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A collection of homilies and liturgies from St Patrick Catholic Community in Scottsdale, Arizona. We are Christian disciples in mission.
And they say, why would anyone waste seed on such bad ground? But he also catches them by saying that when it falls on good ground, the harvest is more than whatever you can think. A lot of times our emphasis is on what our soil should be because each of us hurt ourselves in today's gospel, in the parable. We've all been there where our hearts have been hard and we don't listen. We've been there when we've been lured by wealth and by work and worldly anxiety and fears.
Fr. Eric:We've been there when we've been choked or the evil one comes and snatches it from it. But we've also been there when the soil in our hearts have been rich. And so, yeah, we can think we gotta try harder, we gotta do better. Yeah, let's make sure we have the good soil, but yet let me ask you a question. What's the name of the parable?
Fr. Eric:The parable of the sower. It's not the parable of the good or bad soil, is it? Is it? Wake up. It's not, is it?
Fr. Eric:So the emphasis on this parable might be not on us necessarily but on the farmer who is God. And what does God do but throw the seeds everywhere indiscriminately? He'll throw the seed, meaning his word, his mercy and love on all types of soul, all types of soil. And so it will fall on rocky ground, on hard ground, amongst the weeds or thorns, and it will fall even on good soil. So the farmer then is not concerned about whether the soil deserves the seed.
Fr. Eric:Let me repeat that because we as modern day Christians misinterpret this. The farmer does not decide whether the soil deserves the seed. It is spread everywhere. And the farmer who is god keeps sowing. So god is a god that does not ration mercy.
Fr. Eric:God is a god that does not ration mercy. God doesn't wait for the soil to be good to give grace. Let me repeat that. God, the farmer who spreads the seeds of mercy does not wait until the soil is good and then he offers grace and mercy. He is not afraid of running out of seeds and he does not ration.
Fr. Eric:So how do many of us today listen to a spirituality that is not healthy? You hear it and you fall on it because you were first taught it and it must be true. Some of you believe it because you're afraid of going to hell. And it's this, you're not in the state of grace. Really?
Fr. Eric:Really? You can never be out of the state of grace. Grace doesn't mean you've earned it, you've deserved it. And let me look. Look around including me.
Fr. Eric:Sometime our soils are not very rich or good, are they? And that doesn't stop god from searching just like the good shepherd. And so when you look up on Google or someone with authority of the church says, you're not in the state of grace, you're not worthy, that is not who Jesus is. Story upon story. And it runs into religious leaders who say they haven't earned it.
Fr. Eric:They're not doing it right. In other words, we judge before god judges. We already know who's in or out. And if you live a horrible life of sin or we justify it by saying, we read it somewhere that you're sin and and you could be going straight to hell because you have all those sins in there, that's not god's mercy. He doesn't ration it.
Fr. Eric:And remember, the sower does not wait for good soil. It is everywhere. The time that you received god's grace was probably when you and I were at our lowest and most sinful and most disgusting. And you know why you turned around? Not because you did it or I did it myself.
Fr. Eric:God's mercy and grace works that way. Last week, I talked about god's mercy being everywhere and that we should go with people who are struggling with sin and know that god wants them to know that they're loved and god calls them back to conversion. But someone told me, but father, you can't accept their lifestyle. But but and here's what Christians do, who want to be controlled, who want certainty, who wants to know who's going to heaven and hell, they always tell me that, but father, you can't accept that. You shouldn't attend.
Fr. Eric:You shouldn't allow that because you're affirming that. You never affirm sin. What every pope has written in our lifetime from John Paul the second, even way back to John twenty third to up to Francis and Leo is this, accompany the sinner. Jesus never once ate with sinners and said, are you in the state of grace? He never demanded that.
Fr. Eric:He wanted that. But I think Jesus understood is you walk with people wherever they're at. And so some of you will revert back and think, we're not coming back because this is heresy.
Fr. Eric:Well, if that's your fear, good luck. But that's not what the parables are about.
Fr. Eric:It's the parable of the sower who indiscriminately throw seed everywhere. And yes, the soil is our hearts and all our lives. And some of you's hearts right now are very hard and you've stopped listening to God and to me, I guess. Some of you are lured away by things and some of you, you're not even paying attention. You're worried about who's winning the soccer.
Fr. Eric:And yet some of you are really in touch with god. Doesn't mean we're always in one place. God knows that. And so the sower spreads his seed everywhere. God does not ration mercy.
Fr. Eric:God does not hold back and only put the good seed and good soil. God doesn't wait for you to be in the state of grace. You are never out of god's reach. You always are in the state of grace because god is greater than any sin, and god will not lose you. I invite you to view the screens for today.
Fr. Eric:The word of God has been proclaimed at mass and broken open by today's homily. Now these are some of the ways that we can live in community and the greater community as Christian disciples in mission.
Fr. Eric:Hi, everyone. Great to have you here with us today. Here's a quick look at what's coming up in our community. I'm Eric checking in from the House Of Mercy in the Pope Room and these are your announcements. August 1