While everyone was asleep

20 JULY (Mt 13,24-43)

Satan is cunning. His deprived intelligence constantly tending to evil, spies on all the steps of a man and as soon as he spots even the smallest crevice, right away he comes and injects his poison of death. It is sufficient even a moment of inattention, a break of fatigue, a little moral sagging, and we are already in his lies and falsehood. Even in sleep he knows how to take advantage to sow in the hearts of his pride, his arrogance, his vices, his sins and his death.

God sowed good seed in his creation. What does the devil do? He leads Eve to get distracted from the truth for a moment. He poses her a false question. The woman lets herself be caught in his speech, after some moment she and Adam are already in death. This skill is all his own. If we had as much of it for good, his reign would end in a few days. Instead we sleep and he works. We get distracted and he does not get distracted. We get tired, he never gets tired. By night and by day, he is always looking for someone to devour. This is his constancy: always roaming around to tempt men. Always on the field to spy on the most propitious time to come and sow bad weeds.

He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.”‘” He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.'” He spoke to them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.”

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfil what had been said through the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation (of the world).” Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Just as weeds are collected and burned (up) with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear.

We must confess that it is very easy for Satan to enter our field. It is often completely unattended, without any protection, it lacks the most basic defenses and it has no fence. By night and by day we are always in a sleep of death. It is necessary to react, watch and pay much attention. Leaving aside the means and instruments placed by Christ the Lord to the custody of our lives, we are completely exposed to his attacks of death. Eucharist and the sacraments, prayer and daily reading of the Gospel, self-examination and spiritual verification for a sound and holy discernment must never go overlooked. St. Paul speaks of true armour of the spirit that must always be worn. We have all the means of grace. They are all at our disposal. Suffices to use them with perseverance. But we cannot use them, if we lack in pure and righteous faith in the Word of salvation.

Virgin Mary, Mother of the Redemption, Angels and Saints make us of pure and holy faith.