15th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A - Parable of the Sower & “Gift of Finest Wheat”

In today’s Gospel (Mt 13:1-23), Jesus starts to offer several parables to help illustrate for us what he means by the kingdom of heaven. He begins with the parable of the sower, which appears rather straightforward—of course seeds grow best in good soil. Seeds that miss the soil, are sown on rocky ground, or are sown among other plants will not grow. The surprise in the parable is the enormous yield of the seed that is sown on good soil.

Jesus then seems to suggest that he uses parables to teach because the meanings of parables are not self-evident. The listener must engage in some degree of reflection in order to comprehend the message of a parable. Those who are willing to engage themselves in the effort to understand will be rewarded by the discovery of the message and will bear fruit.

To bring it home, Jesus interprets the parable of the sower to his disciples. The different types of soil in which the seeds are sown are metaphors for the disposition with which each individual hears the teaching about the kingdom of heaven. Some will be easily swayed away from the kingdom of heaven. Some will receive it for a time but will lose it when faced with difficulties. Some will hear the word but will then permit other cares to choke it out. Yet some will receive it well, and the seed will produce abundant fruit. This is to what we hope to identify ourselves, the gift of finest wheat, with God’s grace!

In honour of this weekend’s Gospel, we would like to share our latest video, "Gift of Finest Wheat", a beautiful Eucharist hymn whose lyrics draw inspiration from Psalm 80. Written by Dutch-American liturgist and composer Omer Westendorf, it was the theme song for the 1976 International Eucharistic Congress in Philadelphia, USA and is now sung in Catholic parishes throughout the world.

Video can be watched by clicking here or on the picture below: