Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
“Every good tree bears good fruit,” Jesus reminds us in today’s Gospel. Yesterday marked the first day of summer in this year 2022. What a fruitful time of year this is! We see the beauty all around us in lush fields of corn, beans, and wheat, flowering shrubs, glorious flower beds in yards and lovely wildflowers by the roadsides. My husband and I have delighted in darling, white-spotted baby deer frolicking across our lawn with their mamas. The pregnant robins feed hungrily at our bird feeder. Our vegetable garden is exploding to life with the various veggies practically growing right before our eyes. Today, as each of us marvel at the fruitfulness of God’s creation, let it be a reminder to us to examine our own lives and look for the fruit. Disciples of Jesus are fruitful people. We are “good trees” who bear good fruit by God’s grace. If fruit isn’t evident, we’re not living authentically as disciples. May today be a day of conversion for each of us, marked by increased vibrancy and fruitfulness.
Considering our fruitfulness begs the question, what kinds of fruit does a disciple bear and how might be become more fruitful? Following is not an exhaustive list by far, but a starting point for reflection. Certainly, the gifts and fruit (Galatians 5:22-23) of the Holy Spirit are signs of fruitfulness in our lives. The attributes of love that St Paul describes so beautifully in 1 Corinthians 13 are fruit of our love for others. Performing spiritual and corporal works of mercy would be fruit of our compassion for others. Showing concern for the poor, offering mercy, compassion, forgiveness, and grace to others are fruit of discipleship. Fruitful disciples work for reconciliation. Living out Jesus’ teachings in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) demonstrate Gospel fruit to the world. As we consider our lives today and in the coming days, perhaps reading and reflecting on some of these texts might be a helpful exercise.
How might we become more fruitful in these virtues? I recognize two primary means: remaining in Jesus, our Vine and employing the “fertilizer” of studying God’s Word. By these means we grow daily to be healthy, good, and vibrant “trees” to use Jesus’ metaphor. Today’s Gospel acclamation offers the first means, “Remain in me, as I remain in you, says the Lord; whoever remains in me will bear much fruit.” As we remain in Jesus, we maintain the integrity of our identity, anchored in the Vine who is Christ himself. Just as grapes cannot grow on thornbushes or figs from thistles, as Jesus tells us today, so we cannot bear the fruit of discipleship apart from Christ. We cannot be a “good tree” unless we abide in Christ. Our identity as disciples depends upon abiding in the Vine and thus identifying with Him. How do we do that? The best way to abide in Christ is through the Sacraments, particularly the Eucharist. I heard Jeff Cavins (Catholic biblical scholar, author, evangelist) say recently, “The further you stray from the liturgy, the less you are going to know God because God meets us in the liturgy.” We need daily prayer and other spiritual disciplines, we need the Mass, we need the Sacraments to keep us rooted in Jesus.
We need God’s Word, both in the liturgy of the Mass and in our personal devotion. Studying God’s Word, being immersed in the scriptures, shows us what the life of a disciple looks like. Studying God’s Word becomes the fertilizer we need to become more fruitful. We have ferns hanging on our front porch. The other day, I immersed each one in a large bucket of Miracle Grow. Almost immediately I could see the difference the fertilizer made! Just two days later, the fronds are a more vibrant green and new growth is coming on quickly. I think we can each take heart that even a little bit of time spent being fertilized by God’s Word will stimulate great growth in us. Our responsorial psalm beseeches God, “Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.” God is quick to answer the sincere petitioner who earnestly desires to be taught by God’s Word.
Today’s first reading offers a stark and sobering contrast. The book of God’s law had been lost and generations had been disobedient, lost in ignorance and sin. Imagine losing God’s Word!! Another mark of fruitful discipleship is passing along the faith and the scriptures to the next generations. Let us each consider today, how we can inspire our children and grandchildren to deeper love for God, for the Mass, the Sacraments, and for the scriptures. Just as God’s creation is blooming and flowering this day, let it also be a day of vibrant fruitfulness for each and every one of us. Amen!
Elizabeth Wells