Gospel Reading: Mt 13:1-9
ON that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood along the shore. And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep, and when the sun rose it was scorched, and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it. But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold. Whoever has ears ought to hear.”
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Jesus is familiar to the rural crowds, so he crafts a story for them using simple images like seeds scattered by a farmer across different kinds of soil. Seeds on the footpath are eaten by birds; those on rocky ground are scorched by the heat of the sun. Other seeds on thorny soil see some growth but are eventually choked. Seeds planted on rich soil yield a bountiful harvest – thirty or sixty or a hundredfold!
The different kinds of soil represent varied dispositions of people towards the Word of God. Some have their mind shut and do not have any interest at all. Others are attracted to the Word, but their interest is shallow and superficial. Some are inclined to let the thistles of many distractions crowd the seedlings out. But still others are fertile soil for seeds to grow and bear fruit!
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SOURCE: “365 Days with the Lord 2017” ST. PAULS Philippines, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 895-9701; Fax 895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.
