Listen with Faith

06-16-2024Weekly ReflectionFr. Aruldoss

Dear People of God,

"Dads are most ordinary men turned by love into heroes, adventures, story-tellers, and singers of songs." – Pam Brown. I wish all dads and father figures A Happy Father’s Day. May our mighty God bless all the Fathers & Father figures continuously with His choicest Blessings.

On this eleventh Sunday of ordinary time, the readings speak about kingdom of God. The first reading is a message of hope and restoration. Through the prophet Ezekiel God promised to re-establish and elevate his people who were in exile in Babylon. This means that God wishes to transfer his people from a kingdom of oppression, poverty and misery to a kingdom of justice, prosperity and peace of mind.

In the second reading, Paul reminds us of the fact that we are on a journey towards the kingdom of God in order to be with Christ our lord and king. Hence, whether we are “living in the body or exiled from it, we should be focused on pleasing the Lord. The journey to this kingdom is a journey which must be approached with faith and courage.

In our Gospel, Jesus expresses two parables about the Kingdom of God. The first parable mentions a man scattering seed on the land. As time passes, the seed sprouts and grows — yet, the man does not know how it happened. This parable reminds us of our call to scatter seeds of faith to others. Over time, God will work with those seeds and produce fruit. It is not our doing, but God’s doing. We need Him to produce the effects — all we can do is be good stewards of the knowledge and love for our faith.

In the second parable, Jesus compares the Kingdom to a mustard seed that grows into the largest of plants. The beginnings of the Kingdom started out small, but have grown and continue to grow into something grand. This seems unlikely, since Jesus is comparing it to a mustard seed, but we have to recognize that He is describing the Kingdom of God — something that is out of this world and beyond what we can imagine.

As Christians, we are called to reside in the branches of heaven, along with our family and friends. We cannot do this on our own. It is through our total surrender, complete faith and actively living out our faith as a witness to Christ that we can hope in eternal life. Let us not become complacent, but keep our hearts and minds fixed on the Kingdom of God.

Have a Blessed Sunday!!