Whoever Has Ears to Hear Ought to Hear

Photo of snail and cherry speaking the couplet about the Parable of the Sower meaning.
โ€œWhoever has ears to hear ought to hearโ€
A reflection on Mark 4:1-20
Wednesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ2022 Gloria M. Chang

What is the true meaning of the Parable of the Sower? Jesusโ€™ metaparable reveals that hearing the Word is not enoughโ€”only a pure, receptive heart bears abundant fruit.… Read the rest

The Parable of the Lamp

Photo of snail and dahlia speaking the Shalom Snail couplet, "The Parable of the Lamp."
โ€œThe Parable of the Lampโ€
A reflection on Luke 8:16-18
Monday of the Twenty-Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ๏ธ2021 Gloria M. Chang


The Parable of the Lamp reveals how an evangelist, ignited by Christโ€™s Spirit, shines Godโ€™s Light to illuminate the world.… Read the rest

Prayer to the Sower

Photo of snail on a cherry tree speaking the Shalom Snail couplet, "Prayer to the Sower."
โ€œPrayer to the Sowerโ€
Luke 8:4-15 in a prayer couplet
Saturday of the Twenty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ๏ธ2021 Gloria M. Chang

When a large crowd gathered, with people from one town after another journeying to him, he spoke in a parable.

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Secrets of the Kingdom

โ€œSecrets of the Kingdomโ€
A reflection on Matthew 13:10-17
(cf. Luke 8:10; Mark 4:11-12)
Thursday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ๏ธ2022 Gloria M. Chang

The disciples approached him and said, โ€œWhy do you speak to them in parables?โ€ He said to them in reply, โ€œBecause knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted. To

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The Parable of the Sower

Photo of a snail and cherries with the Shalom Snail couplet printed beneath.
โ€œThe Parable of the Sowerโ€
Matthew 13:1-9 โ€œin a snailshellโ€
Wednesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ๏ธ2021 Gloria M. Chang

On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood along the shore.

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The Parable of the Sower Explained

โ€œThe Parable of the Sower Explainedโ€
Matthew 13:18-23 in a tercet
Friday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ๏ธ2021 Gloria M. Chang

โ€œHear then the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart.

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Seeds of the Logos

Vincent van Gogh, Sower, 1888

Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (Year I)

Hebrews 10:32-39; Mark 4:26-34

The Word through whom the world came to be knew his creation intimately (John 1:3). Earth, air, soil, and water that composed his own body were fashioned in the beginning by the Spirit of God hovering over the face of the waters (Genesis 1:2).… Read the rest

The Garden of Our Heart

Mary Garden at the Passionist Monastery in Jamaica, New York

Jesus said to his disciples: โ€œHear the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the Kingdom without understanding it, and the Evil One comes and steals away what was sown in his heart.

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