your neighbor. Do not covet your neigh­bor’s house. Do not covet your neigh­bor’s wife, or his servant, man or woman, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is his.”

 

Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 11

Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊  

Matthew 13:18-23

 Now listen to the parable of the sower.  When a person hears the message of the Kingdom but without taking it to himself, the devil comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed that fell along the footpath.

 The seed that fell on rocky ground stands for the one who hears the word and accepts it at once with joy.  But this fickle and has no roots. No sooner is he harassed or persecuted because of the word, than he gives up.

 The seed that fell among the thistles is the one who hears the word, but then the worries of this life and the love of money choke the word, and it does not bear fruit. As for the seed that fell on good soil it is the one who hears the word and under­stands it; this bears fruit and produces a hundred, or sixty, or thirty times more.”

 

 Gospel Reflection：

Other than fishing and shepherding flocks, Jesus borrowed heavily from agriculture to drive the point of His teaching. In this instance, He used the imagery of sowing seeds to various types of soil to drive His point. This in turn makes it easy for people to understand His teachings because it is drawn from the ordinary popular life exeriences of people.

This is not extraoudinary during Jesus’ time. The didactic style of other teachers tend to follow the same pattern. For story-telling is one of the styles of teaching in the Asian Mediterranean world. So, what does the parable mean? The heart is important in receiving God’s word.

It determines the abundance of harvest one could make when listening to God’s word. So instead of preoccupying ourselves with outward religious activities, why don’t we pause and clean our hearts from things that might choke the fertile capacity of God’s word to grow in our lives.