HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 17TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME CYCLE II (2)

HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 17TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME CYCLE II 

THEME: The fishermen collect the good fish and throw away those that are no use.

BY: Fr. Diotacious Chikontwe SMA

HOMILY FOR THURSDAY JULY 28 2022

*READINGS OF THE DAY*
Jeremiah 18:1-6
Psalm 145:2-6
Matthew 13:47-53

*LITURGICAL COLOUR*
Green

*FROM OUR FIRST READING*
In our first reading today, from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah, we heard the Lord speaking to His people through Jeremiah, using the example of a potter working on his spoilt and broken pottery in delivering His point and truth across. He told them all through Jeremiah that just as the potter reshaped and patiently moulded the potter piece that was misshapen and broken, hence, He, the Lord, God of Israel and all also was like a Potter to the people, moulding and guiding them as a people, leading them down the path of righteousness, and patiently guiding them when they became astray, sending prophets and messengers to remind and help them.

*FROM OUR GOSPEL READING*
In our Gospel passage today, the Lord spoke to His disciples regarding the kingdom of Heaven, in which He compared to a great net filled with various fishes of all types and sizes. The Angels will gather all of them and eventually sort them out. Those that are good will be gathered and kept, while the bad ones will be discarded. This is something that certainly many of the Lord’s followers and disciples understand, many of them being fishermen themselves or were working closely with them. The Lord told them all that all the faithful should be like the good fishes or else, they would face the consequences of their own evils and wickedness in the end.

*CONCLUSION*
Dear brethren, we have seen from todays liturgy that, the Lord was drawing all sorts of people into the new community he was gathering about himself. He was revealing the God who makes his sun to shine on the bad and the good alike. He shared table with those considered sinners and those regarded as holy. The net of God’s abundant love was being cast over all, as the fishermen brought in all kinds of fish. Yet, those drawn into the net of God’s love would need to open themselves to that love and allow themselves to be shaped by it, as clay is shaped by the potter. There will be a separation, but it will be based not on God’s preferences but on how well or otherwise we open ourselves up to God’s creative and renewing presence in our lives.
May God bless us all, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen

Fr. Diotacious Chikontwe SMA