Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

Mysterium

“…[H]e spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it” (Mk 4:33).

There was a priest-monk among our community who would love to talk with guests, especially those who had never been to the Abbey or for whom monastic life was a mystery (surprisingly a lot of people). They were fresh and wide-eyed and fertile ground for making a first impression.

Just as Jesus spoke to the people in parables, so did this monk who was just being himself but making conversation always interesting. He was the kind of character who could read the telephone book with alluring charisma.

A great storyteller, this priest would come up with unique and creative answers to the guests’ predictable questions. The guests were often fascinated by his answers and were drawn into the mystery of monasticism, mysterium monastici.

I think his approach was purposeful and prophetic. I mean, you can try telling somebody about monastic life straight, but there is something much richer about communicating it poetically. Poetry often has underlying meanings and layers. There is more to the words on the page. It turns out to be much richer and with more depth.

That is what I think of when Jesus tells his parables. The Kingdom of God is a spiritual and theological reality, but Jesus describes it in metaphorical and alluring terms. It is up to us, his disciples, to ruminate on and ponder the underlying meanings of these parables.

For Today: Sit with and ponder the mystery of today’s two parables about seed. What is Jesus saying to you through them?

Reflection by Br. Luke Kral, OSB