Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day
Homily for June 17, 2018    12th Sunday in Ordinary Time - B
by Dcn. Bob Bonomi

Happy Father’s Day weekend.  I hope that those of you who are fathers are having a blessed weekend, and that those of you who have fathers (by the way, that would be all of us) – I hope you all take some time this weekend to pray for their souls, whether they are still living or have already passed on, and whether they were good fathers or not.  Especially if they were not, for they are probably more in need of prayers and God’s mercy than a “good” father is.

In any case, at first glance, you might not think that today’s Gospel has much in common with Father’s Day.  But if we take a closer look at the two parables that Jesus shares with the crowds, I think we can see that they contain a very important message for all of us, especially for fathers. (Before I go on, this message applies more or less equally to mothers, too, but they’ve already celebrated their day in the sun.  Today it is us dads’ turn.)

First, we have the parable of the sower and the seed.  Who is the man that scatters seed in today’s Gospel?  Often in the Bible whenever we see a reference to seed being scattered, the sower is usually assumed to be God the Father or Jesus.  And while the references to the sower not knowing how the seed grows, and that the seed yields fruit “of its own accord” seem contradictory to the wisdom and power of God, it would be easier to understand it in the context that the average person would not know or understand how the seeds of faith scattered by God grow and bear fruit.

But what if the sower Jesus refers to is us?  In that sense, the “sower” can be thought of as a father and the “seed” being sown as his children.  He might provide nourishment and tender guidance for his child, but he doesn’t know how that child will grow in faith.

And it’s not just his children.  After all, we are all called to evangelize our brothers and sisters by spreading – sowing – the Good News which is found in the person of Jesus Christ Himself.  He is the faith that lives in every fruitful seed.  This parable would actually make more sense that way, as we often do not know what impact our lives have on those around us.  We do not know what causes another person to grow in faith, as faith is a gift – a grace – which comes only from God.  And only God knows when a seed that is a person is ready to come to judgment.

And then we have the mustard seed.  This too seems a little odd to be a comparison for God as, despite the image given here, mustard plants are not majestic cedars like we hear in our first reading, but instead are hardy, scruffy bushes that spread widely from a tiny seed.  But that too can be a good analogy for fathers as most of us probably didn’t have any idea of what was really going to be asked of us as fathers when our first child came along, and despite the scruffiness of our faith we’ve slowly grown and matured, and hopefully through our faith we have become a spiritual shelter to our family and those who are close to us.

For those of us who are fathers responsible for our children, or father-figures like Fr. Szatkowski and Fr. Benito, who are responsible for their family of parishioners, we know that it’s tough being a father.  The role of a father has changed in recent years from being the head of the household and the primary breadwinner to one of shared responsibility and mutual cooperation – and this is a good thing. 

But sadly all too often in today’s society and especially in the media, the importance of fatherhood is being belittled and dismissed.  And yet, recent studies have shown just how important it is to be a father.  Statistics quoted at last year’s Texas Fatherhood Summit in Austin were striking – children with actively involved fathers were:

•    39% more likely to earn mostly A’s in school
•    45% less likely to repeat a grade
•    Twice as likely to go to college and find stable employment after high school
•    60% less likely to be suspended or expelled from school
•    75% less likely to have a teen birth
•    80% less likely to spend time in jail

Speaking of jail, when I was in prison ministry during my formation as a deacon, I made the mistake on Father’s Day of asking the inmates to compare God the Father to someone in their lives who they considered a strong, loving father-figure.  The room of about 30 inmates went silent.  They had no good father-figures to draw on – the fathers they knew were either bums or had abandoned them and they had few positive male role models in their lives.

So, if our role as father is so important to those we love and to society as a whole, what must we do to be true sowers of the faith?  A recent article in “Columbia”, the monthly publication by the Knights of Columbus, listed four things Catholic men must do to defend the faith and build a culture of life in our secular society:

1.    We must be men of prayer.
2.    We must never lose hope.
3.    We must show our friends and neighbors a better way.
4.    We must be active and practical.

Whatever our particular vocation in life – whether it be religious, married or single – we are called to be sowers of the seeds of faith and must be followers of the Great Gardener, Jesus.  And may our faith shelter those whom we love and all those we meet. 

Happy Father’s Day.