Fr. Jacob Jaks Installation Mass and Reception
Bishop Bill Wack will celebrate the 10:45 a.m. Mass on Sunday, July 26, and install Father Jacob Jaks as our pastor. A reception will follow.
Please join us for this joyful occasion.
Van Swanenburg's Parable of the Weeds among the Wheat
Isaac Claesz. van Swanenburg's Parable of the Weeds among the Wheat vividly brings Jesus' words in Matthew 13:24–30 to life. Rather than depicting a single moment, the artist unfolds the entire parable across one expansive landscape. In the foreground, laborers gather the harvest while, at the center, the master directs the weeds toward a blazing fire. To the left, the wheat is carried into the barn. This narrative composition invites us to linger, allowing the eye to move through the story just as the heart gradually comes to understand Christ's teaching.
Van Swanenburg's artistic choices deepen the Gospel's message. The master stands prominently at the center of the painting, calm and commanding amid the activity, reminding us that Christ alone is the true judge of every heart. Warm earth tones, broad skies, and the orderly rhythm of the workers emphasize that God's harvest is purposeful, not chaotic. Notice how wheat and weeds have grown side by side until the final separation. The artist resists portraying evil as overwhelming; instead, good quietly fills the landscape, reflecting Jesus' assurance that God's kingdom continues to grow even in a world marked by sin.
This Sunday's Gospel reminds us that we are often tempted to judge before God does. Yet the Lord counsels patience, knowing that premature judgment can harm the wheat along with the weeds. Van Swanenburg's painting gently shifts our attention from the weeds to the faithful work of the harvest. Christ calls us not to fixate on the faults of others, but to remain rooted in Him, trusting that, in His time, He will reveal every hidden truth. Until then, our task is to become good grain, bearing fruit for the Kingdom.