Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 28, 2023
“Hear the parable of the sower.
The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the Kingdom
without understanding it,
and the Evil One comes and steals away
what was sown in his heart.
The seed sown on rocky ground
is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy.
But he has no root and lasts only for a time.
When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word,
he immediately falls away.
The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word,
but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word
and it bears no fruit.
But the seed sown on rich soil
is the one who hears the word and understands it,
who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.”
Upon reading this gospel, I am reminded of the Lord’s message to Adam in Genesis 3:19. “By the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread.” It makes me wonder how the Lord may be inviting us to work so that the soil of our hearts might be rich and ready to receive his word. But then again, what does it mean for the soil to be rich? Reflecting upon what is not rich soil (i.e., the path, rocky soil, thorny soil) might illuminate this question.
We must step off the path for the seed to fall on rich soil. I wonder if the path is analogous to the way of life we have established. Could this be an invitation to step away from the busyness we have devoted our time to and give time to the Lord? How is the Lord inviting us to take time away from our routine and cultivate the field of our hearts?
We must remove the rocks for the seed to fall on rich soil. Could the rocks be the places of the heart that have been hurt and are now hardened? Are we harboring resentment against others? Against ourselves? Against the Lord? Might the Lord ask us to forgive and, courageously, vulnerably love?
We must separate ourselves from the thorns of life for the seed to fall on rich soil. Do we believe that all we need in this life and the next is the Lord? What things of this earth do we constantly think and talk about? Will we allow the Lord to come, touch, and pull away the things of this earth that might be separating us from his love?
Today, may we devote ourselves and the “sweat of our brow[s]” to the deliberate cultivation of our hearts, ready to receive the good seeds of Christ’s living Word.
Prayer
Lord our God, help us to not get lost in trying to figure out which soil we are for we have all been each type of soil at one time or another in our lives. And sometimes we’ve been two different types of soil in the same day. Rather help us to be like the sower, always sowing, always doing good, always rising to the occasion, always doing whatever we can for the good of the Church and of the world. On this feast of St. Joachim and St. Anne, we pray for our grandparents and for all the elders that you have sent into our lives. We thank you for them and we pray for them. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Nazarius was an early Christian martyr who learned the faith from St. Peter himself, and then traveled far and wide to share it with others.
Nazarius’ father was an officer in the Roman army, and his mother was a Christian. Through her, Nazarius was connected to the Christian community in Rome, and he was instructed in the faith by Peter.
Filled with zeal to share the good news with others, Nazarius left Rome to teach the faith to others, and enlisted the help of another young man, Celsus. When they arrived in Milan, they were arrested under a new persecution ordered by the emperor. They were both beheaded and buried in a garden.
Several centuries later, St. Ambrose discovered their remains. In Nazarius’ tomb, Ambrose found bright red, flowing blood that looked as though it had just been spilled. He moved the bodies of these saints into a new church, and a woman who was suffering from a possession was exorcised and liberated at that place through their intercession.
Relics of St. Nazarius rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.
St. Nazarius, you were the young man who learned the faith from St. Peter and were killed for sharing it with others—pray for us!