Year: 2024

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Gospel: Matthew 13: 47-53

Jesus said to the disciples:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,
which collects fish of every kind.
When it is full they haul it ashore
and sit down to put what is good into buckets.
What is bad they throw away.
Thus it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous
and throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

“Do you understand all these things?”
They answered, “Yes.”
And he replied,
“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven
is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom
both the new and the old.”
When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There were two different kinds of nets the Apostles would’ve used as fishermen. Each had its own name. One was a casting net. It was tied to a fisherman’s arm then thrown into the sea while standing along the shoreline.

The second was a drag net, which was thrown out of the back of a fisherman’s boat. Once he started accelerating, the net would sink into the water, collecting whatever was in its path. Only after the net was hauled ashore, could the fisherman separate the good from the rotten fish.

It’s this – the second type of net, the drag net – which Jesus is referring to in today’s Gospel.

“The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,” he says, “which collects fish of every kind. When it is full, they haul it ashore.”

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There are three movements happening here. 

First, the net is cast. Second, it collects everything in its path. Third, the contents are revealed – and judged.

We are living in that second movement.

The Church is the fishing net already cast into the sea. It is our role and responsibility to bring as many people into it as possible. 

Judgment doesn’t happen until the end of time, when the net is hauled ashore and Christ the Fisherman determines who’s in versus who’s out.

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This parable may leave some feeling challenged while others comforted, as the Lord instructs us plainly to welcome all into the Church. He will separate who is good from who is bad at the end of the age.

How does this parable fit with my own understanding and experience of the Church?

Do I seek to welcome all? Do I judge others prematurely, prior to the net reaching the shore?

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“The kingdom of heaven … collects fish of every kind,” the Lord says.

May we do as we are told, casting our nets far and wide.

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Image credits: (1) GotQuestions.org (2) kindlings.org (3) MyWaterEarth&Sky

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Gospel: Matthew 13: 44-46

Jesus said to his disciples:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,
which a person finds and hides again,
and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
searching for fine pearls.
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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What are two of the most important words any Christian can say?

“Yes, Jesus.”

In Latin, Iesu ita. 

Some say it’s from these two words, Iesu ita, that we get the word, “Jesuit.”

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Today we celebrate the Feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a man who not only founded the Jesuit religious order, but also lived his life according to those words, “Yes, Jesus.”

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Prior to his conversion, Ignatius was a soldier in the Spanish army, who desired nothing more than glory in war. But his life changed after suffering a terrible leg injury, landing him bedridden in a hospital for months.

Reluctantly, Ignatius started reading the biographies of different Saints, as there were no other books available. But their stories inspired him so deeply that he converted to Catholicism and decided he would do his best to become a Saint, too. 

After being ordained a Catholic priest, Ignatius founded the Jesuits with a few friends and a vow to live those two simple words: Iesu ita.

“Yes Jesus.”

500 years later, there are more than 17,000 Jesuits sharing the Gospel across the globe, including Pope Francis!

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In the spirit of Ignatius, what might saying Iesu ita, “yes Jesus” mean for me today?

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Image credits: (1) Medium (2) Jesuitespao.com (3) Creative Fabrica

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Gospel: Matthew 13: 36-43

Jesus dismissed the crowds and went into the house.
His disciples approached him and said,
“Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,
the field is the world, the good seed the children of the Kingdom.
The weeds are the children of the Evil One,
and the enemy who sows them is the Devil.
The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,
so will it be at the end of the age.
The Son of Man will send his angels,
and they will collect out of his Kingdom
all who cause others to sin and all evildoers.
They will throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun
in the Kingdom of their Father.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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The Sistine Chapel is one of the most iconic works of art ever created. Strewn across the wall where the altar stands is a depiction of the final judgment.

Angels fight for the souls of the just, while demons pull the evil ones down into the netherworld. It’s a jarring but beautiful piece, drawing its inspiration from today’s Gospel.

“Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,” Jesus says, “so it will be at the end of the age.” 

Michelangelo reminds us that everyone must stand before the judgment seat of God.

But why does God wait until the end of our lives to judge us? Or, using the imagery from today’s Gospel, why must the weeds co-exist with the wheat? 

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When they first sprout, weeds and wheat look quite similar. 

Any seasoned farmer knows that it’s best to wait until the weeds and wheat become fully mature before separating them; otherwise, one may be mistaken for the other.

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In a similar way, Jesus waits until the end of our lives to judge what we’ve become, either a weed or wheat. It’s his prayer that every soul becomes wheat. Shouldn’t we hope for the same?

Doing so means three things: 

First, that we are patient with ourselves; faith is a life-long journey. Secondly, that we’re patient with others. And, third, that we withhold judgment, never seeing another person as incapable of change.

Rather, like Jesus, we do everything we can to reveal the goodness of God.

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Sometimes it feels like a distant and difficult truth, but the Lord’s judgment does come at the end of time. So, “whoever has ears ought to hear,” Jesus says. 

When that moment comes, may he gaze upon the world – including us – and see a field of wheat.

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Image credits: (1) Parable of the Sower, Van Gogh (2) The Last Judgment, Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo (3) Wheat Field, Van Gogh