Message from Fr. George

Prayerful greetings from St. Bonaventure.

We are now in the season of spring & the weather begins to get warmer so trees & other plants grow. We plant seeds & other vegetables in our gardens. We know that the cycle of planting, cultivating & harvesting follows a predictable pattern. 

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Lots of variables can affect the final outcome of each year’s crop: weather conditions, seed quality, disease, pests. But the cycle of planting, growing, & harvesting is still the same cycle that’s been in place since God created plants.

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In this weekend’s gospel reading, Jesus uses the very familiar process of plant growth to teach some important lessons about the Kingdom of God. An important theme presented is the subject of growth. 

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One of today's parables tells us of a seed's gradual growth while the second amazes us with spectacular growth. Both parables also contrast the tiny seed with the bountiful harvest it is able to produce.

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In the parable of the growing seed, the farmer "knows not how" the seed grows into a mature plant, since it is a mystery & one of God's secrets. What makes a seed germinate? Why does it grow? How is life contained in the tiny seed & all the future form & product of the plant? 

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How the kingdom of God grows & produces a harvest of love, peace, joy & justice is also a mystery. It is a mystery how God can create something out of nothing, or something great out of something of no apparent worth or size. It reminds us of Paul's words, "How inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord?" (Romans 11:34).

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In a society that glories in bigness, we need to appreciate the importance & the potential power of smallness. The parables stress the smallness of the seed & its eventual greatness & productivity. 

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We can do better to see ourselves as the mustard seed - small, childlike, humble, & trusting. We need to know that a little faith can move giant mountains, that a little love can solve large problems, that a little word can give deep encouragement, that a little act can save the most desperately lost. God can make something special of a person of little or no apparent account. 

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God bless you all. 

The dispensation of the faithful from the obligation to

attend Sunday Mass

remains in place.

No one is obliged to attend Holy Mass while the

dispensation is in effect. 

The faithful are encouraged to know that participating in any

Mass serves as their observance of the Sunday Mass.

When not attending Mass in person, the faithful are encouraged to

participate in a livestream Mass or to pray the readings of the day.