The 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
The planter went out to plant… He planted good seed, but he had uneven soil. In many ways, this Gospel overlaps with the words of Jesus in Luke 16 about Lazarus and the Rich Man. When the rich man dies, he asks Abraham to send someone from the dead to convert his brothers. But Abraham says it doesn’t work like that. Bad soil is bad soil. Certainly God can improve the soil. God can fertilize and till and remove debris… But if the soil isn’t up to it, the seed can’t grow there.
Religion as Jesus gives it to us has two effects: the Worship of God and the formation of us.
In justice, we owe God worship, glory, honor, and praise. This duty is so baked into our universe that even if we fail to do our duty, the very rocks and streams proclaim the Glory of God! How? Check out a sunrise over Lake Bruin or a double rainbow… It’s there for us.
The other aspect of religion is what we might call therapeutic in that it shapes and forms us in the image and likeness of God. The soil metaphor in the Gospel brings both of these together. In order for the seed to bring forth life, the soil has to be tended and properly nurtured.
That tending and nurturing is why the Lord gives us spiritual exercises, private prayers, fasting, works of mercy, the moral law, the moral and ethical rules of the Church, and the teaching of Jesus which the Church organizes into what we call “The Deposit of Faith.” All of these things together will form us into a proper “soil” for the seed of Grace to grow in us and blossom into life and “fruit” - which is what God accomplishes through us.
It’s also telling that St Matthew uses this moment to give us a behind-the-scenes look at Jesus with the Apostles. The Apostles spent most nights with Jesus sitting around a campfire or crowding into a host home from the late afternoon until bedtime. Those hours were certainly chock full of private teaching moments with Jesus. St John reminds us at the end of His Gospel that there were myriad teachings, stories, etc that Jesus said but that all the books in the world couldn’t contain them. Without question, St Matthew was witness to hundreds of moments like we see in today’s Gospel where Jesus explained his parables in detail. More than once, we see the Apostles ask why Jesus teaches the ordinary people in parables.
Matthew chooses to explain this in the context of the parable of the Sower and the Seeds. That’s not accidental. Matthew wants to understand that knowledge and intellect really do matter, but that they are not sufficient. If the “soil” of my heart is good, the parables will be entirely sufficient. If the “soil” of my heart is rocky or choked by thorns, no amount of explanation will get the job done. The Apostles certainly need to understand exactly what Jesus means so that they can teach it, but Matthew is really hammering home here that you can’t shortcut this soil thing.
And so it is that we can’t short cut this religion thing. There is no way to hurry or speed it along. We can’t be good Christians by sticking to the bits we like and avoiding the bits we don’t. We can’t be “spiritual but not religious.” Religion is not a burden any more than any really good training program is a burden.
Our student athletes are settling into summer training… It’s hard work but it’s only a burden if we don’t understand why we do it or if we don’t care about the results. When the game is on the line, that training will seem as nothing compared to the glory which we hope to have when the clock runs out.
In an agrarian community, we understand this gospel better than most. We understand the effects of planting too shallow, of irrigating too little or too much, and of trying to work soil which has too few nutrients or too much debris. And as Catholics, we have the religious tools to address and correct the real spiritual realities that those farming metaphors signify.
Upcoming Events
- Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass and Sunday from 9a until Mass
- July 11 Reynolds/Neuroth/Tryon Families Reunion in the Church Hall
- July 14 (Tue) Pastoral Council Meeting at 6p in Church Hall RESCHEDULED
- July 22 Talk #2 about Spain at 6p in Church Hall
For Your Information:
TALKS ABOUT SPAIN As we have a number of folks who will be traveling on pilgrimage to Spain this fall, Fr Ryan will offer talks organized around the geographic regions on the tour. All talks will be in the Hall and are open to anyone. All talks will begin at 6p and will include a powerpoint-style slide show with pictures and explanations of the places and their cultural and spiritual significance.
- Wed, July 22, 6p Talk 2 - Madrid & Toledo
- Wed, Aug 12, 6p Talk 3 - Santiago de Compostela and the Camino of St James (RESCHEDULED)
- Wed, Aug 26, 6p Talk 4 - Fatima
ROSARY GROUP meets on Monday at 5:30p for prayer and supper. Everyone is welcome. Contact Louise Magoun (318-341-2403), coordinator for more information.
FORMED.ORG has weekly features at https://watch.formed.org/this-week-on-formed. Remember to sign in using our parish’s zip code (71282) at https://signup.formed.org
MAUSOLEUM Construction will begin in the coming months. Our sales representative, Garth Daniels, can be reached at (318) 295-4409. If you have any questions or you know of anyone else interested in making a purchase, please encourage them to speak with Garth or to call the church office.
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Pat & Marleigh Bullard, Patrick Thomas, & Eva & RL Reynolds
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a For a special intention of the Magoun family
- Mon NO MASS
- Tue 9:00a In memory of Jack Ellerbee/family
- Wed 9:00a In memory of Patrick Thomas/Bullard
- Thu 9:00a (Legacy Nursing Home) In memory of deceased members of Roy & Johnson families
- Fri 5:30p In memory of Russell Petersen/Rome
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Gail Gaugnard & MaryAgnes York/P Gilfoil
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a For a special intention of the Guizerix family
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning in memory of Becky, Beverly, and Edgar Lancaster
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 7/11 5:30p | - | P Wilks |
| 7/12 9:30a | Cooper & Courtland | M Lancaster |
| 7/18 5:30p | - | Farlow/VanderVieren |
| 7/19 9:30a | Annie, THomas Meyers & Katelyn | Youth |
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2025-2026 | $ 2,500 |
| June Budget | $ 10,000 |
| June Collections | $ 15,612 |
| June Expenses | $ 12,771 |
| July Budget | $ 10,000 |
| July 5 Collection | $ 2,212 |
| July to Date | $ 2,212 |
Stewardship May our stewardship of time, talent, and treasure show us to be among those who have heard the message of Christ and taken it in, yielding a hundred- or sixty- or thirty fold!
SECOND COLLECTION this weekend, supports the growing faith in Africa.
Community Celebrations
Happy Birthday to Chip Sullivan (July 11), Aidan Collins (July 12), Sue Rome (Jul 16), Caroline Marsh (Jul 19), Elizabeth Mason (Jul 19)
In Our Daily Prayers…
Please let us know of anyone who is ill or hospitalized and would like to receive a visit from Father. Also, help us keep our prayer list up to date by advising us of those who should be added or removed.
For our Pope, Leo XIV, our Bishop, Robert Marshall; and our Diocesan leaders, our President, Governor, Mayor and national, state and local elected representatives
Our parishioners who are sick, shut-in, under full-time care and for those who care for them, and for those otherwise in need of our prayers: MaryKathryn & Nap Book, Chris, Susan, and David Cagnolatti, Connie & Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Leslye Ellerbee, Ann Claire Fordice and her children, Susan & Johnny Gilfoil, Margaret & Pat Gilfoil,Terry Farlow Hall, Sidney & Mary Jane Johnson, Frances & Bill Kennedy, Ed Mills, Susie Murphy, Bobby Reynolds, Phillip and Peggy Scurria, Mike & Sue Rome, Lori Sullivan, Mary Trichell
Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Ashley Alexander (Regan), Graham Allen (S Gilfoil), Marie Farlow Bellard, Martha Book, Kay Boolos (S Gilfoil), Chris Breard (Gilfoil), Gayle Brown (Dukes and Oliver), Albert Christman, Jeannie & Donald Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Gene Cox, Carol Dipert (Rome), Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, Judy Fortenberry, Donna Fulton (Ellerbee), Fred and Cathy Fulton, Morgan, Alex, and Palmer Gilfoil, Thom Gilfoil, Wyly Gilfoil (Gilfoil), LaVonne Givens, Charlotte Green, Rita Hargrave, Evie Hilburn (Lancaster), Patricia Lively (Wilks), Charles Howington, Jimmy Hopson(Wilks), Will Irby (P Gilfoil), Diane Johnson, Andrew and Chelsea Keene-Lewis, Carla Leese (S Gilfoil), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Caroline Marcello (Watts), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Jessica McCoy (Reynolds), the family of Lee McCoy (Reynolds), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Kiely McKellar (S Gilfoil), Boyce Miller, Mike Morelli, Randy Parker, Betty Petersen, David Peterson, Quintin Purvis, John Neill, Curt and Brianne Rome, Bailey, Scott, and Tiffney Rome, Debbie Kedrick Sims, LeeAnn Rome Tranchina (Rome), Randy Watts, Jr.
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Preston Collins, Henry Ellerbee, Lilly Falgout, Jag Gilfoil, Matilda Johnson, Caroline Marsh, EmmyLu Marsh, Charlize Richardson, Chandler Wood
