Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year A - Sunday, July 12, 2020
EPISODE 240
Apologies to everyone. There was an error in the original email sent with the Mass and homily for Surfers Paradise Parish. please see below for the correction.
God bless,
pk
Readings for 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time - A
FIRST READING: Isaiah 55:10-11
Psalm 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14. "The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest."
SECOND READING: Romans 8:18-23
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION, ((no bibl. ref.)). Alleluia, alleluia! The seed is the Word of God, Christ is the sower. All who come to him will live forever.
GOSPEL: Matthew 13:1-23 or 13:1-9
Image Credit: Shutterstock illustration ID: 50338744. Sower seeding the seeds, the Gospel parable from the Bible about the Sower. By Thoom
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Please listen to my audio recordings of the readings, prayers and reflections for the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year A - Sunday, July 12, 2020 by clicking this link here: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/faith-hope-and-love-orindary-15a-episode-240 (EPISODE: 240)
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Prologue: (Fr Paul): The wonderful image of the sower and the seed that falls on all sorts of different environments reminds us that just as a seed has within it everything needed to produce a viable plant, it will produce nothing unless it is properly watered and nourished and finds the right soil or medium to take hold. It is similar to the idea of a delicious meal which contains all the nutrition needed to help a person stay healthy - But the meal is useless unless it is eaten. It is also like a light bulb that has the potential to light up a room but only if it is fitted into the socket and switched on. How important is the environment with which the Word of God is received. We need to actively protect, promote and nurture the good treasure we have received so that it will indeed bear much fruit by keeping constantly close to the water of Life… God's living word and sacraments.
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Homily – By Fr. Peter Dillon
15TH SUNDAY ORDINARY TIME – YEAR A-2020
We are very fortunate to live in a parish where there are many important ministries working hard each day to make the message and the presence of God felt by many, particularly by those who are yet to hear Gods' voice.
But perhaps the most important of our ministries is one that gets very little attention and has trouble surviving because most people don't really see the point. It's the children liturgy of the word. We offer it in only one of our churches every other Sunday and not on school holidays and we always have great difficulty finding generous people who are prepared to offer their time to helping young people hear the word of God pitched at the level of young people.
The American theologian, Monica Hellwig wrote: "a child's mind is like a seed. It can make barren ground fruitful, but it is a fragile and vulnerable thing. If we don't carefully tend it and feed it properly, it is very hard to get it to grow the right way". She went on to tell us that most adult Catholic s learn their understanding of God and our connection to God from well-intentioned, but most ill-informed adults, yet we have held on to those beliefs without any enhancement or rational application for the rest of our lives.
I believe that she is saying if we don't nurture and feed our faith knowledge then we are doomed to thinking about and applying the Word of God at 80 years the same way we did when we first heard about God around 8 years of age. That, to me, is an uncomfortable truth.
Words, any words, contain an enormous amount of power. Power to change, to comfort. To inspire, to teach. To correct. To challenge or change a life. Similarly they can come to nothing and evaporate into the ether. Words are totally dependent on the one who speaks or write them as well as the one who reads or hears them. And so it is with the word of God.
Some minds are closed to God's words, sometimes because they think they know all they need to know about life and how to live it or sometimes they fear any new understanding of life that may cause them to alter their present perspective. In each case these people become unteachable.
Others hear God's word initially with enthusiasm and relevance, but tend to forget it when situations get difficult or some other perspective takes hold. These people start of well but get distracted, too busy or involved and prefer to take a less-demanding path.
Other people hear God's word carefully and gently. They work at trying to get to its meaning at ground-level and then later at a deeper level, at its roots. When they feel they have a good grasp on its meaning they then try to act on it and see how it can be applied throughout their lives.
It's for these people that the word of God finds a secure place to grow, for those who make the effort to understand it, ensuring that this word becomes and event in their lives and becomes a fruitful thing, not simply letters on a page.
Underlying today's parable there is a telling confidence: in spite of all the obstacles present in the various types of soil, the word of God, despite apparent failure and repeated opposition will indeed enjoy great fruitfulness.
So how would you describe your response to the message of God?
Does it take root in you?
Do you make a serious effort to understand it?
Do you welcome it with a great show and then go on to do your own thing?
Do you hear it and then smother it with your own concerns?
As we answer these questions, we should be patient with ourselves. Like all seeds, this word of God it needs time to grow. The sower knows that he has to wait for the weather and the slow thrust of life. There is no denying that the process takes time. But the seed has first to be sown by a farmer who understand and cares deeply about the process of growth.
And that is why the Children Liturgy of the Word is so important, because if the seed in not even planted in any soil then no life will ever flourish. Nothing will take root. All our wishing for young people to know God will amount to nothing if we just hope someone else will step up before us.
If we first take the time to nourish the word in the young, God will wait on the gradual process. It might take a lifetime and it may take a struggle to grow. But eventually the word of God and our own word might become one. And that would be a rich harvest indeed.
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References:
Homily: Fr Peter Dillon
PROLOGUE: Fr Paul W. Kelly
Image Credit: Shutterstock illustration ID: 50338744. Sower seeding the seeds, the Gospel parable from the Bible about the Sower. By Thoom
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year A (Sunday, July 12, 2020) (EPISODE: 240 )
The Lord be with you.
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{{How are you today}}
As one family in Christ, let us prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries by calling to mind our sins.
Lord Jesus, you are mighty God and Prince of peace. Lord have mercy// You are Son of God and the Son of Mary. Christ have mercy// You are Word made flesh, the splendour of the Father. Lord have mercy.
May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.
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Memorial Acclamation
2. When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup, we proclaim your Death, O Lord, until you come again.
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PREFACE: Sundays Ordinary V
Eucharistic Prayer II
Communion side. pwk: LH
(OPENING THEME VARIATION: 3)
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{{heartfelt thanks to you all for uniting in prayer and reflectying upon God's goodness and care.}}
Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.
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Archive of homilies and reflections: http://homilycatholic.blogspot.com.au
To contact Fr. Paul, please email: paulwkelly68@gmail.com
To listen to my weekly homily audio podcast, please click this link here.
NB - It is often a week or so Ahead: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/tracks
You are welcome to subscribe to Fr Paul's homily mail-out by sending an email to this address: paulkellyreflections+subscribe@googlegroups.com
Further information relating to the audio productions linked to this Blog:
"Faith, Hope and Love - Christian worship and reflection" - Led by Rev Paul Kelly
Prayers and chants — Roman Missal, 3rd edition, © 2010, The International Commission on English in the liturgy. (ICEL)
Scriptures - New Revised Standard Version: © 1989, and 2009 by the NCC-USA. (National Council of Churches of Christ - USA)
"The Psalms" ©1963, 2009, The Grail - Collins publishers.
Prayers of the Faithful - " Together we pray," by Robert Borg'. E.J. Dwyer, Publishers, (1993) . (Sydney Australia).
Sung "Mass In Honour of St. Ralph Sherwin" - By Jeffrey M. Ostrowski. The ….Gloria, Copyright © 2011 ccwatershed.org .
- "Faith, Hope and Love" theme hymn - in memory of William John Kelly - Inspired by 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. Music by Paul W. Kelly. Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.
"Quiet Time." Instrumental Reflection music. Written by Paul W Kelly. 1988, 2007. & This arrangement: Stefan Kelk, 2020.
- "Today I Arise" - For Tricia J Kelly. Original words and music by Paul W. Kelly. Inspired by St Patrick's Prayer. Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.
May God bless and keep you.
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