First Reading: Isaiah 55:10-11

God’s word is like rain and snow. It does not roll off like water on a tin roof. Rather, it soaks in making fertile and fruitful the land on which it falls. Just so, as God’s word falls on a human heart it can alter, make fertile and fruitful the life of that person. The word of God does not return to God void, but achieved the end for which God sent it.

Second Reading: Romans 8:18-23

Because we live in the Spirit present sufferings are nothing compared to the glory that awaits. Creation has been subjected to sin and death, but ultimately the Spirit will free the whole world from corruption. The pains we see so readily in the world are labour pains. Christian redemption is not from suffering but through it, in union with Christ.

Gospel: Matthew 13:1-23 (or <> 13:1-9)

Called the parable of the sower but it might just as well be called the parable of the soil because the emphasis throughout is neither on the sower nor the seed but on the different kinds of soil on which the seed falls.

In the Gospel Jesus is inviting, begging the crowd to open their hearts to God’s word so that they might be changed by the power of the word of God. By proclaiming this Gospel in our liturgies the Church is giving the same message to us. We must become good soil so that God’s word can be effective in our lives.

Reflection notes

         Matthew 13 is a chapter of parables. These parables were re-told and interpreted by Matthew to give encouragement to a community surrounded by conflict and persecution. In today’s parable the seed fell on 4 different sorts of ground the results are poor / mediocre (1st three) true in Jesus time in Matthew's time and true in ours.
          Matthew’s time: Matthew's gospel was written in the 80's when his community was going through rough times not wanted, a feeling of being rejected by their own Jewish brothers and sisters.Why was the church of Jesus embattled on every side? Why had the kingdom not arrived in all its glory? Matthew includes Jesus parable and adds an application which came about because Christians had discovered to their shock and sorrow that few really believed Jesus message. They were wondering why there could be such a gulf between themselves and those who could not or would not see? They found an answer in the words of the parable. Think what happens when the sower scatters his seed. Much is lost, for one reason or another , the explanations given offer a warning and an encouragement (there is great harvest) to Christians in such conditions.

Our time: For us - after so many years has the kingdom really spread? Do people (Christians) really care and why do the numbers of unbelievers remain vast? What is happening in a Christian Europe?

Me/You: Into which category do I fall? Perhaps into all categories from time to time. What sort of soil do you provide for the seed that is God’s word? What do the fruits you yield tell you and the world? What sort of soil would you prefer to be? What must you do to prepare the soil?

Something to pray about this week from Scripture

·        What are the hungers in your life? Do you seek satisfaction in God?

• The Eucharist connects us as "one body" —does that change the way you  relate to others