Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Exodus 3: 1-6, 9-12

Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian.
Leading the flock across the desert, he came to Horeb,
the mountain of God.
There an angel of the LORD appeared to him in fire
flaming out of a bush.
As he looked on, he was surprised to see that the bush,
though on fire, was not consumed.
So Moses decided,
“I must go over to look at this remarkable sight,
and see why the bush is not burned.”

When the LORD saw him coming over to look at it more closely,
God called out to him from the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
He answered, “Here I am.”
God said, “Come no nearer!
Remove the sandals from your feet,
for the place where you stand is holy ground.
I am the God of your father,” he continued,
“the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.
The cry of the children of Israel has reached me,
and I have truly noted that the Egyptians are oppressing them.
Come, now! I will send you to Pharaoh to lead my people,
the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”

But Moses said to God,
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh
and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
He answered, “I will be with you;
and this shall be your proof that it is I who have sent you:
when you bring my people out of Egypt,
you will worship God on this very mountain.”

The Word of the Lord.

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I will be with you.”

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We’ve all been in a position in life where it seems like we must do the impossible.

Think of the first time you laid eyes on your newborn child. How can I give this child everything he or she deserves? 

“I will be with you.”

Or the moment you show up for your first day on the job. You’re a teacher – a class full of twenty young children. Can I really teach them all how to read? 

“I will be with you.”

Or that malignant diagnosis, your first day of retirement, the moment you lose a loved one…or, in my case, the day of my priestly ordination. Can I really do this?

“I will be with you.”

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These five words – “I will be with you”– are the words spoken by God to Moses in our first reading. 

Moses faced an impossible task – he was called to lead his people out of slavery in Egypt into the Promised Land. 

He was terrified – he questioned – but the Lord spoke to him from the burning bush simply promising, “I will be with you.”

The same God who guided Moses guides us today. Whatever our challenges or trials may be, we can move forward in confidence, because the Lord is with us, whispering in our hearts:

“I will be with you.”

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Image credits: (1) Pinterest (2) God and Moses at the Burning Bush, Earl Mott, Fine Art America (3) Pinterest

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Gospel: Matthew 10:34 – 11:1

Jesus said to his Apostles:
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth.
I have come to bring not peace but the sword.
For I have come to set
a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one’s enemies will be those of his household.

“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me,
and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
and whoever does not take up his cross
and follow after me is not worthy of me.
Whoever finds his life will lose it,
and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

“Whoever receives you receives me,
and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.
Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet
will receive a prophet’s reward,
and whoever receives a righteous man
because he is righteous 
will receive a righteous man’s reward.
And whoever gives only a cup of cold water
to one of these little ones to drink
because he is a disciple–
amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.”

When Jesus finished giving these commands to his Twelve disciples,
he went away from that place to teach and to preach in their towns.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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“I have come to bring not peace, but the sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother.”

This does not sound like the jovial Jesus so many of us adore. So, what does Jesus mean by such harsh, divisive words?  

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Practicing Jews would’ve understood. The Old Testament is filled with prophesies about the coming of the Lord. 

Two of them reference bringing, “not peace, but the sword,” and, “setting a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother.” When these things happen, the kingdom of God is at hand.

God’s presence on earth would bring a period of judgment and division, splitting families. Not because God seeks to divide, but because people respond to faith differently.

That’s a tension every family experiences.

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Often in ministry, I encounter grandparents concerned about the baptism – not of their children, but their grandchildren. The faith which they tried handing on from one generation to the next has been weakened over time for one reason or another. That causes division!

Or couples who marry. I’ve spoken with many spouses concerned about faith. One feels God is moving deeper into their heart, while the other is increasingly distant from God. That threatens the intimacy of the couple.

Or young people who want to do something beautiful for God. In my case, being ordained a priest. My vocation wasn’t accepted by all.

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“I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother.”

While these seem to be difficult words from our Lord, Jesus is not seeking to divide families. But he is pointing out the sad truth that people respond to faith differently. Some with joy and surrender, others with indifference, even rejection.

Perhaps today we can pray for all families experiencing this tension of belief. May the Lord, who alone grants the gift of faith, transform doubt into faith. Doing so will bring not the sword, but unity, peace, and above all, salvation.

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Image credits: (1) Regnum Christi (2) ConnectUs (3) A Knight’s Blog, Sword: Word of God

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Gospel: Matthew 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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Can you think of something, some moment, or someone that’s changed your life?

It could’ve been a college acceptance letter. A marriage proposal. A job opportunity. An “aha” moment. A word spoken in prayer.

For me, it’s been discovering the Bible. God’s Word has been my foundation since I was a boy. I remember being sixteen years old, reading the Bible from cover to cover, sparking my journey with Jesus.

Each page was like another seed planted, which slowly began changing me.

In the words of the prophet Jeremiah, “When I found your words, I devoured them. They became my happiness and the joy of my heart.”

Now that Word has touched even the harder to reach places of my heart. 

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In today’s Gospel, Jesus likens his Father to a farmer who sows seed. He throws it everywhere – not only on rich, fertile soil, but also on arid, thorny, and rocky ground.

To me, that makes God seem like a lousy farmer, but a loving Father. A lousy farmer because he tosses seed everywhere– even in places that have little chance for growth.

But a loving Father for the very same reason; God holds out hope that even those arid, rocky, or thorny places inside of us may one day change and bear good fruit. 

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So, what prevents our hearts from being fertile, or receptive to God’s Word?

Perhaps it’s the fear of change; an attachment to worldly things; doubt; or unhealthy habits. Things any human can experience. Still, the Lord speaks to us; he scatters the seed of his word, hoping one day it will take root.

Think of some of the Gospel verses we’ve heard in the last few weeks: “Do not be afraid.” … “Come to me, all you who are heavy burdened, and I will give you rest.” … “Whoever has ears ought to hear.” 

The Lord knows the most resistant parts of our hearts can be cultivated with the right amount of care – and persistence. As the prophet Isaiah says in our first reading, God’s Word will not return to Him void.

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So, what makes soil fertile? Or how do we become receptive to God’s Word?

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In order to become fertile, soil must first be broken open, tossed about, and repeatedly separated. It’s a type of chaos that prepares the ground to receive seeds. Once planted and watered, those seeds begin taking root, and, eventually, bear fruit.

In a sense, our hearts must be broken open – or vulnerable in some way – before they can truly become receptive to God’s Word. Think about those days when I was a curious teenager searching for answers, reading the bible from cover to cover.

Or think about those 42 young people traveling with me to World Youth Day in two weeks. They’re open to God and his Word in a way they may never have been before.

Opportunity opens our hearts to grace.

But so does suffering.

Think about the first time a person walks into an AA meeting.

Or the moment a relationship you valued ends.

Or when life takes a sudden, unexpected turn for the worse.

These moments are chaotic; they stir something inside of us. 

And God, the lousy farmer and loving Father, is there scattering seed, throwing his Word at us, hoping it may take root. As Jesus said in last week’s Gospel, “Come to me, all you who are heavy burdened and I will give you rest.”

When a weary heart is broken open, there’s a chance God’s Word will take root and bear fruit.

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Has the Word of God changed me? 

Do I hear it only at Mass, or also at home? 

Even something as simple as keeping a bible by your bedside, reading a few verses before you go to sleep can allow God to speak to you!

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Can you think of something, some moment, or someone that’s changed your life?

Hopefully we can all say, “The Bible.”

In the words of Jeremiah, the prophet, “When I read your words, I devoured them. They became my happiness and the joy of my heart,” even today.

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Image credits: (1) Vocal Media (2) Christianity (3) Knowing-Jesus.com