Mark 4:1-20

Mark 4:1-20

On another occasion, Jesus began to teach by the sea.

A very large crowd gathered around him 

so that he got into a boat on the sea and sat down.

And the whole crowd was beside the sea on land.

And he taught them at length in parables, 

and in the course of his instruction he said to them, 

“Hear this!  A sower went out to sow.

And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, 

and the birds came and ate it up.

Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil.

It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep.

And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots.  

Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it 

and it produced no grain.

And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit.

It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”

He added, “Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.”

And when he was alone, 

those present along with the Twelve 

questioned him about the parables.

He answered them, 

“The mystery of the Kingdom of God has been granted to you.

But to those outside everything comes in parables, so that

    they may look and see but not perceive,

        and hear and listen but not understand,

    in order that they may not be converted and be forgiven.”

Jesus said to them, “Do you not understand this parable?

Then how will you understand any of the parables?

The sower sows the word.

These are the ones on the path where the word is sown.

As soon as they hear, Satan comes at once 

and takes away the word sown in them.

And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who, 

when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy.

But they have no roots; they last only for a time.

Then when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, 

they quickly fall away.

Those sown among thorns are another sort.

They are the people who hear the word, 

but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches, 

and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word,

and it bears no fruit.

But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it

and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, today we celebrate the memorial of Thomas Aquinas. Help me to discern, as he did, the great mystery of who you are and what you have done for the human race by sending your only-begotten Son and your Holy Spirit.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Goal of the Moral Life: Today, we celebrate the memorial of Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican priest and one of the greatest Doctors of the Church. Aquinas’s most influential work was his incomplete Summa theologiae. The bulk of this work is dedicated to the moral life. Aquinas doesn’t reduce morality to a simple list of dos and don’ts; he sees it rather as the path that leads to eternal life. He begins the part on the moral life with the goal of our moral action (I-II, qq. 1-6), which he identifies as happiness, or beatitude. This ultimate happiness is found in the vision of God’s essence. It is a vision that satisfies all our desires, since God is infinite goodness, truth, and beauty. This ultimate beatitude transcends our natural powers, and we need the help of divine grace to achieve this vision. Aquinas identifies two primary guides for moral action: law and grace, which together direct the human will toward the good and enable its attainment. While grace resides in our souls and makes us participants in the divine nature, our natural powers are disposed by the supernatural virtues of faith, hope, and charity toward God. Sin, as a turning away from God, obstructs this path, leading to ultimate unhappiness. 

2. Seven Virtues: Aquinas’s moral teaching prominently features the seven virtues – four cardinal (prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance) and three theological (faith, hope, charity) – as habitual dispositions that perfect human faculties and direct actions toward the good, ultimately facilitating beatitude. The cardinal virtues, rooted in Aristotelian ethics but adapted to Christian anthropology, govern practical life: prudence perfects reason, enabling discernment of the true good in particular circumstances; justice inclines the will to render each their due, fostering social harmony; fortitude strengthens the irascible appetite to endure hardships for the sake of virtue; and temperance moderates the concupiscible appetite, restraining sensual desires. These four natural virtues can be acquired through repeated acts and are essential for moral excellence, but they remain incomplete without supernatural infusion. The theological virtues, bestowed by grace, orient the soul directly to God: faith enlightens the intellect to assent to revealed truths; hope fortifies the will to trust in God’s promises amid difficulties and in the aid God will give to attain what he has promised; and charity, the form of all virtues, unites the soul to God and neighbor in perfect love, animating the others. For Aquinas, virtues are interconnected; charity vivifies the cardinal virtues, making actions meritorious for eternal life. The virtues counteract vices and the capital sins, structuring moral growth. Aquinas stresses that virtues are not static but dynamic, perfected through practice and divine aid, leading to moral maturity.

3. Christ and the Sacraments: The New Law, sanctifying grace, and the theological virtues are not given to us without Christ and the sacraments of the Church. Habitual or sanctifying grace is merited for us and given to us by Christ, who came to save us from sin and is truly our way to the Father. Sanctifying grace is communicated to us through the Church’s seven sacraments. Baptism regenerates us as children of God. Confirmation strengthens us in the Spirit for spiritual combat (III, q. 72, a. 4). The Eucharist nourishes us, gives us spiritual life (III, q. 79, a. 1), and unites us to Christ. Reconciliation forgives the mortal and venial sins we have committed after our baptism. For Aquinas, our entire moral and spiritual life should be seen as the way that leads us to heavenly union with God. The moral life is less about submission to prohibitions and commandments, and more about growing in the freedom of the children of God. Unlike the philosophers and theologians who came after him, Aquinas focuses on what brings us to ultimate happiness rather than obligation; he focuses on growing in the practice of virtue, rather than listing the sins that break God’s commandments (see Pinckaers, The Sources of Christian Ethics, 399).

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, as you sit enthroned at the Father’s right hand, intercede for me and request the good things I need to grow in holiness and continue on the path that leads to eternal life.

Living the Word of God: How do I examine my conscience before the Sacrament of Reconciliation? Am I only looking at the commandments I have broken? Or do I also see where I have not lived charity toward God and neighbor? How can I be more attentive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in my everyday life?