11th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Ez 17:22-24
2 Cor 5:6-10
Mk 4:26-34
Using many parables like these, he spoke the word to them, so far as they were capable of understanding it.
I am writing this reflection fresh off Pentecost Sunday. As I read the gospel for today’s mass, I remembered the gospel for Pentecost, specifically, the part where the apostles started speaking in tongues such that people from all over could understand them in their own language. And that was how the gospel spread. Today’s gospel has a similar theme — Jesus spoke in parables, so as to better describe what he was trying to say so that he could be understood by the crowds who had come to listen to him, but who did not manage to understand the profound truths the way the apostles could.
I couldn’t help but think what an amazing method this was of getting the same message across to so many different people. No matter the language, background, place in life, they could all hear the gospel as it should be. I also realised that this is how I teach my daughters. I not only have to paraphrase the content and deliver it in a way they can comprehend, I also have to first understand how they learn. Which also means I must know them very well. And this can be achieved by maintaining a good relationship with them.
And so it is with God and us. There are so many of us and all of us are different. We learn differently, we have different weaknesses and strengths, temperaments and habits, and God knows every single one of these quirks of ours. He reaches out to us through all our failures and disappointments — there is always another chance for us. He whispers to us to use our strengths and gifts — he gives us opportunities to share his love. He sends messengers to remind us that we are his children — he sends little signs of his unending love for us. It is because he knows us so well that he is able to reach us in so many ways. It is then up to us to respond, and to listen to him.
As we listen to the word of God proclaimed in church, we also need to listen closely to the homilies (it is hoped that all homilies are relevant to the readings and are edifying for the congregation). On top of that, scriptural reflections also provide us with more insight about the word of God. Paying attention to our church community and its needs can give us hints about how and where we could help. We may even find out about a calling we never knew we had! While prayer and discernment certainly help us figure out what God wants for us, we do not work in silos. Since we are talking about parables, I do like the one about the vine and the branches a lot; it implies everyone in the community, or in the world, is interconnected, and of course all connected to God. Since God can find several ways to get through to us, it makes sense that he would use us to get through to one another.
In an increasingly fractured world, we tend to draw strict boundaries, refusing even to find common ground with those we see as espousing ideals in direct conflict with our values. This means we risk losing a lot of insight, not to mention becoming myopic and tunnel-visioned as we draw further and further away from one another. We cannot be so arrogant as to think that we have a monopoly on God. After all, God can reveal himself in many different ways to many different people, and we never know when we will be inspired by something someone said or did, even if that someone was of a different faith. If we look closely, we can find that something someone else says resonates with us, that someone else is relatable, because in that moment, an understanding has passed between the both of us that we have gone through the same experience and we have wisdom to share. And this wisdom, when exchanged, can help each one of us. And so that is how we can come to a sudden understanding of the Truth.
GK Chesterton said “merely having an open mind is nothing. The object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it on something solid”. Yes, simply being open minded is foolish. That is why we need prayer and discernment whilst having an open mind. There are many solid things that our minds can chew on. God is the God of Truth, and he will reach out to us and draw us back in whatever way he deems fit. Whether it is by parables, by your love language, by the words of a stranger, by a beautiful vista, or by a miracle, God will get through to us in some way, somehow.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, we are fortunate that where we live (in Singapore) we are free to practice our faith. We live in peace, we are free from natural disasters, and we are relatively satisfied with our lives. God has been calling to us in many, many ways, and he has been trying to explain his love for us. Have we responded? If not, what is holding us back or distracting us? Or perhaps having such an easy time of it has made us ignore God? Have we been enjoying the material life so much that we have been numbed to our spiritual side? Do we need a shake up to make us realise that our spiritual lives are also important?
(Today’s OXYGEN by Felicia Zou)
Prayer: Dear Lord, we pray that our ears, our minds, and our hearts may be open to you and your love.
Thanksgiving: Dear Lord, we thank you for all the people you have sent to us, for all the signs of your love you have shown us.
OXYGEN 
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