Then and Now

Today we read the parable of the sower. This is one of the parables of Jesus that has been imprinted in my mind since early childhood. And sometimes when you know something then you think you know it. There is no need to revisit right? Not always!

Let's look at the biblical text: “A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” (Luke 8: 5-8) It is clear that Jesus creates 4 categories in this parable. My first way of internalizing the message of this parable was creating categories: The Word of God grows depending on the kind of soil your heart is. and those categories are almost permanent.

My more mature sense of spirituality helped me shift my focus from "the kind of soil" to the character of the sower, who is God, and the seeds- His Word is Jesus Christ. God gives us His word with full awareness of the different types of soil that our hearts could be at different times, but He never stops from sowing the seeds. As human beings, we evolve and grow. Maybe there was a time where the word of God was on the margin of our lives. Maybe it excited us for a while but it never grew deep. Maybe it was choked because there was too much happening. And sometimes it fell in fertile grounds and grew extensively. In other words, the 4 categories are the different stages of our life. 

Today, however, is a different day. You have a great opportunity to take that seed, the word of God, to the fertile grounds of your heart and let it grow. You have that chance because God is generous.

Yours,

Fr. Nareg

Read the Word of God. Today's readings are: Galatians 6:1-13; Luke 8:4-16