Luke 8,4-15

Gospel Reading

Luke 8,4-15.
When a large crowd gathered, with people from one town after another journeying to Jesus, he spoke in a parable. A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path and was trampled, and the birds of the sky ate it up. Some seed fell on rocky ground, and when it grew, it withered for lack of moisture. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew, it produced fruit a hundredfold.”After saying this, he called out,”Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.”Then his
disciples asked him what the meaning of this parable might be. He answered, "Knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of God has been granted to you; but to the rest, they are made known through parables so that ;they may look but not see, and hear but not understand. This is the meaning of the parable. The seed is the word of God. Those on the path are the ones who have heard, but the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts
that they may not believe and be saved. Those on rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear, receive the word with joy, but they have no root; they believe only for a time and fall away in time of trial. As for the seed that fell among thorns, they are the ones who have heard, but as they go along, they are choked by the anxieties and riches and pleasures of life, and they fail to produce mature fruit. But as for the seed that fell on rich soil, they are the ones who, when they have heard the word, embrace it with a generous and good heart, and bear fruit through perseverance.”

Reflection
Our gospel today talks about the types of hearers on the word of God as presented through a parable. As we reflected, there are people who are closed minded that they do not mind nor care of things about God. On the one hand, there are shallow hearers as well, these are people who lacks spiritual depth. They initially respond with emotional enthusiasm but when it wears off their mind wanders to something else. On the other hand, there are people who listen and reflect the word of God carefully but are too busy with other chores and commitments. Another type of hearer is the one who is ready to receive the word of God religiously so it can take root and grow, and produce good fruit. These are people who are open minded and always ready to hear what God wants to teach us through his word. As believers and hearers of God’s word, how good are we at listening…especially the word of God? Further, let us reflect on this line from the gospel “when they have heard the word, embrace it with a generous and good heart, and bear fruit.”

Lasallian Guiding Principle
As we nurture ourselves with the spirit of faith and our relationship with God, LGP once again calls us to go back to the heart of the mission i.e. to recognize Jesus beneath the poor rags of the children (meditation 96.3). Hence, no matter who and what they are, we should show authentic care, love and compassion as our founder and even our  Lord did during their time. They left a living example for us to contemplate and emulate in our everyday dealings. As member of the Lasallian family, we are called to work in harmony with others and shared a common vision to be brothers and sisters to all especially those who are in need, victims of impoverishment born of injustice, physical and social evils, personal insufficiency and failure. Let us then, deviate from apathy to empathy, from violence to peace, and from hatred to love. This is a constant challenge that will lead us towards a life lived in piety.

Prayer
“Lord Jesus, faith in your word is the way to wisdom, and to ponder your divine plan is to grow in the truth. Open
our eyes to your deeds, and our ears to the sound of your call, that we may understand your will for our lives and
live according to it.” Amen

Our Lady of the Star, pray for us.
St. John Baptist de la Salle, pray for us.
St. Miguel Febres Cordero, pray for us.
Live Jesus in our hearts, forever!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Value: Spirit of Faith (Nurturing Faith)
Culture Theme: We nurture our relationship with God.
Productivity Theme: Norms of Piety
ICV Week 3: We value and engage in Lasallian formation programs.

Sources:
Daily Gospel. September 22, 2018, from https://dailygospel.org/M/AM/
Guiding Principles of the Philippine Lasallian Family
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/2018/september22.htm

Prepared by: Vlad Gorde