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First Reading: Ez 17:22–24
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I, too, will take from the crest of the cedar,
from its topmost branches tear off a tender shoot,
and plant it on a high and lofty mountain;
on the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it.
It shall put forth branches and bear fruit,
and become a majestic cedar.
Birds of every kind shall dwell beneath it,
every winged thing in the shade of its boughs.
And all the trees of the field shall know
that I, the Lord,
bring low the high tree,
lift high the lowly tree,
wither up the green tree,
and make the withered tree bloom.
As I, the Lord, have spoken, so will I do.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16
R./ Lord, it is good to give thanks to you.
It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praise to your name, Most High,
To proclaim your kindness at dawn
and your faithfulness throughout the night.
R./ Lord, it is good to give thanks to you.
The just one shall flourish like the palm tree,
like a cedar of Lebanon shall he grow.
They that are planted in the house of the Lord
shall flourish in the courts of our God.
R./ Lord, it is good to give thanks to you.
They shall bear fruit even in old age;
vigorous and sturdy shall they be,
Declaring how just is the Lord,
my rock, in whom there is no wrong.
R./ Lord, it is good to give thanks to you.
Second Reading: 2 Cor 5:6-10
Brothers and sisters:
We are always courageous,
although we know that while we are at home in the body
we are away from the Lord,
for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Yet we are courageous,
and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord.
Therefore, we aspire to please him,
whether we are at home or away.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
so that each may receive recompense,
according to what he did in the body, whether good or evil.
Gospel Reading: Mk 4:26-34
He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”
Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”
With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.
Greeting
Glory to him whose power, working in us,
can do infinitely more
than we can ask or imagine.
Glory to him in the church
and in Christ Jesus.
May the Lord Jesus be with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction by the Celebrant
A. Patience: These Are Only Seeds (Option 1)
We live in a time that expects efficiency and immediate results. But a plant or a tree needs time to grow; and human relations cannot be built nor our problems solved overnight. People too need time to grow and change. Fortunately, God is patient with us. But we must become patient with one another and, with God's help, give people and the Church and God's Kingdom of justice, peace, and love the time needed to grow. We can just sow the seed and then wait in hope. If it is a good seed we sow, it will certainly grow. Jesus assures us that it will sprout and bear fruit.
B. While The Farmer Sleeps… (Option 2)
After carefully preparing the soil, what can the farmer do once he has sown the seed? He can do no more than hoe and pull the weeds, and then wait patiently till harvest time. Jesus planted the seeds of love and justice but the results remain poor. Yet we remain patient, as God stays patient, and we do not give up. The kingdom will flourish. In the meantime, each of us is a seed, with the power to grow. I have to become a tree and grow branches in which others can take shelter. With God's help I must become a tree that cleans the suffocating air so that others can breathe and live. With Jesus we give thanks to God for his patience with us, and we ask for patience for ourselves.
Penitential Act
Too often we have been impatient
with ourselves, with one another, with our world.
May the Lord be patient with us and forgive us.
(pause)
Lord Jesus, you give each of us the time
to become mature in our faith:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you give your Church the time
to grow in unity and a spirit of service:
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you give our world the time
to grow in peace and justice:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Be patient with us, Lord, and forgive us
all the sins we have committed against you
and against one another.
Lead us forward in hope to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray
that we may give the seed time to grow
(pause)
Curb our impatience, Lord,
when we try to impose
your truth and justice and peace
on a Church and a world
not yet disposed to welcome them.
In our helplessness and discouragement
may we learn to accept
that all true growth comes from you.
We can only plant the seed,
and you make it bloom into a mighty tree
that lets us give shelter to all.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Scripture Readings
First Reading Introduction: A Small Shoot Is Enough for God
From the small remnant of Israel, God will make himself a new people.
Second Reading Introduction: We Trust In The Lord
In the tensions of a life lived in faith a Christian tries to live close to Christ and to prepare for the definitive encounter of the Lord.
Gospel Introduction: A Tiny Seed Becomes A Big Shrub
God is active, whatever the appearances. His word will bear fruit. Notwithstanding its humble beginnings, God's kingdom will surpass all expectations.
General Intercessions
The tiny seed needs time to become a plant. It is the Lord who gives it the power to grow. Let us pray to God and say: R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
• That the tiny spark of faith still alive in the hearts of many who abandon the Church may not be extinguished but grow again into a bright light to guide them to God and people, let us pray: R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
• That the timid seed of peace may grow again into a flourishing effort of dialogue and understanding, that our world may see the end of wars and civil strife, let us pray: R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
• That our schools may implant into the hearts of our youth the seeds of faith, of generous and serving love, and that the Lord may bless the educators who help in this tremendous task, let us pray: R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
• That missionaries may keep sowing the seed of the joyful Good News of the Lord in our often indifferent and hostile world, let us pray: R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
• That people inspired by the Spirit of God may not get discouraged in sowing the seed of justice in communities and among nations, let us pray:R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
• That the seeds of sharing and unity may keep growing in our Christian communities, until they become one heart and one mind in the Lord who gathers them at his table, let us pray: R/ Lord, your Kingdom come.
Lord, be patient with us, and give to the seeds which your Son has sown in our hearts the time to grow and to reach to heaven, through Christ Jesus our Lord. R/ Amen.
Prayer over the Gifts
Almighty and patient Father,
we bring before you the fruits
grown from tiny seeds of wheat
and the small shoots of the vine.
By the power of your Spirit
they will become Jesus, your Son among us.
Let the seed of his life and message
bear fruit among us, your people,
and make us the body of Christ to the world,
that trust and hope may grow among us.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
Let us give thanks to the Father that he has made himself a partner in our human history through his Son Jesus Christ.
Introduction to the Lord's Prayer
Let us give thanks to the Father
that he has made himself a partner
in our human history
through his Son Jesus Christ. R/ Our Father...
Deliver Us
Deliver us indeed, Lord, from evil,
particularly the evil of sin,
which makes us less human and less Christian.
Instead, make us your free people,
free to serve and love you unconditionally,
free to commit ourselves to people
and to build up a better world.
In this freedom may we prepare
in hope and joy the coming in glory
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...
Invitation to Communion
This is Jesus, our Savior,
the seed planted among us
that died but rose again from the dead.
Happy are we to receive him
and to grow through him. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
Prayer after Communion
God our Father,
with a generous hand you have sown
among us here in this Eucharist
the seed of all that is good and true,
your Son Jesus Christ.
However insignificant and disappointing
our faith and love may seem now,
give us the hope and the courage
that he can unite us in a community
where justice, truth, and freedom will prevail
until the crop is ready for reaping.
Grant us this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Blessing
Patience, together with a sense of humble modesty,
is what we need in looking at our efforts
and the work of God among us.
Not that our efforts are useless,
but when we try to do God's work
to make our world more God's world
or his Kingdom, as we call it,
then we must always remember and respect
that God is the first agent in all this:
he plants, he gives growth,
he will do the harvesting.
But he expects us to cooperate with him.
May God bless you for this task:
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Let us go in the peace of the Lord,
and may his hope sustain you. R/ Thanks be to God.
