26 January 2022
Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops
Jesuitas Acústico is a musical group made of several Jesuits from the Spanish-speaking world. One of their songs, “Creador Discreto,” which translates to “Discreet Creator,” is a song of praise to our God who tirelessly and quietly charges the world with his life and his grandeur. This emphasis on a God who is ceaselessly at work is a key part of Ignatian spirituality. Its lyrics highlight the unmerited nature of God’s many gifts to us. There’s no need for us to think about the air to have it seep into every corner of our lungs. There’s no need to threaten the birds to make them sing nor watch over the wheat fields to make them grow. Everything is gift.
In light of today’s gospel of the sower and seed, we can ask, can the life of faith which is a gift from God really go astray? Jesus tells us the answer that we may very well know from our own experience: Yes. This can fill us with a certain fear and anxiety. We may wonder, “do I have soil that is rich enough for his Word to grow in me?”
The honest answer is that our souls are all fertile ground for the Sower. True, there is no need to watch over the wheat fields to make them grow, but even the recognition of that places a sense of trust into the mysterious ways of our Creator. Prayer, contemplation, meditation is taking the time to use our senses, our memory, our intellect to notice the growth that we have experienced and to notice ways in which God might be calling us for further growth. From our hearts will flow a song of praise, trust, and gratitude towards our Discreet Creator who is patiently, quietly, and ceaselessly at work. This way we will yield thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.