Joachim & Anne, parents of the Virgin Mary

＊＊＊1st Reading＊＊＊

Ex 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 shall not bow down to them or serve them.(……)

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.(…….) 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.”

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊

 Mt 13：18-23

Now listen to the parable of the sower. When a person hears the message of the Kingdom,   but does not take it seriously, 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 such a person has no roots. and endures only for a while. 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 seed bears bears fruit and，produces a hundred, or sixty, or thirty times more.”

 

Reflection gospel：

“AS FOR THE SEEDS THAT FELL ON GOOD SOIL.”

Jesus explication of the meaning of the parable emphasizes the kind of “soil,” or the kind of heart, that receives God’s message of love. Only the good soil, enables the seed to grow and bear fruit; it is only the receptive heart that serves as fertile ground for God’s offer of forgiveness and love, and nothing else. The receptive heart is the condition through which God’s word may develop and bear fruits of goodness, kindness, justice, tolerance, and forbearance.

These fruits are dependent on the condition of the human heart, which is characterized by faith and repentance, prayers and acts of kindness, and  mercy and compassion. The parable invites us to reconsider the condition of our heart. How can we continuously transform it?