In it Today’s Gospel, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a mustard seed. Reflecting on this passage, Pope Francis maintained in a June 2018 Angelus that “it is a very small seed, and yet it develops so much that it becomes the largest of all the plants in the garden: an unpredictable, surprising growth.” .
“It is not easy for us to enter into this logic of God’s unpredictability and accept it in our lives. But today the Lord exhorts us to an attitude of faith that surpasses our projects, our calculations, our forecasts. The Lord always surprises us. It is an invitation to open ourselves more generously to God’s plans,” explained the Pontiff.
Furthermore, the Pope highlighted how in the communities of the faithful “it is necessary to pay attention to the small and large occasions of good that the Lord offers us, allowing ourselves to be involved in his dynamics of love, welcome and mercy towards all.”
“The authenticity of the Church’s mission is not given by success or by the gratification of the results, but by moving forward with the courage of trust and the humility of abandonment in God. Go forward in the confession of Jesus and with the strength of the Holy Spirit. It is the awareness of being small and weak instruments, which in the hands of God and with his grace can accomplish great works, advancing his Kingdom which is “justice, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit”” concluded Pope Francis.
In the mass, the liturgy of the Word is one of the central moments of the celebration. At this point, the Bible passages are read that allow us to delve into the teachings of Jesus Christ. We share the texts of Sunday June 16, 2024 published by the Vatican website.
Liturgy of June 16, 2024: First reading
Reading from the Prophet Ezekiel
Ez 17, 22-24
This is what the Lord God says:
“I will take a shoot from the top of a great cedar, from its highest branch I will cut a shoot.
I will plant it on the top of a lofty and sublime mountain.
I will plant it on the highest mountain in Israel.
It will put forth branches, bear fruit, and become a magnificent cedar.
All kinds of birds will nest there and rest in the shelter of its branches.
Thus, all the trees of the field will know that I, the Lord, humble the tall trees and raise up the small trees; I dry up the lush trees and make the dry trees bloom.
I, the Lord, have said it and I will do it.”
Liturgy of June 16, 2024: Second reading
Reading of the second letter of the Apostle Saint Paul to the Corinthians
2 Cor 5, 6-10
Brothers: We always have confidence, although we know that, while we live in the body, we are exiled, far from the Lord. We walk guided by faith, without seeing yet. We are, therefore, full of confidence and we prefer to leave this body to live with the Lord.
That is why we try to please him, in exile or in the homeland. Because we will all have to appear before the judgment seat of Christ, to receive the reward or punishment for what we have done in this life.
Gospel of the day: June 16, 2024
Reading of the holy gospel according to Saint Mark
Mark 4, 26-34
At that time, Jesus said to the crowd: “The Kingdom of God is like what happens when a man sows seed in the ground: the nights and days pass, and without him knowing how, the seed germinates and it grows; and the earth, by itself, produces the fruit: first the stems, then the ears, and then the grains in the ears. And when the grains are ripe, the man takes hold of the sickle, because the time of harvest has arrived.”
He also told them: “With what shall we compare the Kingdom of God? With what parable can we represent it? It is like a mustard seed that, when sown, is the smallest of seeds; But once planted, it grows and becomes the largest of bushes and puts out branches so large that birds can nest in its shade.”
And with many other similar parables he explained his message to them, according to what they could understand. And he did not speak to them except in parables; But he explained everything privately to his disciples.
FATHER’S DAY: The Pope’s words
Today Father’s Day is celebrated in Argentina. Pope Francis, at the Angelus on June 18 last year, spoke to the faithful from St. Peter’s Square, reflecting on how the Fatherhood of God accompanies us.
“If the God of heaven is near, we are not alone on earth and in difficulties we do not lose faith either. This is the first thing to tell people: God is not distant, but he is Father. God is not distant, he is Father, he knows you and loves you; He wants to hold your hand, also when you go down steep and difficult paths, also when you fall and find it difficult to get up and get back on the path.
“He, the Lord, is there, with you. What’s more, often in the moments when you are weakest you can feel his presence strongest. He knows the way, He is with you, He is your Father! He’s my father! “He is our Father!” shared the Pontiff.
“We stay in this image, because to announce that God is close is to invite us to imagine ourselves as a child, who walks hand in hand with his father: everything seems different to him. The world, large and mysterious, becomes familiar and safe, because the child knows that he is protected. He is not afraid and learns to open up: he meets other people, he finds new friends, he joyfully learns things he didn’t know and then he returns home and tells everyone what he has seen, while the desire to grow up and do things grows within him. what he has seen his father do. This is why Jesus starts from here, because the closeness of God is the first announcement: by being close to God we overcome fear, we open ourselves to love, we grow in goodness and we feel the need and the joy of announcing.”
“If we want to be good apostles, we must be like children: sit ‘on the knees of God’ and from there look at the world with trust and love, to witness that God is Father, that He alone transforms our hearts and gives us that joy. and that peace that we ourselves cannot achieve,” the Pope communicated.
To conclude his reflection, Francis invited believers to ask themselves: “Do we trust Him? Do we know how to look forward with confidence, like a child who knows that he is being carried in the arms of his father? Do we know how to sit on the Father’s knees with prayer, with listening to the Word, approaching the Sacraments? And, finally, close to Him, do we know how to instill courage in others, become close to those who suffer and are alone, to those who are far away and also to those who are hostile to us? “This is the concretion of faith, this is what counts,” Pope Francis concluded.
Prayer to Saint Joseph for Father’s Day
Saint Joseph, adoptive father of Jesus, Custodian of the Holy Family, today in front of your image we want to ask you to intercede for all the fathers of the world.
May they educate their children in the love of God as you did, may they teach them to listen to His Word and live according to His will.
May they, together with their wives, provide them with a home where love and respect are their daily bread as in the Holy Family.
May they never lack health and decent work to bring the necessary sustenance to their homes.
May they know how to enjoy moments of joy and sadness.
And at the end of the journey in this life they will be accompanied by the love of their loved ones.
Amen
