SIXTEENTH SUNDAY OF YEAR "A"

SIXTEENTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR  "A"

Matthew 13, 24 - 43

“The Kingdom of heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.”

One day someone asked Mother Teresa, “Mother, why doesn’t God send someone to cure cancer or AIDS ?” And Mother Teresa replied, “May be God did send someone and you got rid of him by abortion.” Can we turn the abortion scene around, and ask, “What about those who were not aborted ?  What good are they doing in the world ?” Today’s parable about the yeast is suggesting that we are supposed to give a delicious taste to the culture around us. Bread without leaven or yeast is as insipid as bread soaked in water. It makes for dull eating. One bite and your guests begin to excuse themselves and go home. Matthew 13, 33 is Jesus’ briefest parable, and the whole point is that we Christians should play the same role in our culture as yeast does in bread. When we rub shoulders with friends and strangers, something of the Gospel of Jesus should rub off on them. Just as the leaven works invisibly to transform the dough, so does the power of God, working imperceptibly, transform the world. In a word, we must put divine fragrance into other people’s lives.

Our ancestors in this ancient faith zapped the culture about them for the better. You can look it up in Acts 17,6. When Christians reached Thessalonica in north-eastern Greece, they turned the town on its ear. The pagan townspeople said, “These men have caused trouble everywhere ! Now they have come to our city...” Talk about making an impact. The Gospels, in the hands of our ancestors, changed the lives of women. The pious Jew saluted God for making him neither a slave nor a Gentile nor, worst of all,  a woman. In the society of the time, a woman was a non-person. If a family was on a journey, Mister would be riding on the donkey; Mrs. would be on foot and probably more weighed down than the highly prized donkey. Christians changed that scenario entirely, sometimes pointing out who the prize donkey was. Talking about sick people.  The followers of Christ gave the sick their chance in the sun. Before that, if you were ill, you had it. Christians came along and said, “That’s not how we do it.” The first home for the blind was opened by a Christian monk. A Christian merchant opened the first free clinic on record. Then the noble Fabiola became the Mother Teresa of her day and unlocked the doors of the first hospital in Rome under the nose of the pagan Emperor. A loving person lives in a loving world. A hostile person lives in a hostile world. Everyone you meet is your mirror. The very elderly got their first break from Christians. When you became old, you also became a nuisance. You didn’t have to pull the plug yourself. Those around you would very happily do that for you. The town dump was your final home.  Jesus’ followers scrubbed all that.  And kids finally got a break. Remember that famous line of the Egyptian husband to his wife: “If you bear a child, and if it is a boy, let it live. If it is a girl, throw it out. “  Christ’s people opened a fresh chapter in that area.

Yes, these people were that famous leaven in the bread.  So what do I do to protect human life today, to change the atmosphere of hostility and corruption into one Gospel peace and considerateness ?  You might want to reflect on the word of Abraham Lincoln: “To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men.”  Will I stand up and be counted with the Christians who preceded me and who battled enormous odds for the rights of women, the sick, the aged, the children ? Or shall I cop out and whisper, “The project is too big for me; count me out ?” 

Sometimes it's through bad example, or through our failures to instruct our children, or when we fail to help our neighbor in need or in distress, or when we fail to support Catholic teaching in our conversation and in our actions. We need to look into our hearts to see in what ways we are responsible. What then? We ask the Holy Spirit for the grace to repent, to make a good confession, and to change our ways.
But even the righteous need to take care in labeling others as "children of evil." Notice what advice the farmer in the parable gives his workers? He tells them to let the weeds grow with the wheat. The harvest-time is coming (in other words, the final judgment). "Be patient," Jesus tells us. Work and pray to change hearts. Heavy-handed crusaders sometimes do more harm than good. Use charity, gentleness, good example and prayer. Maybe they will have a change of heart before God has to take action. Our part is to pray and to work for justice and for peace.

Even if you read the Gospels with one eye closed, you must realise your Christ was the leader of the struggle from the beginning and still is.  We’ll stand and fight with him.

PRAYER   (Martin Israel)

Let the healing grace of your love, O Lord,

So transform me,

That I may play my part in the transfiguration of the world,

from a place of suffering, death and corruption

to a realm of infinite light, joy and love.

Make me so obedient to your Spirit

that my life may become a living prayer

and a witness to your unfailing presence.