Saturday of week 24 in Ordinary Time
First Reading
1 Corinthians 15:35–37,42–49
But some man will say: How do the dead rise again? or with what manner of body shall they come?
Senseless man, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die first.
And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not the body that shall be; but bare grain, as of wheat, or of some of the rest.
So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, it shall rise in incorruption.
It is sown in dishonour, it shall rise in glory. It is sown in weakness, it shall rise in power.
It is sown a natural body, it shall rise a spiritual body. If there be a natural body, there is also a spiritual body, as it is written:
The first man Adam was made into a living soul; the last Adam into a quickening spirit.
Yet that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; afterwards that which is spiritual.
The first man was of the earth, earthly: the second man, from heaven, heavenly.
Such as is the earthly, such also are the earthly: and such as is the heavenly, such also are they that are heavenly.
Therefore as we have borne the image of the earthly, let us bear also the image of the heavenly.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 55(56):10–14
I will please in the sight of God, in the light of the living.
Then shall my enemies be turned back.
In what day soever I shall call upon thee,
behold I know thou art my God.
I will please in the sight of God, in the light of the living.
In God will I praise the word,
in the Lord will I praise his speech.
In God have I hoped,
I will not fear what man can do to me.
I will please in the sight of God, in the light of the living.
In me, O God, are vows to thee,
which I will pay, praises to thee:
Because thou hast delivered my soul from death,
my feet from falling:
That I may please in the sight of God,
in the light of the living.
I will please in the sight of God, in the light of the living.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are they who in a good and perfect heart,
hearing the word, keep it,
and bring forth fruit in patience.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke 8:4–15
And when a very great multitude was gathered together, and hastened out of the cities unto him, he spoke by a similitude.
The sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.
And other some fell upon a rock: and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it had no moisture.
And other some fell among thorns, and the thorns growing up with it, choked it.
And other some fell upon good ground; and being sprung up, yielded fruit a hundredfold. Saying these things, he cried out: He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
And his disciples asked him what this parable might be.
To whom he said: To you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to the rest in parables, that seeing they may not see, and hearing may not understand.
Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
And they by the way side are they that hear; then the devil cometh, and taketh the word out of their heart, lest believing they should be saved.
Now they upon the rock, are they who when they hear, receive the word with joy: and these have no roots; for they believe for a while, and in time of temptation, they fall away.
And that which fell among thorns, are they who have heard, and going their way, are choked with the cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and yield no fruit.
But that on the good ground, are they who in a good and perfect heart, hearing the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit in patience.
Reflection
Saint Paul reaches for the image of a seed because resurrection cannot be understood as the simple return of the body to its former condition. A grain placed in the earth disappears from sight, yet its death becomes the beginning of a transformed life. There is continuity—the same person whom God created and redeemed will rise—but there is also a transformation beyond our present experience. What is sown in weakness will be raised in power; what is sown in corruption will rise incorruptible.
Christian hope is therefore not an escape from the body. We believe in the resurrection of the body because the whole human person is loved and redeemed by God. Christ, the last Adam and life-giving spirit, will conform us to his own risen life. The Catechism insists that “the flesh is the hinge of salvation” and teaches that our mortal bodies will be raised and transformed in Christ (CCC 990; CCC 997–1019).
The psalm gives this hope a personal voice. God has delivered the soul from death and kept the feet from falling so that the believer may walk before him “in the light of the living.” Resurrection hope is not merely about a distant future. It gives courage for the present, allowing us to trust God when fear, weakness or uncertainty might otherwise govern us.
The Gospel also speaks of seed, but now the seed is the word of God and the soil is the human heart. Jesus does not suggest that hearing the word automatically produces holiness. The same seed can be stolen, wither through lack of roots, or be choked by cares, riches and pleasures. Fruitfulness depends upon receiving the word, keeping it and persevering when its demands become costly.
This is where Paul’s teaching and Jesus’ parable meet. The life of faith follows a pattern of sowing, surrender and patient growth. Something must die: pride, self-sufficiency, the demand for immediate results, or the habits that crowd out God’s voice. Yet this dying is not destruction for its own sake. In God’s hands it becomes the soil from which a life modelled upon Christ can emerge.
The good soil is not a naturally flawless heart. It is a heart that remains open to grace and allows the word to take root over time. The Catechism teaches that the parables invite us into the kingdom while also requiring a radical choice: words alone are not enough; the heart must be given to Christ (CCC 546). Perseverance is the quiet decision to keep listening, trusting and acting when growth is slow and largely hidden.
One line to carry today:
The word bears fruit where it is not merely welcomed, but kept through patience and perseverance.
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