Dominican Friars
Province of St. Albert the Great, USA

A Word of Hope

A Word of Hope

Jesus told a parable of not wanting to pull the weeds growing up with the wheat, lest it hurt the good crop. But when applied to us, growing up together allows both the wheat and the weeds to become better, more than they are right now.

Based on Matthew 13:24-30:

Jesus put before the crowds another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?” But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’

(New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org)

A Word of Hope with dove

Every day the Chicago Dominicans offer "A Word of Hope" video to bolster our faith through these trying times. We welcome any feedback you have at hope@opcentral.org . You can see them all below, or you can see other preaching by a particular person by clicking on his name, and you can have them emailed to you each morning by signing up for our email service:

  •

    2 July • Let God lead us to justice

    God promised to punish Israel for its injustice, and Psalm 5 cries out, "the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful" and promises that they will not stand before him, and then asks, "Lead me O Lord in your righteousness." If only we will turn and trust God, he will save us from whatever storm threatens us and lead us to justice.
  •

    1 July • Cross over to the other shore *** Bonus Video ***

    Today we have a bonus video from Fr. Greg Heille—a very challenging message from the prophet Amos, who chastises the people from building their prosperity on the backs of the poor. However, Amos also acknowledges that God stole the land from the Amorites to give to them, and thus, blessings seem to almost always come at the expense of others. Perhaps, to make sense of this, we need to cross over to a new understanding, crossing over to the other shore where God lives.

  • 29 Jun • Who is God to you?

    Jesus asked Peter, “But who do you say that I am?” This question is important for every one of us to answer: Who is Jesus for us? Who is God for us? And, we are also called to pass our answers on to others.
  •

    28 Jun • Jesus has made us worthy of God's love

    A leper came up to Jesus saying, "“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus replied, “I do will it. Be made clean” and the man was healed. Jesus also wills us to be worthy of God's love, and so we are. Share this Good News today with someone who needs to hear it.
  •

    27 Jun • Simply try to be faithful

    Jesus rejected people who claimed to to great deeds in his name, embracing instead people who listened to his words and acted on them. We do not have to have success in our ministry, we simply need to listen to Jesus and to try to be faithful to his words.
  •

    26 Jun • The gift of the Bible

    In our scripture today, Hilkiah rejoiced because he found a long lost book of Moses in the Temple in Jerusalem. But there was also consternation, because the new book showed how far they had strayed from their own tradition. For us today, reading the Bible often reminds us in a helpful way of what God wants for us.
  •

    24 Jun • Moving on...

    John the Baptist was not named after his father, Zechariah, because he was not to follow in his father's footsteps. Instead, he was the herald of something new, The Reign of God in Christ Jesus. Do we have sufficient faith to say yes to God when asked to break with the past and move in a new direction?
  •

    22 Jun • God or mammon?

    Jesus famously said that we cannot serve two masters, God and mammon. If we serve God first, then we can have healthy attitude towards our own material goods, not clinging to them, but using them to help those who do not have enough.
  •

    19 Jun • Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving

    Jesus told his disciples to practice prayer, fasting, and almsgiving not so that others might see, but with sincerity, knowing that God will see these righteous deeds. These are the basic actions of every Christian disciple, all of which direct us back into right relationship with God.

  • 18 Jun • Respond to your God-given gifts

    Jesus said to love our enemies. We do that not because they deserve it, but as a response to the love of God already poured out on us in our own lives. We show our thanks for God's unconditional love in the way we live, by loving others unconditionally.
  •

    17 Jun • Do not resist an evildoer

    Jesus said, "you have heard, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil." This is a difficult saying for us to embrace. It is difficult not to retaliate against evil, but God says "no." To help, imagine what God thinks looking at the devastation in the cities of Ukraine and Gaza.
  •

    16 Jun • Let God be God

    In Jesus' parables of the Kingdom of God, he teaches us that God is always working within us in hidden ways to bring about great things. We just need to trust that grace, and let God be God.
  •

    15 Jun • Speaking with integrity

    Jesus said not to swear to the truth but to simply let our "yes" be yes and our "no" be no. In this world, we accept that people lie and therefore need these markers that this time we are not lying. But in the Reign of God, everyone will simply speak the truth all the time, and so we should move in that direction now.
  •

    13 Jun • Anger against a brother or sister

    The law says "thou shalt not kill", but Jesus adds that even if we are angry with our brother or sister we are liable to judgement. Even more radically, if our brother or sister has reason to be angry with us, we also need to heal that division before we come to the altar. Relationship is a two way street.
  •

    11 Jun • Salt and Light for the whole world

    Jesus told his disciples that they are to be the salt of the earth and lamps on a lampstand. Thus, we are called to bring the light of Christ to everyone around us that is struggling with darkness, or to allow others to shine their light on us if we are in darkness.
  •

    10 Jun • The double gift of mercy

    In the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." When we extend mercy to others, we are also blessed, so this gift is doubled. When we are wronged it is quote natural to want vengeance, Intead, we would be better off to seek justice tempered with mercy.
Subscribe to A Word of Hope