16TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY-22/23 JULY 2023

Weeds among the Wheat

Dear Parishioners,

Today in the Gospel of Mathew we hear a parable of weeds among the wheat. This parable is both realistic and optimistic. Wheat is the symbol of good and weeds symbolizes bad. The Church,  and indeed the world, is like a field in which wheat and weeds grow side by side until they are separated at the harvest time. Knowing that we are sinners, we come to church willing to change our life for something better. God is always patient with us.

Our world is a mixture of light and darkness, good and bad, strength and weakness. Wheat and weeds grow together in the same person. We sow good seed, want good fruit but sometimes the weeds appear in our field- betrayal, conflict, jealousy etc. We can  not separate clearly good and evil.  If we want will there be everything good in our field? Surely there will be something bad too. What shall we do with them? For example, if one child in our family is not as good as I wanted what I do then? We have to live in good and bad. Evil can be overcome only by good. In the meantime we have to be understanding and patient as in the readings. Patience is the root and guardian of all virtues, as said pope St. Gregory 1. “Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” The Church must preach repentance and practice leniency as Jesus- “Let them both grow till he harvest”. He saw the weeds in Peter’s life, but he saw the wheat too. He knew that with encouragement, love the wheat would prevail. And it did. Jesus shows us the field of life where he always wants good harvest.

We ourselves have to choose good, struggle hard to be good, try to make others good. Let us seek the positive not the negative in everyone, bring it out. No criticism, judgement of others but encouragement. With God’s help the good will triumph.

The church is not a museum for saints but “a school for sinners”. In any situation of our life God comes to those who wait. Let all of us sow good seed in the church, in the world.

Sincere thanks for all your loving jestures, concern to me during all these years. I have numerous good and bad memories (many died-RIP), experiences of this parish as my second parish. By the advice of Fr. Joe I wrote a report of my ministry in a new parish (announced as a full parish only in 1st May 2023). Thank you who already read it and others please read it. Sincere thanks to Fr. Joe, Germaine and all the parishoiners. Pray regularly for my ministry, our only major seminary of 120 students where I teach few months, also our parents. Fr. Joe and you are in my  prayerful heart. It’s our bond, strength. I take your loving faces to Bangladesh with me.

Help, support your new pastors by active participation. St. John vianney pray for us. God bless you all and  Bangladesh! Praise the Lord!

Fr. Louis Sushil Pereira