Thursday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time, July 27, 2023

Gospel Mt 13:10-17

The disciples approached Jesus and said, "Why do you speak to the crowd in parables?" He said to them in reply, "Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted. To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand. Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You shall indeed hear but not understand, you shall indeed look but never see. Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears, they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted and I heal them. "But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it."

Reflection

In thinking about this Gospel reading and reflecting on the life of Jesus, my thoughts went to the disciples. Are the disciples real people? How can I bring the life of the disciples closer to my life today? Could Jesus be talking to me in the Gospel?

Just imagine being there with Jesus. In Chapter 12 of Matthew's Gospel, the disciples have seen and done some really crazy things in the eyes of Jewish traditions and law, they are Jewish and yet they do things that go against the law. The Pharasees definitely know the law, and this is how they maintain a sense of control. But in walks Jesus, and the world of control as they knew it is now spinning and causing them to reach desperately to something they can control. Back in chapter 5 of Matthew it says that Jesus did not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. Through out the life of Jesus' ministry we can see the references of Him fulfilling the law. Even here in chapter 13, Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled.

I have seen video posts from a woman named Miriam, who is an Orthodox Jew. The customs and traditions that they have are intense. She shows us how they must wash their hands with a pitcher of water first thing when they wake while saying a ritual prayer, they also have to purify all their dishes in a body of water from a river or stream while saying a ritual prayer, they cannot eat meat and milk together, in fact they have two sides of the kitchen for each.

Seeing what this Jewish family goes through on a daily basis helps me to have a better understanding of what it may have been like to be a Jew in the days of Jesus' time here on earth. The Jews knew that a Messiah was coming, the disciples knew in their heart that Jesus was Him. What a blessing for the disciples to have been taught by Jesus himself.

Jesus says to them, "But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it."

Because the Jews knew the Messiah was coming, they also knew that it was possible for Jesus to be the one. The Jews received many messages from the prophets letting them know what to expect. Now they just needed to open their eyes, ears and hearts. Is Jesus talking to us in this Gospel? Yes, we are disciples of Jesus, and He wants for us to learn from Him.