Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
In today’s gospel, we have two parables of God’s Kingdom, the parable of the mustard seed, and the parable of the yeast. What unites these two parables are the themes of smallness and growth. What seems to distinguish the two parables is visibility. So, for example, the mustard seed is very small, but the plant that it grows into is very large and very visible. When I think of the application of this parable I think of the Church, which is in some ways the Kingdom of God made visible (though not in all ways, because we are also a church of sinners). The Church is present in nearly all parts of the world now, offering the protection of both true worship and true teachings for the benefit of the world.
Likewise, the yeast in the loaf begins very small, yet causes dramatic changes in the loaf as it causes the loaf to rise. But the yeast itself, though it permeates the loaf, remains invisible. In this we can see the Kingdom of God exercising an invisible force, guiding and shaping the human race in invisible ways. This action is harder to perceive since we live in a world that in many ways values what is contrary to the gospel. But we can see this any time someone moves away from harmful values and makes good choices. For our part, we need to let the Kingdom of God permeate our lives, so that we may act as yeast in our world.
Reflection by Fr. Aquinas Keusenkothen, OSB
Posted in Articles for Ordinary Time, Daily Reflections