[Salvation]

Insight Scoop

Weeds, Seeds, and the Kingdom of Heaven

"Wheat Field" (1888) by Vincent van Gogh (Wikiart.org)

A Scriptural Reflection on the Readings for Sunday, July 20, 2014 | Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time | Carl E. Olson

Readings:
• Wis 12:13, 16-19
• Ps 86:5-6, 9-10, 15-16
• Rom 8:26-27
• Mt 13:24-43

What is the Kingdom of God? How does it come about? And how will it grow?

These are some of the questions addressed in the parables of Jesus, including the seven parables found in Matthew 13. As we saw last week, these parables are not simply stories with a moral, nor are they theological tracts or even pithy catechetical lessons. Parables are not, writes Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis in Fire of Mercy, Heart of the World (Ignatius Press, 2003), “a test of human intelligence that functions like riddles. Rather they are verbal strategies of grace that test the willingness of the human heart to surrender to, and be enfolded by, the always surprising generosity of Wisdom.”

Leiva-Merikakis describes a parable, strikingly, as “a coded letter left by a Lover” (p 192). He points out that the original Greek renditions of the parables are imbued with a beautiful musicality, adding even more meaning to Jesus’ exhortation: “He who has ears, let him hear” (Mt 13:9). God’s love for mankind is such that the eternal Word uses words of beauty to redeem our souls and transform our hearts.

Today’s Gospel reading contains three of the seven parables: the parables of the weeds among the wheat, the mustard seed, and the yeast (or leaven). Like the parable of the sower and seeds heard last week, all three express something about the growth of the Kingdom and how God’s word brings about that mysterious—and often unseen—growth.

Like the parable of the sower and the seeds, the parable of the weeds among the wheat has an agricultural setting. However, the parable is unique to Matthew’s Gospel and does not appear in the other Gospels. The focus is less on the response of the soil to the sower’s seeds and more on the mystery of evil and how it grows alongside what the Son of Man has planted in the field of the world. In his explanation of the parable to the disciples, Jesus draws a stark contrast between the children of the kingdom and the children of the evil one. Those who hear the word of God and reject it are the children of Satan. Having been offered light, they choose darkness (cf., Jn 1:9-11; 3:19-20).

But, as Saint Augustine noted, what is currently wheat can become a weed, and what is a weed can still become wheat “and no one knows what they will be tomorrow.” It is right to lament the sins committed by sons and daughters of the Church. But we shouldn’t be blind to our own weaknesses, nor to the ravenous appetite of the devil, who “is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Pet 5:8). Mindful of our failings, as the Apostle Paul exhorts the Romans in today’s epistle, we must trust in the Holy Spirit, who “comes to the aid of our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought.”

The parable of the mustard seed, although short, is memorable in its imagery, especially in the comparison between the largeness of the bush (growing to ten feet in height) and the smallness of the seed. Its central meaning is that the works of God often begin in small ways and are usually ignored or missed by the world. The temptation for the children of the Kingdom is to become impatient, forgetting that this tree has now been growing for thousands of years, and will continue to grow until the end of time.

Even shorter is the parable of the yeast, or leaven. From what seems to be of little consequence comes a super abundance, a theme echoing the reality of the Incarnation and the stunning truth of the empty tomb. It is Christ, the lover of mankind, who is the leaven. And it is through his death and Resurrection and by his Body and Blood that we are leavened—transformed and transferred into the always growing kingdom of the Son (Col 1:13).

(This "Opening the Word" column originally appeared in the July 20, 2008, edition of Our Sunday Visitor newspaper.)

[Salvation]

Regnum Christi

Thy Kingdom Come!

U. S. A. | SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

July 20, 2014, Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Matthew 13: 24-43

He put before them 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.´" He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches." He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened." Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables; without a parable he told them nothing. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet: "I will open my mouth to speak in parables; I will proclaim what has been hidden from the foundation of the world." Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." He answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the 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 causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!"

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I come before you wanting to grow in my knowledge of you and in my love for you. I want to show my love by truly loving others as you have loved me. My falls are many; yet I trust in your grace, and I always want to get back up. I trust that your mercy will change my heart, so that over time I will stand more than fall. I stand before you, ready to listen to your words and ready to unite myself more perfectly to your most holy will.

Petition: Lord Jesus, open my heart to your word.

1. Uproot the Weeds: Jesus pours his grace upon each one of us; even a drop is enough to transform our lives. Why, then, are there so many weeds in our gardens? That little ugly guy we call the devil cannot plant weeds without our permission. How are we going to identify the weeds? How are we going to uproot them? First, we need to ask these questions: Do we want to find those nasty weeds? Do we want to do the work necessary to uproot them? Jesus wants to know.

2. Our Hearts Were Made for God: After Jesus talks with us about the weeds, he moves the discussion to a new plane. He wants us to try to penetrate the mystery of his Kingdom, which he wants to plant in our hearts. Our lives need to be constructive more than anything else, meaning we need to be focused more on what Christ is sowing in our hearts than on the weeds we’re striving to uproot (though that is important). A garden is for growing plants, not weeds. Jesus wants us to appreciate that since he is God, he is infinite, and that even though we are finite, we are blessed with immortal souls that are equipped to grasp, desire, identify with and surrender to God and his will. His word is a living, saving word that refashions us in his likeness. Am I hungry for his word and receptive to Him, who is the Word of God?

3. The Birds of the Air Make Nests in its Branches: Christ intends the seed he has planted in our hearts to grow into a tall, healthy tree, where birds of the air find shelter. He wants us to be sowers of his heavenly seed. He wants us to be the means for his word to spread to others. Christ sent his apostles into a hostile world — a world that believed in many gods, a world that had just crucified Christ. Still, the apostles sowed the Gospel message far and wide, and it took root in the hearts of many. The Kingdom of God grew. Now it is our turn. Jesus calls us to be apostles, to sow his Gospel far and wide. We form part of an unbreakable chain of faith. Let’s live our lives as true and fearless apostles. Lord Jesus, how can I be your ever faithful and courageous apostle?

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, pluck out the weeds in my heart and plant your mission within me. Fill me with your thirst for the salvation of souls, and move me to quench your thirst with my every breath.

Resolution: Today I will talk with someone about how we need to build and extend the Kingdom of God.