Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Homily

July 19, 2020 11:30 am · Sergio Muñoz Fita

Summary: We meditate on one of the many teachings of this 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time: the infinite patience of God. I remember that, in the first Spiritual Exercises that I carried out when I was a teenager in Catholics In Action in Cuenca, the priest who was directing us quoted these lines that I have never forgotten: Oh, infinite patience in waiting for me! Oh, hard heart in not loving you! How can it be that I tire of offending you And you tire not of forgiving me? God never tires of forgiving us. He does not grow tired of waiting for us to bear the fruits of conversion and holiness. We grow more tired before loving God as we should than He does forgiving our many sins. The first reading said that God gives the sinner time to repent. The psalm said that the Lord is slow to anger and rich in mercy. Jesus said in the parable that the owner of the field waits until harvest time to separate the grain and the tares. God gives us time, dear brothers and sisters: are we taking advantage of it? Are we producing good fruit as evidence of our repentance? Every second of our lives is an opportunity. The Lord will give us as many opportunities as will fit in the time, long or short, of our life. But one day, the time will come to an end and then, when the harvest time comes, God will come looking for fruit. Let us ask the Lord, through the intercession of Mary, that beginning, today, without letting one more day pass, we won’t waste any more time and that we will begin to bear the fruit of holiness, which will make us happy in this life, and one day will make us shine like the sun in the Kingdom of our heavenly Father.

Beginning last week and continuing through next week, the Lord is teaching us through parables. He invites us to listen to him, leaving aside the concerns of our ordinary life. Seven days ago, at the beginning of the Gospel, we were offered the following composition of place: “Jesus left the house where he was staying and sat on the seashore. So many people gathered around him that he was forced to get into a boat, where he sat, while the people remained on the shore. Then Jesus spoke to them of many things in parables. What a beautiful image: the Lord, on a boat, gently rocking on the calm waves of the sea while people on the shore listen to him; the sower, casting the seed from the sea into the hearts of those souls who listened to him in silence.

Whoever wishes to hear his voice, both then and now, must also come out of the noise and seek him in the serene calm of recollection. You must go to that "deserted place" from which He speaks to us. What did He tell us today? So many teachings! We will focus only on one of them: the patience of God.

The image of the grain tells us about the time necessary for the seed to grow. Things do not happen overnight. In the Letter of St. James, we read these words: "See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. (James 5:7)

God acts this way with us: his mercy leads him to let the weeds and the wheat grow together until the moment of harvest. In today's first reading, the Lord told us: "You give the sinner time to repent." And in the psalm we have heard it said that "the Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and rich in mercy." It is the same idea, in all three cases, that touches our souls with this "sweet hope": God is good; God waits; God is patient; God does not rush us.

It is important that we understand well what the Lord is saying to us today. Divine Mercy is not an excuse for mediocrity. It is also not a letter of safe conduct to enter heaven no matter how we live or how much we love the Lord. It is not a carte blanche for us to do what we want. No, the patience of God is the infinite respect that our good Lord has for the historical and created nature of his children. In the spiritual life, as in the physical life, there is development; an evolution in various stages, and Jesus does not ask us from us more than we can give. He does not ask the seed for fruit, but rather the tree. As the reading from the book of Wisdom told us, ”you judge with clemency, and with much lenience you govern us".

Yes, God, as a good Father, governs us with compassion. Saint Paul told us "the Spirit comes to help our weakness." The Lord is very understanding, very tender with his children. He knows that we are weak, and he leads us little by little, step by step, day by day.

Some people believe that the mercy of God is allows them to continue sinning. They think like this: “God is going to forgive me because he loves me, so I can do what I want.” What a great mistake and what a great sin is presumption! The Mercy of God is the very best reason to fight against our sins! How can we treat such a good Father so badly? How can I break the heart of the One who loves me so much? How dare I manipulate his love, which is the most beautiful thing that exists, to continue in sin, which is the most frightening thing there can be? Saint Paul writes in the Letter to the Romans, that we are also hearing on these Sundays: “Do you hold his priceless kindness, forbearance, and patience in low esteem, unaware that the kindness of God would lead you to repentance?" (Rom 2:4)

The harvest time will come. It is not that God's patience runs out then. What will end is the time to repent. When we run out of time, we lose the possibility of asking for forgiveness. He who dies in grace remains in grace forever. He who dies in sin remains in sin forever. And the Lord is asking us with his word today, that we do not abuse his love, that we do not play with the possibility of our condemnation, that we return to him today, now, at this moment.

May our Mother Mary teach us to open our hearts to the love of God, to use his mercy to advance on the path of holiness, and thus deserve to reach the Kingdom of our Father and shine there, like the sun, for all eternity.