First reading Exodus 24:3-8
This is the blood of the Covenant that the Lord has made with you
Moses went and told the people all the commands of the Lord and all the ordinances. In answer, all the people said with one voice, ‘We will observe all the commands that the Lord has decreed.’ Moses put all the commands of the Lord into writing, and early next morning he built an altar at the foot of the mountain, with twelve standing-stones for the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he directed certain young Israelites to offer holocausts and to immolate bullocks to the Lord as communion sacrifices. Half of the blood Moses took up and put into basins, the other half he cast on the altar. And taking the Book of the Covenant he read it to the listening people, and they said, ‘We will observe all that the Lord has decreed; we will obey.’ Then Moses took the blood and cast it towards the people. ‘This,’ he said, ‘is the blood of the Covenant that the Lord has made with you, containing all these rules.’
Responsorial Psalm 49(50):1-2,5-6,14-15
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
The God of gods, the Lord,
has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion’s perfect beauty he shines.
‘Summon before me my people
who made covenant with me by sacrifice.’
The heavens proclaim his justice,
for he, God, is the judge.
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God
and render him your votive offerings.
Call on me in the day of distress.
I will free you and you shall honour me.’
Gospel Matthew 13:24-30
Let them both grow till the harvest
Jesus put another parable before the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.”’
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Darnel and wheat
In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about darnel and wheat. Darnel is a toxic weed that closely resembles wheat in the early stages of growth. Although the darnel might appear harmless, it can actually harm the good wheat by stealing essential nutrients from it. In the passage, the owner instructs his servants not to pull the darnel but to let both grow together. What is the message in this Gospel passage for us?
Within each of us coexist both darnel and wheat – our talents alongside our failures and goodness alongside our flaws. Many times, we wish to eliminate the darnel in our lives because we fear confronting our human frailty. We may become so focused on our shortcomings that we forget we were created to be good wheat. We all have an inherent capacity for goodness, love, kindness, and compassion. Instead of fearing or rejecting our darnel, we are invited to continue cultivating our inner wheat of goodness. We are called to trust that God is at work within us, even in our frailties and limitations. What truly matters is that we concentrate on God’s love and strive to nurture the positive qualities we possess.
Reflective question:
What are the darnels that I have within me that I can offer and surrender to God?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year C” by Sr Maria Jose FMVD.
