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Gospel: Luke 13: 18-21
Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like?
To what can I compare it?
It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden.
When it was fully grown, it became a large bush
and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.“
Again he said, “To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?
It is like yeast that a woman took
and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch of dough was leavened.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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There’s a story of an early Christian hermit, whose name was Telemachus. He dedicated his life to prayer, living in the desert. One day, he felt the Lord calling him to Rome.
So, Telemachus left his desert cell and made his way to the Colosseum, where he witnessed gladiators fighting to their death, while bloodthirsty crowds cheered them on.
He was horrified.
Telemachus literally threw himself into the arena and tried physically separating one gladiator from another. Enraged, the crowds started throwing stones at him until he was beaten to death.
When the emperor got word of the story, he was so moved that he eventually ended the gladiator games.
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Telemachus became like the mustard seed in today’s Gospel. He was the smallest of seeds, the most unimportant of people, but he changed an entire culture – and saved innocent lives.
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It’s also the story of the Church.
What began with the Twelve Apostles has exploded into a community of more than 1 billion Catholics around the world – a growth of more than 1 million percent!
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What does this say to us?
If one person can change an entire culture, if twelve can change the world, then imagine what the Lord might do through us.
See yourself like a mustard seed – small on its own, but with God, a force to be reckoned with.
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Image credits: (1) Catholic Medical Mission Board (2) Media Storehouse (3) Desert Streams Ministries