Gospel Reflection For The 26th day of January in the year of Our Lord, 2024
Gospel
Mark 4:26-34
26 And he said: So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the earth, 27 And should sleep, and rise, night and day, and the seed should spring, and grow up whilst he knoweth not. 28 For the earth of itself bringeth forth fruit, first the blade, then the ear, afterwards the full corn in the ear. 29 And when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come. 30 And he said: To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? or to what parable shall we compare it?
31 It is as a grain of mustard seed: which when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that are in the earth: 32 And when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches, so that the birds of the air may dwell under the shadow thereof. 33 And with many such parables, he spoke to them the word, according as they were able to hear. 34 And without parable he did not speak unto them; but apart, he explained all things to his disciples.
This Gospel passage has confused many. As anyone knows who has ever grown Mustard in the garden, this member of the brassica family is only a small potherb. It does not grow more than a foot or so tall. The plant that our Lord referenced was actually Salvadora Peisica, that can grow up to 30 feet tall and very wide. It is a large and beautiful tree. I suppose, were He here in America, He may have referenced a giant redwood…. But, He was not, no matter what Mormons say. Our Lord referenced a tree that was well known to His audience. Having never seen the seed of this tree other than in photos online, I imagine it must resemble the garden mustard seed. Mustard seeds are quite tiny, like little balls that roll everywhere if you are not careful. They can easily be lost.
Again, in this Gospel, Jesus tells His Apostles that He gives to them, alone the meanings of His parables. Saint John reminds us that they only wrote a few in the Gospels. How arrogant and ignorant is the belief that one can learn all of the teachings of God through the Bible alone, without His Church! But, most Americans who consider themselves to be Christian believe just that… and just as most do not understand what the mustard seed was that Jesus referenced, their understanding can be lost just as easily. Far too many become like the seeds planted among thorns or on the path, in the Gospel we discussed recently.
I doubt I could count how many people I have known who were taken to church as a child by parents or grandparents, only to loose faith in college or at another point when they were ravaged by Satan and worldly things. Many lose faith in times of sickness, struggle and grief. They pray, but is seems their prayers go unanswered. They are tempted to the limits of their faith. They fail, as we all do. Too often though, they give up and either through shame or anger refuse to reconcile with God.
In today’s fist reading, Saint Paul says:
For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame
the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.
For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice
but rather of power and love and self-control.
So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord,
nor of me, a prisoner for his sake;
but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel
with the strength that comes from God.
Through the imposition of Saint Paul’s hands, Timothy became a priest. Through the imposition of a priest’s hands we are confirmed. Yes, we fail. Yes, we sin. Yes, we lose hope. What matters is that we do not give up. We must get up and go to the priest to be reconciled to God. This is the mission of God’s Church, to reconcile mankind to Him. Don’t put it off – go NOW! Pray that we may go to confession before, violence, accident or sickness overtakes us. Do not hesitate, but be filled with gratitude that we are so blessed to have the priesthood and Jesus Christ through it.
A Daily Catholic Devotional Reflections on the Daily Mass readings January-June, 2024. may be purchased as a .pdf directly from me using this link https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/12/a-daily-catholic-devotional-reflections.html or in paperback on Amazon amazon.com/dp/B0CPD1DC7Q
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Gospel passages are taken from the Douay Rheims Bible.