Memory of the Poor

Feast of Joachim and Anna, ancestors of the Lord. Remembrance of all the elderly who lovingly communicate their faith to the youth. Memorial of Mary, a mentally ill woman who died in Rome in 1992. With her we remember all who are mentally ill.

Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

This is the Gospel of the poor,
liberation for the imprisoned,
sight for the blind,
freedom for the oppressed.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Matthew 13,31-35

He put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air can come and shelter in its branches.' He told them another parable, 'The kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.' In all this Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables; indeed, he would never speak to them except in parables. This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet: I will speak to you in parables, unfold what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Often we despise the humble beginnings proper of the Gospel and with no patience we would like to see clear fruit, the end of adversities and of our own fragility. This parable teaches us that right from the smallest and most insignificant of seeds - but it must be really gospel like - the greatest reality arises. The same lesson is proposed in the following parable. A woman wants to cook some bread. She mixes a little yeast with flour, kneads it, covers it and lets it grow all night long. In the morning the whole batch is leavened by the small quantity of yeast. The evangelist shows here as well the disproportion between the humility at the beginning and the magnitude at the end. The same is true of the Gospel. Always. These words tell us that the small number and weakness do not matter; what matters for God is to be yeast. The yeast is such if once in the dough it leavens it and makes it grow till it is ready for baking. This is also true of seed: only when it falls to the ground and dies can it produce fruit. This is the secret of love: only when it is given can it reveal its power. Those who wish to save their life will lose it. On the contrary those who lose it for others will find it again richer. Similarly, the community of believers is small and weak, but if it lets the Spirit of the Lord guide it, becomes like a tree hosting a lot of people, and like the yeast leavening people's lives.