Tuesday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Recently, I participated in a formation session with the Marianist Sisters about care for creation. As part of the session, the Sisters and I were assigned to care for a plant in our garden. Mine was a shrub.
Unlike the mustard bush in today’s Gospel birds did not dwell in its branches. Instead, moth cocoons did. I enjoyed nurturing the plant and learning more about it and its insect inhabitants. The shrub naturally brought to mind today’s Gospel passage from Luke. I appreciate Jesus’ use of rich imagery, the sprawling bush and yeast that grows into a batch of dough, to show us what the Kingdom of God is like.
To be honest, though, I struggled more with today’s first reading. To a modern ear, Paul’s writing about wives being subordinate feels problematic; from what I have observed, husbands do not and should not hold all the power in a marriage. But what was Paul really trying to communicate? Looking deeper, the heart of his message comes later in the passage when he references Christ and the Church. Through this metaphor of marriage, Paul seems to be describing how we are called to love one another as Christ loves the Church, which he sacrificed himself for.
Love might just be the bridge between these two readings. The Kingdom of God is built not through division but through love. I think of Blessed William Joseph Chaminade, founder of the Marianist Family. A priest during the French Revolution who was forced into exile in Spain, he returned to France after the conflict to build communities rooted in faith and mutual love. Blessed Chaminade shows us what it looks like to build the Kingdom of God through community, reminding us that we are all called to foster relationships as we share the Good News.
From the small cocoons on a garden shrub to the wide reach of the Marianist family, God’s Kingdom grows wherever love is given room to take root. As we move forward, may we have the grace to love others and build communities that reflect Christ to the world.
-Sr. Emily Sandoval, FMI