We are glad that you found us, the DEACON-5! Here, we will be posting daily Gospel reflections, Mondays through Fridays, each day written by a different permanent deacon in our group. We pray that you find inspiration and a touch of God’s love for sharing some time with us. Please feel free to leave a comment or a prayer request for us!
Blessings to you all! Deacon Ray Gallego, Deacon Mike Hidalgo, Deacon Paul Machuca, Deacon George Mora, Deacon Carlos Porras, Deacon Ray Emnace and Deacon Chuck McDaniels
Jesus said to his disciples:“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.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Reflection: Any parent can tell you what it’s like to be heard but not understood. This is true when they talk to their children, trying to tell them something, instruct them or give them advice. Parents say things like, “In one ear and out the other” or “It’s like talking to a brick wall.” This is how it feels when they cannot connect with their children. Jesus had similar experiences with his disciples. Despite all his time teaching and performing miracles, the disciples, at times, did not understand Jesus. So, Jesus used parables, images that are well known to them and compared them with ideas that are difficult to understand, to connect with and help those listening to him grasp and understand the meaning of what he was trying to tell them.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives us an explanation of the parable of the Sower. The Sower represents Jesus, who spreads the message of the Kingdom of Godlike seeds. This parable is not so much focused on the Sower or the seed but rather on the different kinds of soil the seed falls on and how it is received. The soil represents us. Spiritually, I believe all of us have been the different kinds of soil/ground in our lives. Jesus scatters the seed to the wind. He does not discriminate, does not pick and choose. He scatters his seeds — His Word, His Truth — anywhere and everywhere. Jesus is at work in our lives all the time scattering his seed and his message. Are we listening? What kind of “ground or soil” are we? Are we ready to receive the message and apply it to our lives? How do we receive the message that God gives us? Do we let the message “go in one ear and out the other?” Do we allow it to take root, grow and produce fruit? That is a choice we make each and every day.
Action for the day: One way we can prepare for mass is to read and pray with the scripture readings for the mass. This way we will be the “rich soil” Jesus speaks about. When we hear the Word of God proclaimed at mass, we will hear His Word, understand it and allow it to take root in our lives so that the Word of God may bear fruit in our lives. May we make this our form of prayer everyday.
The disciples approached Jesus and said, “Why do you speak to the crowd 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.”
The Gospel of the Lord (Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ!).
Reflection: Open our minds and hearts
In today’s Gospel reading, we hear how the disciples were asking Jesus why He spoke to the crowds in parables.
Jesus then shared that he was fulfilling the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah and said. “because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand. Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them”.
And how true that this prophecy was indeed fulfilled. The people were in the very presence of our Lord Jesus, but some of them could not or refused to understand what He was teaching.
Why we may ask? Because their hearts and their minds were hardened. Their minds and hearts may have been full of the worries of the world, or some of them may have been prideful and full of themselves, and some may have thought only of their own superiority, and status in society.
Some of the people in the crowd may have been saying, who is this, isn’t this the son of the carpenter, where does he get all this, what is he talking about?
Isn’t it sad to realize that we humans have the tendency to be selfish, to reject the ideas or wisdom from others, even though we hear something that could be helpful or true, or a great idea, to even be condescending in our thoughts, our hearts, our minds and speech, to judge the ideas or comments of others because of our own pride or jealousy?
If only the naysayers knew what we know now, that they were in the very presence of the creator of the universe, Jesus is the Messiah, the son of God, the savior of the world, the king of Kings and Lord of Lords. The source of all knowledge and wisdom. The king of the universe! Our Almighty God!
Brothers and sisters, our Lord Jesus shares with us His wisdom, the good news of his kingdom that leads to living lives of holiness, by sowing seeds of hope and love into our hearts and minds that leads to eternal life in Paradise. Open up our hearts and minds and listen to his words of wisdom.
Action for the Day:
Make time for God in silent prayer. Ask God for forgiveness for all of our shortcomings. Share our thoughts, our joys, our frustrations, our petitions, and our gratitude for all the blessings that we have received. Lift up the things that we need to change in ourselves that we can’t change on our own. Lord Jesus, you knew us even before we were formed in our mother’s womb. Guide us through your spirit to overcome our jealous pride and our selfish tendencies. Guide us on how we can truly love one another and to live lives of holiness.
Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning,
while it was still dark,
and saw the stone removed from the tomb.
So she ran and went to Simon Peter
and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,
“They have taken the Lord from the tomb,
and we don’t know where they put him.”
Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping.
And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb
and saw two angels in white sitting there,
one at the head and one at the feet
where the Body of Jesus had been.
And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”
She said to them, “They have taken my Lord,
and I don’t know where they laid him.”
When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there,
but did not know it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom are you looking for?”
She thought it was the gardener and said to him,
“Sir, if you carried him away,
tell me where you laid him,
and I will take him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary!”
She turned and said to him in Hebrew,
“Rabbouni,” which means Teacher.
Jesus said to her,
“Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and tell them,
‘I am going to my Father and your Father,
to my God and your God.'”
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples,
“I have seen the Lord,”
and then reported what he told her.
Reflection: In today’s Gospel, Mary Magdalene stands weeping, at the entrance of the empty tomb. Her profound grief over losing Jesus, reflects our own deep sorrow, when a loved one passes away. Yet, in our darkest moments of loss, the Risen Christ meets us personally, and calls us by name, as I truly believe, He called our brother in Christ, Deacon Ray Emnace by name, as He welcomed him, Home.
Today’s Gospel also tells us; “Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark…” Mary stood outside the tomb in the dark. She loved Jesus dearly, and the uncertainty of death, brought her a crushing desolation. Those of us who have lose someone, we love, we know this pain all too well. We understand the tears, the confusion, and the overwhelming feeling of emptiness, that leaves a deep void in our hearts, when a loved one is taken from our sight. But amid her tears of desolation, Mary turns and sees Jesus. However, in her grief, she does not recognize Him. It is not until Jesus calls her by name—”Mary”—that the veil of sorrow is lifted, and she recognizes Him, as her teacher.
When we are grieving, Jesus is often standing right beside us, in our darkness, even when we cannot see Him through our tears. He knows the depths of our heartache, and He calls each of us by name. Our belief in the Resurrection does not erase the reality of our human pain, but it completely transforms it. It reminds us that death is not the end, but the doorway to eternal life with our Creator, The Eternal.
Just as Jesus turned Mary’s weeping, into a joyful mission to proclaim the Good News, He invites us today and always, to carry the hope of His Resurrection, into our grief. Our loss of our loved ones are not lost to us forever; they are held securely, in the hands of the same loving Father, that Jesus spoke of, on Easter morning.
Eternal rest grant unto Deacon Ray Emnace, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon Him. May his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
ACTION FOR THE DAY: Take time today to find a quite place, and like Mary Magdalene in today’s Gospel, who stood in her deepest sorrow at the empty tomb of Jesus, stand if you are able, in His midst, and in prayer ask our Lord, to meet you now in your grief.
That grief may be; the death of a loved one; divorce or the end of a long-term relationship; the gradual loss of memory; receiving a chronic or terminal illness diagnosis for yourself, or someone you love dearly; the death of a pet; loss of community or home; loss of a job or career; loss of identity; financial instability, or other deep, life-altering changes that disrupts and torments, one’s heart, soul and mind.
Then, ask the Lord to comfort your aching heart, while your grief your loss. Also, ask Him to give you the grace, to hear Him calling your name, reminding you, that you are not alone, and allow Him to hold you, in the tender and loving embrace, of His comforting arms.
Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside,
asking to speak with you.”
But he said in reply to the one who told him,
“Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?”
And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said,
“Here are my mother and my brothers.
For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father
is my brother, and sister, and mother.”
Reflection:
Today’s Gospel has some seemingly harsh words from Jesus toward His blood relatives and even His own Mother, the Virgin Mary. He seems to discount their relationship in favor of those who are His disciples. Is that what Jesus really meant? How do we square that with Jesus’ message of love toward all?
I’ve reflected on this Gospel several times now here on the DEACON5, and I thought today I’d relate it to a very real reality for some families. The truth of today’s Gospel passage highlights that what is important to God is our fidelity to our faith in Him. When we call ourselves “Christian”, it means that we are a follower of Christ and that we value that relationship above all others. Yes, ALL OTHERS.
Now, that may mean choosing to do things that others in our families don’t understand or value – like observing the various rules, especially Lenten sacrifices, abstaining from meat on Fridays in Lent, focusing more of our time on prayer, making sure we get to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day, even when there are other things we could be doing instead. Or maybe they don’t understand when we are willing to forgive those who hurt us, rather than wanting to get even with them, or for them to suffer in some way.
That kind of perspective can and has caused strife within families. Jesus does not shy away from it, either. Elsewhere in the Gospels He points out how He came “for division” and how families will be divided. But, make no mistake – we are never to stop loving those who we are related to, or to stop praying for them to also find their way to God if they aren’t His followers. We aren’t better because we are believers – we are the ones who are to call out to others, that they know they are blessed even as we are.
It doesn’t promise to be an easy path, but what better goal can any of us have, than to seek to bring Jesus’ Kingdom here now, so we can start living in it now and call everyone to join in that celebration in heaven that never ends?
Action for the Day:
If you are estranged from family because of your faith, pray for that family member, that he or she may come to know how loved he or she is in the eyes of the Creator. Pray for all who are parted from each other, that God in His mercy may bring all of His children together to love Him forever in heaven one day.
Some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” He said to them in reply, “An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. Just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights. At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and there is something greater than Jonah here. At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and there is something greater than Solomon here.”
Reflection: How many of us go to church seeking some type of sign from God? How often do we tell God that we will believe or trust Him if He just answers our prayers exactly how we want? Or … how many of us have prayed to God for something and said that you would give up (BLANK). And yet, with our crazy lives, we miss so many signs (Blessings) that he places around us all the time. We fail to focus on the present moment of sacramental grace. We worry about other things.
Rather than entertaining their demands, Jesus points them to the “sign of the prophet Jonah”. Just as Jonah was swallowed by the sea monster and emerged three days later, the Son of Man would enter the heart of the earth and rise on the third day. The Cross and the Resurrection are the ultimate, undeniable signs of God’s love and power. Therefore, we already have a sign and there is no need for a new sign from God; we already have the empty tomb and the symbol of the Crucifix. So, how much more do we want?
In the website Sacred Space, it states the following: “When Jonah reluctantly preached to the brutal and pagan city of Nineveh, they repented instantly. They had no miracles, and they had a reluctant prophet. Yet, as Jesus reminds His audience, “something greater than Jonah is here.” Similarly, the Queen of Sheba traveled hundreds of miles on a dangerous journey just to sit at the feet of Solomon and soak in his God-given wisdom. Jesus proclaims, “and indeed something greater than Solomon is here.”
Sisters and Brothers, here is the bottom line, the Prophets and Pharisees were blinded by jealousy (maybe Hate) and failed to see that the Son of God was right before them. In fact, they witnessed some of his miracles and heard some of his parables but the refused to believe. Let us pray for the grace to recognize the blessings already surrounding us, and the humility to repent and seek God’s will without demanding further proof.
Action of the Day: Take time to focus on ow can you cultivate a deeper openness to God’s Word in your everyday life.
