July 2026

There’s a famous but possibly apocryphal story about the Chinese Communist leader Zhou En Lai being asked in 1968 about the impact of the French Revolution which had begun 179 esrlier and replying: “It’s too early to tell.”           A perceptive answer and also a clue to what informed the thinking of the landowner in Jesus’ parable of the wheat and the weeds. His slaves asked whether they should go into the field and uproot the weeds and he told them not to because it was too early to tell for sure what was a weed...

I think that anyone who has ever gardened cannot fail to resonate with today’s readings. Jesus’ simple parable of the sower uses images and language his hearers would have easily understood. They would have known, as we do, that in order to grow fruitful crops you need to plant them in well cared for, fertile soil. They would also have fully understood Isaiah’s words where he talks about the weather watering the Earth and causing seeds to sprout and plants to grow. If you plant good seeds and care for your crops you will end up with the things you...

Zechariah 9:9

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!

   Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!

Lo, your king comes to you;

   triumphant and victorious is he,

humble and riding on a donkey,

   on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

That opening verse from Zachariah sounds very familiar to our ears as it echoes the readings we hear on Palm Sunday. Zachariah is predicting the coming of the promised Messiah centuries before Jesus rode into Jerusalem on that donkey. Zechariah also refers to the Messiah as ‘King’ - perhaps suggesting that the anointed one when he comes would be powerful and noticeably so. 

Reading Zechariah’s...