This week’s Gospel message for Sunday, June 16, 2024 is from Mark 4:26-34
Jesus said to the crowds . . . “To what shall we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade.” With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. Without parables he did not speak to them, but to his own disciples he explained everything in private.
Reflection
“We can conclude that the kingdom of God is something that is growing, something that grows imperceptibly, but something that grows magnificently. The fruit of this growth is enjoyed by others: grain by those who eat it, shade by the birds who dwell in it, the kingdom by those who reach it. In time, all these features emerge from a tiny seed hidden in the fertile soil.” SOURCE: Pastoral Patterns, Summer 2024
DAILY READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Monday 1 Kings 21:1-16; Matthew 5:38-42
Tuesday 1 Kings 21:17-292; Matthew 5:43-48
Wednesday 2 Kings 2:1, 6-14; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18
Thursday Sirach 48:1-14; Matthew 6:7-15
Friday 2 Kings 11:1-4, 9-18, 20: Matthew 6:19-23
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious (Memorial) – Born an imperial in Lombardy, he rejected the values of his position and family. He joined the Jesuits and offered to serve the sick and dying during the plague in Rome. He, too, caught the plague and died three months later.
Saturday 2 Chronicles 24:17-25; Matthew 6:24-34
SOURCE: Living with Christ, June 2024