Reading of Ezekiel’s Prophecy.
This is what the Lord God says: “I myself will take a branch from the top of the cedar, and I will pluck a shoot from the top of its branches and plant it on a high and exalted mountain. I will plant it on the high mountain of Israel. It will produce foliage , it will bear fruit and become a majestic cedar. Under it all the birds will settle, in the shadow of its branches the birds will nest. And all the trees of the field will know that I am the Lord, who lowers the high tree and lifts up the low tree. ; I make the green tree wither and the dry tree sprout. I, the Lord, say and do.”
– Word of the Lord.
– Thank God.
Second Reading (2Cor 5,6-10)
Reading of the Second Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians.
Brethren: We are always full of confidence and well remembered that while we dwell in the body we are pilgrims far from the Lord; for we walk in faith and not in clear vision. But we are full of confidence and prefer to leave the home of our body, to go and live with the Lord. Therefore, we also strive to be pleasing to him, whether we are in the body or have already left that abode. In fact, we all have to appear openly before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one can receive the due reward — reward or punishment — for what they have done throughout their bodily lives.
– Word of the Lord.
– Thank God.
Gospel (Mark 4,26-34)
— Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark.
— Glory to you, Lord.
At that time, Jesus said to the crowd: “The Kingdom of God is like when someone scatters a seed on the earth. He goes to sleep and wakes up, night and day, and the seed germinates and grows, but he does not know how this happens. The earth, by itself, produces the fruit: first the leaves appear, then the ear comes and, finally, the grains that fill the ear. When the ears are ripe, the man immediately puts in the sickle, because the time of harvest has arrived. “.
And Jesus continued: “With what else can we compare the Kingdom of God? What parable will we use to represent it? The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed which, when sown on the earth, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth When it is sown, it grows and becomes larger than all vegetables, and spreads branches so large that the birds of the air can shelter in its shade.”
Jesus proclaimed the Word using many parables like these, as they could understand. And he only spoke to them in parables, but when he was alone with the disciples, he explained everything.
— Word of Salvation.
— Glory to you, Lord.
Reflecting the Word of God
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Today, the readings that the Liturgy offers us lead us to a deep reflection on hope, trust in God and the mysterious action of his Kingdom in our lives. These biblical passages, coming from the books of Ezekiel, the Second Letter to the Corinthians and the Gospel of Mark, tell us about the divine action that, often silent and discreet, transforms the world and our lives in unimaginable ways.
Ezekiel, prophet of hope and restoration, presents us with a powerful image in his prophecy. God says, “I myself will take a branch from the top of the cedar; from the highest of its branches I will cut off a shoot and plant it on a high and exalted mountain.” The Lord, through Ezekiel, promises to restore the people of Israel, even when everything seems lost. This promise to replant a branch, which will grow into a magnificent cedar, symbolizes the new life and restoration that God always offers his people.
Let’s think for a moment about a dedicated gardener. He looks at a damaged tree and, rather than giving up on it, he carefully cuts off a healthy branch and replants it. He knows that with time, care and the right nutrients, that little branch can grow into a sturdy tree. Likewise, God looks at our lives, often marked by sin, pain and hopelessness, and offers us a new chance for growth and renewal. No matter how difficult our situation is, God is the gardener who never gives up on us.
In the Second Letter to the Corinthians, Saint Paul tells us about living by faith and not by what we see. He reminds us that we “walk by faith and not by vision.” Paul encourages the Corinthian community to maintain trust in God, even in the face of life’s difficulties and uncertainties. He invites us to look beyond appearances and trust in the presence and action of God, which are often not visible to human eyes.
We can imagine life as a large carpet being woven. If we just look at the wrong side of the rug, we will see a tangle of disordered threads, without shape or beauty. However, when we look the right way, we see a beautiful pattern, a work of art. Our lives often seem chaotic and meaningless from our limited point of view. But God, the great Weaver, sees the complete pattern. He is weaving together every thread, every moment of our lives, to create something beautiful and meaningful. We need to trust the process, even when we don’t understand the final design.
The Gospel of Mark presents us with two parables about the Kingdom of God, which help us understand this mysterious and transformative divine action. In the first parable, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a man who sows seeds on the ground. “He sleeps and rises, night and day, and the seed germinates and grows without him knowing how.” This parable teaches us that the growth of the Kingdom of God does not depend solely on our efforts, but is a work of God. Our role is to sow the seed with faith and let God take care of the growth.
In the second parable, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a small mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows, it becomes the largest of all vegetables, sheltering even the birds of the sky. This powerful image shows us that the Kingdom of God may start small, almost imperceptible, but it has the potential to grow and transform everything around it.
Let’s think about a farmer. He prepares the soil, plants the seeds and tends the field. However, it cannot control plant growth. He trusts that nature will be part of him. So too, we must do our part in the work of God’s Kingdom, sowing seeds of love, justice, and peace, and trusting that God will bring growth, often in ways we cannot predict or understand.
Now, reflecting on these readings, I ask you: Where in our lives do we need to trust God most? In what areas are we trying to control everything instead of allowing God to work and bring growth?
We can learn from the prophet Ezekiel to trust God’s promise to restore and renew. We can learn from Saint Paul to live by faith and not just by what we see. And we can learn from Jesus to be patient and confident in the growth of God’s Kingdom, even when it begins small and imperceptibly.
I invite you to reflect on your own lives. Think about the seeds that God planted in your hearts. Maybe it’s a dream, a calling, or a desire to make a difference in the world. Perhaps it is an area where you feel you need healing or transformation. Trust that God is working, even when you can’t see it. He is the faithful gardener, the patient weaver, the careful farmer.
Let’s take a moment to close our eyes and say a silent prayer, asking God for the grace to trust Him more, to allow Him to work in our lives and to be instruments of His Kingdom in the world.
Lord God, we thank You for the promises of hope and renewal that we find in Your word. Help us to trust You, even when we don’t understand Your ways. Give us the patience to wait for the seeds You planted in our hearts to grow. And make us instruments of Your love, justice and peace, so that we can be light in a world often marked by darkness. Amen.
Dear brothers and sisters, as we leave here today, let us remember God’s promises and the need to live by faith. May we see God at work in our lives and in the world, and may we be faithful in our calling to sow the seeds of the Kingdom of God. May the grace and peace of Christ be with you always. Amen.
