8th Sunday of the year – Year C
Sir. 27:5-8; Psalm 91; 1 Cor. 15:54-58; Lq. 6:39-45
Read: Jesus told a parable to his disciples. “Can one blind man guide another? Surely both will fall into the pit? The disciple is not superior to his teacher; the fully trained disciple will always be like his teacher. Why do you observe the splinter in your brother’s eye and never notice the plank in your own? How can you say to your brother: ‘Brother, let me take out the splinter that is in your eye’, when you cannot see the plank in your own? Hypocrite! Take the plank out of your own eye first, and then you will see clearly enough to take out the splinter that is in your brother’s eye.
There is no sound tree that produces rotten fruit, nor again a rotten tree that produces sound fruit. For every tree can be told by its own fruit; people do not pick figs from thorns, nor gather grapes from brambles. A good man draws what is good from the store of goodness in his heart; a bad man draws what is bad from the store of badness. For a man’s words flow out of what fills his heart”.
Reflect: How can we distinguish whom we are to trust and who we cannot? How are we going to recognise those who are blind or who have a plank blocking their eyes? This Gospel reading gives us the criteria as to how we should exercise our judgment: “There is no sound tree that produces rotten fruit, nor again a rotten tree that produces sound fruit. For every tree can be told by its own fruit”. In St. Luke’s Gospel the “fruit” is the message given out by a Christian. This message could be good or bad. Jesus is inviting us to evaluate that this is in accordance with his own teaching: “For a man’s words flow out of what fills his heart”. What one says should be proven by the Gospel. Then we will be able to evaluate whether what he is telling us is food which strengthens us or is poisonous fruit. A good heart speaks good words full of mercy, whilst a bad heart speaks words that pollutes or hurts. Jesus did not tell us to learn from him how to make miracles. But he told us: “Learn from me because I am gentle and humble of heart”. (Mt. 11:29)
Pray: With Psalm 91: “The upright will flourish like a palm tree, will grow like a cedar of Lebanon. Planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in our God’s temple”.
Act: “Do not praise someone before he speaks, because thus will people be tried”. (Bin Sirak 27:8)
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