Mark 10:45

From Little Seeds – Friday, the 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

February 1st, 2019
Psalm 37:5; Mark 4:26-34

Tradition dating from the second century tells us that St. Mark was writing to a Christian community in Rome that had experienced its share of persecution and failure. This was a community where it seems that people were leaving the faith under the threat of torture or death, leaders were more interested in preserving their own well-being than in leading the community, and evangelization was met with indifference or at times hostile rejection. Under these conditions, it would be hard not to lose hope.

Given that, it might be hard to understand how such a community would benefit from hearing parables about farmers and seeds. For that matter, it may be hard for us in the modern age to see the point. Jesus teaches us that seeds grow in the ground of their own accord and mustard seeds are small but grow into bushes large enough for birds to nest in. OK, but what is the point of this?

Simply put, Jesus is giving both them and us very good reason to hope.

Earlier this week, we heard him explain that the seed is the word of God. Once, those seeds were sowed within us. We heard them and over time they took root and grew. Now we are called to sow the same seeds in the hearts and minds of other people.

Here though we must remember one important point. Jesus teaches that those who sow the word do not control the growth. Just as a farmer can cultivate the soil, plant at the right time, and rotate the crops, but cannot control the elements, so it is with us. We sow the word in whatever ways our talents lead us, but we cannot worry about how to control its growth. That must be left to God. We are asked only to have faith that God will bring forth abundance in his own time according to his own design.

The second point concerns the seed itself. Namely, the seed is not only the word; it is also the person in whom the word has taken root. Jesus reminds us that from something as tiny and insignificant as a mustard seed comes a bush that can flower and grow several feet high. Imagine that one little seed as one seemingly insignificant person. Isn’t that how God has always worked? In the Old Testament, think of Joseph with the coat of many colors; Moses; David. In the New Testament, think of Mary, the mother of our Savior. It’s always the little people, the human mustard seeds, in whom the word of God flourishes and through whom mighty things are accomplished.

Taken together, these parables told St. Mark’s community exactly what they needed to hear, and they do the same for us. First, the seed is the word of God. It has been sown in us and we are to sow it in others. It will flourish, but it will do so according to a design over which God alone has control. Second, no person, no community is too small or insignificant to serve as an instrument for God. There is great hope, for all that is needed is openness to hear the word of God and do it.

As Psalm 37 reminds us: Commit to the LORD your way; trust in him, and he will act (Psalm 37:5).
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The First Disciple – Tuesday, the 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

January 29th, 2019
Mark 3:31-35

There are 3 versions of the story in today’s gospel. This particular version, that of St. Mark, seems to be very harsh toward the family of Jesus, most especially his mother. It has prompted many people to wonder: Is Jesus really doing what he seems to be doing – denying Mary her role as his mother, or at best minimizing her relevance or importance? It’s not hard to understand why people do read it that way, but perhaps the truth is a little more subtle.

We are in no position to say what Mary was feeling when she heard Jesus define his family as all those who do the will of the Father, but here is what we do know: Mary was her son’s first and most perfect disciple. What does it mean to be his disciple? Well, recall what he said, Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother, and consider:
- Mary was the first Christian to hear the word of God. Indeed, Mary was addressed by an angel as no human being before or after her has ever been addressed: Hail Mary, Full of Grace. The Lord is with you. Her response to the angel set the pattern for all who seek not only to hear, but to do, the will of the Father: Be it done unto me according to your word.
- Mary is the only gospel figure to be present at the beginning, from Christ’s incarnation, to his ascension, and then beyond, to the coming of the Holy Spirit. This is a model of fidelity, faithfulness to the call of discipleship that we can all imitate.
- Mary was Christ’s first missionary. Pregnant with him, she brought Jesus to the home of his herald, John the Baptist. There she would hear Blessed are you among women, and blest is the fruit of your womb to which she would respond, My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. As his disciples, how do we bring Christ to the world, and do we proclaim the greatness of the Lord or do we instead yield to the temptation to proclaim our own greatness?
- Mary’s final words in the Scripture are spoken not only to the headwaiter at a wedding, but to all of us: Do whatever he tells you. She has no more to say because there is no more to say. Her words are the echo of her son’s words in today’s gospel; obeying them will make us his brother, sister, and mother.
In these ways and more, Mary demonstrates what true discipleship means. Her son’s words were in no way a denial or rejection of her motherhood; to the contrary, Mary is his mother not simply according to the flesh but also according to the spirit. She heard the word of God and did it, whatever the cost. Far from an insult, nothing greater could be said of her, or, if we are so willing, of us.

From my book
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Rich in What Matters to God

January 28th, 2019
Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas

1 Peter 1:3-9; Mark 10:17-27

In the reading from 1 Peter, the author speaks of faith more precious than gold, perishable even though tested by fire, while in the gospel Jesus teaches precisely what faith will cost. Twelve centuries later, a young Italian nobleman named Thomas d’Aquino would take these verses to heart and in so doing show the world the true value of union with Christ.

Born as the youngest child in an era when the last child of the family was reserved for Church service, Thomas’s family had big plans for him. From his youth he was schooled by the Benedictines at the monastery of Monte Cassino, and his family intended not only that he eventually become a Benedictine, but become the abbot of Monte Cassino, where he could live and rule like religious royalty.

But God had other plans. While in college, Thomas was attracted to the preaching and radical poverty of a new order called the Dominicans. His mother saw this as beneath his dignity and forbade him to go. When he defied her and went anyway, she had him forcibly returned and confined to his room. For over a year he was sequestered there, but remained as determined as ever. Finally, after he withstood all the family pressure and even physical temptation, the family relented; his mother looked the other way as Thomas stole out of his room, left home, and joined the Dominicans.

The gospel reading speaks of a man rich in material possessions. What this young Dominican lacked in the material, he more than made up for in the intellect. In fact, Thomas was brilliant; he soon became one of the premier theologians of his time, teaching in France and Germany, and writing many great works of theology which are read to this day.

After teaching abroad for several years, he returned to Italy. His plan was to teach and finish the greatest literary work of his life. Again, God had other plans. One day while saying Mass, he went into ecstasy. Hearing the voice of Christ ask him what he desired, he replied, “Only you, Lord. Only you.” He never mentioned the vision again, but it profoundly affected him. When urged by his assistant to finish his masterwork, he refused. “I cannot,” he said, “because all that I have written seems like straw to me.” The Dominican priest who we know as Thomas Aquinas would never write again, leaving unfinished what many consider his crowning achievement, the Summa Theologica.

In the reading from St. Mark, we see that our Lord knew the rich man better than he knew himself. Jesus knew that in that man’s mind there was a line drawn that separated the safe yet hollow certainty of material possessions from the fearful yet indescribable joy of giving all that up to become a disciple. As we heard, the man just could not cross that line. The question for us is, where have we drawn the line, and what will it cost us to cross it? What do we hold onto that keeps us from committing ourselves to full faith in Jesus Christ?

Aquinas had riches in abundance and certainly could have held onto all of them. As a nobleman, he could have used his wealth for good; as abbot of Monte Cassino, he could have used the monastery for good. As if that weren’t enough, his superior intellect gave him the ability to do great good for himself and others. In fact, his writing has done the world a tremendous amount of good. Even in that moment of ecstasy when Christ asked him what he wanted, Thomas could have asked simply for the grace to finish his masterpiece. Some might have thought that the greatest good he could ever hope to accomplish.

Yet, Thomas didn’t ask for that. He said, “Only you, Lord. Only you.” He knew that as Jesus said, God alone is good. By the grace of God, he felt in faith that indescribable joy and thus was able to cross the line that the rich man in the gospel simply could not. Thomas Aquinas, who understood so many intricate and sophisticated truths, perhaps best understood the simplest truth of all: Without faith, we have nothing; with faith, we need nothing.

St. Thomas Aquinas, pray for us.
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From Little Seeds – Friday, the 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

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The First Disciple – Tuesday, the 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

Mark 3:31-35

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Rich in What Matters to God

Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas

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