Accepting the Word of God

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

During the coming Sundays we will hear a number of parables. A parable is a story that Jesus narrated to help people understand what he wanted to teach them. Nevertheless, his listeners did not always understand! In today’s gospel, we see Jesus explaining the parable to his apostles. If we have some knowledge of farming or gardening, when we read this gospel, a spontaneous reaction might lead us to think that the farmer, who is the parable’s protagonist, was far from experienced. We might think that if he was better experienced, he would have been careful to sow his seeds on fertile land. Why does Jesus speak of a sower who scattered seeds everywhere? He wants to tell us that God is not stingy! He does not pick and choose who is good enough to receive his love, mercy and word. Everyone receives it, in the same way, abundantly; the difference lies in the recipient.

In this parable we hear about four different types of land:

The path: when we do not take the Word of God seriously.

The rocks: our faith is weak, and when we are tested, the Word of God will not offer encouragement.

The thorns: we know the Word of God but we do not put it into practice. The reason being, that although we know what God would like us to do, we do not accept his calling

The good soil: the Word of God bears fruit, when we live it and lead others to it. To come to this point, we have to spend time with his Word, reflect on it and see what God is telling us. We have to listen with open hearts and receive the sacraments regularly.

Parents are particularly responsible for preparing “the soil” of their children, so that the seeds of God’s Word can find fertile land. Although the family is considered as the primary educator of the children, the Church also needs to offer its support. There are many ways in which parents sustain their children’s faith, such as the way they talk about God, Jesus and the saints. They support their children’s faith through the way they celebrate Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter and through family prayer, the reading of Bible stories, through the way they forgive and help others, and through the way they participate in the Eucharist. Jesus once said, “Let the children come to me.” As parents, how are we obeying this command?

A reading from the Gospel of Matthew (Mt 13, 1-23)

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 disciples approached him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
He said to them in reply,
“Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven
has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.
To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;
from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables, because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.
Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:
You shall indeed hear but not understand, you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted,
and I heal them.

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear.
Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people
longed to see what you see but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.

“Hear then 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.”

The Gospel of the Lord
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

  1. Read the Gospel story so that you are familiar with it, this clip may be of help
  2. Reflect on what the Gospel story is saying to you. Which points would you highlight and how do they affect you now?
  3. Can you recall a time when God’s word really connected with you and changed your attitude and way of life?
  4. How do you pray? Do you use Scripture?
  5. How can you improve to become ‘good soil’ so that the Word of God forms roots and bears fruit?
  6. Together with your family find the right time to read this gospel. The environment helps, so before you start, prepare:
    a. The Bible reading from St Matthew (13, 1-23)
    b. A lit candle
    c. Cover the table with green cloth
    d. A computer/laptop with the reading and clips
  7. Go through the steps with your kid’s (2 age groups are being suggested)
  8. Feel free to adapt to your situation
  9. Be creative 😊
  10. Go to the Prayer Spaces section to continue praying as a family

“In the language of the Gospel, the seed is the symbol of the Word of God… As the humble seed grows in the earth, so too does the Word by the power of God work in the hearts of those who listen to it. God has entrusted his Word to our earth, that is to each one of us with our concrete humanity. We can be confident because the Word of God is a creative word, destined to become the “full grain in the ear”. This Word, if accepted, certainly bears fruit, for God Himself makes it sprout and grow in ways that we cannot always verify or understand. All this tells us that it is always God, it is always God who makes his Kingdom grow. That is why we fervently pray “thy Kingdom come”. It is He who makes it grow. Man is his humble collaborator, who contemplates and rejoices in divine creative action and waits patiently for its fruits.”

In today’s gospel we will listen to one of Jesus’ parables. A parable is a story which helps us better understand what Jesus is teaching us.

We will learn that:

  • We need to listen and understand what God is telling us
  • When we listen and do what he wants, we become better persons
  • When we do not understand the Bible, we need to ask someone to explain it to us
  • Colours
  • A printout of the picture below
PictureDownload

We ask: what is the parable about? (a sower who went out to sow some seeds)

After allowing the children to narrate the parable, we retell it with a short explanation.

There was once a sower who had a sack full of seeds. He went out and scattered all the seeds. Not all the seeds fell on the soil. Some fell on the path, some on the rocks, some among the thorns and the rest fell on good soil.

The apostles did not understand this parable, so Jesus said that the sower is God. He speaks to us every day, but we do not always listen. When we listen to Bible stories during the celebration of the Eucharist or during our catechetical meetings, but our minds wonder about, we are similar to the path upon which the seeds have fallen without bearing any fruit. At times, although we know how we should behave, although we know well that God would not like us to fight, we quickly start to shout and fight when we are angry at someone. When we do this, we are like the rocks upon which the seeds sown by the generous farmer have fallen. It could also be that activities, such as those related to school, to games and other activities, which are in themselves important, take up all our time and we have no time to pray and to listen to Bible stories.

At times we are just like the thorns upon which the seeds have landed without any chances of survival. Although we know what God is telling us, we worry too much. We worry because someone does not want to be our friend; we worry because our friends have some nice games which we do not have; we worry because others are better than us at drawing or some other useful skill. These thoughts make us sad and so we cannot listen and understand what God is telling us. Instead of worrying, we would feel much better if we spoke with God, telling him about our own worries.

The last seed about which Jesus speaks in his parable, falls upon the fertile soil. We are like this good and fertile land when we pay attention during our meeting with the catechists, during mass and when someone is reading Bible stories and we listen to what God is saying through them. When we do this, we become better friends of Jesus and we will also encourage others to discover Jesus and love him as they see us doing.

The apostles did not understand the parable, so Jesus had to explain it to them. When we do not understand Bible stories, whom can we ask for a good explanation?

God speaks to us through the Bible stories. When we listen carefully to them, be become like the good and fertile soil mentioned in the parable. To remember what we have to do to become similar to the good and fertile soil, colour this week’s picture and leave it in a place where you can see it. Whilst colouring, listen to The B-I-B-L-E Song .

Sign of the cross

Jesus help us to pay attention when we hear the Bible stories. Help us to do what you would like us to do. Amen.

Today we will be listening to one of Jesus’ parables, it is about a sower. Jesus used to tell a lot of parables so that his teachings were understood.

We will learn that

  • We have to be ready to accept the Word of God
  • When we do not understand, we need to ask someone for an explanation
  • Jesus would like us to share this Word with others

Materials Needed:

  • A printout of the pages below, glued to cardboard paper
  • Colours
  • Stick the seeds to a paper clip 
PictureDownload

We ask:

What do you think Jesus is saying in this parable? We allow enough time for the children to speak.

Jesus used this parable to teach. The seeds are the Word of God. Our heart is like the soil and land where the seeds will fall.

Let us see why this comparison is being made.

The seeds which fell on the path: When we are distracted, whilst listening to the Word of God, we are like the barren path upon which these seeds have fallen. When during our catechetical meetings or mass, our minds are wondering and we are not being attentive to what is being said, we become like this path upon which the seeds cannot grow.

The seeds which fell on the rocks: Although we pay attention during our meetings and even during mass, we find it difficult to obey God. The seeds found some soil, they started to grow, but the heat was excessive and so they died. Similarly, we hear what God wants us to do, but we soon forget his message when faced with difficulties.

The seeds which fell on thorny ground: We know and accept the Word of God, however other things take priority in our life, be they school, friends, games, family and other activities, which often leave no time for God. The seeds found enough soil to grow, but the thorns proved to be stronger. The thorns in our life are those activities which fill up our day and leave no time for us to pray, to read the Bible, to go to Church or catechetical meetings.

The seeds which fell on rich soil: We are like this fertile ground when we listen to God’s Word and do our best to obey. There will be times when we fail, but pleasing God is important for us, so we do not give up, we try again.

When the apostles heard this parable they did not understand it immediately. Similarly we do not always understand the Bible. To whom do we turn for an explanation?

After listening to this parable, how can we describe our hearts? When the seeds fall, what type of land will they find? After listening to a story from the Bible, how will it affect you? Will you change the way you live or the decisions you make?

We can now colour this week’s activity. On the second page there are examples of possible ways of behaviour. Match these examples with the different types of land mentioned in the parable. It would be great if we are always like the good soil, however we know that at times we can be like the path with the rocks or the thorny ground. Leave this picture in your room, somewhere where you can see it and every week review how you have behaved, see which type of land you were and put the seeds there. If you have not been good soil, try to become better during the coming week.

Whilst doing this activity, listen to The Parable of the Sower.

Sign of the cross.

Lord God, help us to be more like that good soil, so that the seed may fall and bear fruit, and we can grow and become more like you wish us to be. Amen.

15 SundayDownload

How to use this space

God speaks to us in many ways, including through the Sunday Scripture readings. Here you will find useful background and activities to better understand the upcoming Sunday's Scripture readings, helping you to connect the Scripture to daily life in a meaningful way.