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Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time A
July 16, 2017
Reading I: Isaiah 55:10-11
Responsorial Psalm: 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14
Reading II: Romans 8:18-23
Gospel: Matthew 13:1-23
Reading 1 Is 55:10-11
Thus says the LORD:
Just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
and do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
so shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
my word shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14
R. (Lk 8:8) The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.
You have visited the land and watered it;
greatly have you enriched it.
God's watercourses are filled;
you have prepared the grain.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.
Thus have you prepared the land: drenching its furrows,
breaking up its clods,
Softening it with showers,
blessing its yield.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.
You have crowned the year with your bounty,
and your paths overflow with a rich harvest;
The untilled meadows overflow with it,
and rejoicing clothes the hills.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.
The fields are garmented with flocks
and the valleys blanketed with grain.
They shout and sing for joy.
R. The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.
Reading 2 Rom 8:18-23
Brothers and sisters:
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing
compared with the glory to be revealed for us.
For creation awaits with eager expectation
the revelation of the children of God;
for creation was made subject to futility,
not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it,
in hope that creation itself
would be set free from slavery to corruption
and share in the glorious freedom of the children of God.
We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now;
and not only that, but we ourselves,
who have the firstfruits of the Spirit,
we also groan within ourselves
as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower.
All who come to him will have life forever.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Mt 13:1-23
On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea.
Such large crowds gathered around him
that he got into a boat and sat down,
and the whole crowd stood along the shore.
And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying:
"A sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path,
and birds came and ate it up.
Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil.
It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep,
and when the sun rose it was scorched,
and it withered for lack of roots.
Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it.
But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit,
a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.
Whoever has ears ought to hear."
The disciples approached him and said,
"Why do you speak to them in parables?"
He said to them in reply,
"Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven
has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.
To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;
from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables, because
they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.
Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:
You shall indeed hear but not understand,
you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people,
they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes,
lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts and be converted,
and I heal them.
"But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear.
Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people
longed to see what you see but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
"Hear then the parable of the sower.
The seed sown on the path is the one
who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it,
and the evil one comes and steals away
what was sown in his heart.
The seed sown on rocky ground
is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy.
But he has no root and lasts only for a time.
When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word,
he immediately falls away.
The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word,
but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word
and it bears no fruit.
But the seed sown on rich soil
is the one who hears the word and understands it,
who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold."
http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/071617.cfm
Foreword
I have just read Part I of Ari's post "Where do we go from here?" http://www.catholica.com.au/forum/index.php?id=201130 and I find his summary of ideas very exciting. I had begun the day with the thought that this initial image Jeshua used of planting the kingdom as a seed contained answers to such questions as whether he intended an institution which might grow into a religious empire, and why the start was scheduled to happen in that time rather than in ours when communication is more efficient.
The point is that Jeshua planted an idea. An idea is like a seed: it germinates over time, it grows into something wonderful, it bears fruit in its maturity, and it adapts over generations to the changing conditions of its environment.
So I will continue with the thoughts I've already assembled, but they will be read, I hope, against the backdrop of Ari's articles.
Some Pointers for Field Workers
Foreword
I have just read Part I of Ari's post "Where do we go from here?" http://www.catholica.com.au/forum/index.php?id=201130 and I find his summary of ideas very exciting. I had begun the day with the thought that this initial image Jeshua used of planting the kingdom as a seed might contain answers to such frequently-asked questions as whether he intended an institution which might grow into a religious empire, and why the start was scheduled to happen in that time rather than in ours when communication is more efficient.
I think the basic answer to both questions is that Jeshua planted an idea. An idea is like a seed which is planted in the soil of this earth: it germinates over time, it grows into something wonderful, it bears fruit in its maturity, and it adapts over generations to the changing conditions of its environment - oh, and I should add it needs regular and sometimes severe pruning to keep it in shape and fruitful.
So I will continue with the thoughts I've already assembled, but they will be read, I hope, against the backdrop of Ari's articles.
On planting the kingdom
Chapter 13 of Matthew's gospel contains a collection of parables about the kingdom which is parallel to the collection in Mark 4. Comparing the two, I notice that Mark gives a more prominent place to the parable of the mustard seed, and in his introduction to that story we get an idea of what is going on here: [Jeshua] said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? (Mk 4:30) I imagine Jeshua wondering aloud and asking his friends what images might work best, for he had some fine points to make about his project.
Each of these images expresses a characteristic of the kingdom, and yet as parables they are mere sketches, line drawings, the detail to be filled in over time and in different ways according to circumstances. That's how it is with an idea.
Sometimes the images express opposite characteristics. Luke follows the parable of the mustard seed which "grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches" with the image of a measure of yeast "which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened." (Lk 13). So the kingdom may be as obvious as a large tree and yet act as secretly and mysteriously as yeast. Further on he declares that the kingdom will not come with signs you can see 'for the kingdom of God is inside you.' (Lk 17:20. J B Phillips trans.)
It would be useful today to look through the whole of chapter 13, perhaps in the J B Phillips version that can be found here https://www.ccel.org/bible/phillips/CP01Matthew2.htm The layout makes it easier to see the collection of stories as a whole, and the headings inserted are a useful guide. The modern translation is refreshing. So refreshing in fact that I will reproduce this first parable here in the J B Phillips version:
13:1-9 - It was on the same day that Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the lake-side. Such great crowds collected round him that he went aboard a small boat and sat down while all the people stood on the beach. He told them a great deal in parables, and began: "There was once a man who went out to sow. In his sowing some of the seeds fell by the road-side and the birds swooped down and gobbled them up. Some fell on stony patches where they had very little soil. They sprang up quickly in the shallow soil, but when the sun came up they were scorched by the heat and withered away because they had no roots. Some seeds fell among thorn-bushes and the thorns grew up and choked the life out of them. But some fell on good soil and produced a crop - some a hundred times what had been sown, some sixty and some thirty times. The man who has ears should use them!"
Now let us look at some elements of this first parable about the "kingdom".
Jeshua opens with his focus on the listeners. In fact it's an in-your-face challenge, even if couched in the congenial imagery of a field worker sowing grain by hand. Three degrees of resistance are opposed by three degrees of fruitfulness – 30-fold, 60-fold and 100-fold. These mind-boggling levels of productivity point as much to high quality seed as to good fertile soil.
We are so used to this story that to hear it again is mind-numbing. At the same time the logic of the explanations in the three gospels is not all that obvious. The first kind of resistance is perhaps the most common and therefore the most important. Let's move straight to the explanation Jeshua gave:
The seed sown on the path [refers to] the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart.
First, I note the seed is the 'word of the kingdom'. Mark is direct: 'The sower sows the word', while Luke is explicit: 'The seed is the word of God'. Phillips calls it 'the message of the kingdom'.
This person hears the word without understanding. First, how do you hear something and not understand? Probably because you were not paying attention. Hearing may be passive hearing while listening implies paying attention. These days radio audiences are not called 'hearers' but 'listeners' because broadcasters want their audience to be active in listening. Perhaps the translators could use 'listen' a little more often in the gospels.
Then there's that strange word 'understanding' – strange because it's not clear what 'standing under' something has to do with comprehending an idea. Actually it's 'standing inside of' rather than 'standing beneath'. (It's a very olde English word, 10th C, and 'under' apparently comes from 'inter' meaning 'within'.) So it means 'to get inside the idea', which lines up nicely with the Greek word used here: sunientos which means 'putting it together' (as in synthesis).
As we might say: this first type hears of the message, perhaps even listens to it well enough, but fails to put it together in a way that would connect with other values of life. In short, he doesn't “get it” because he doesn't think about it enough!
It's very interesting to note that Jeshua doesn't blame this listener, but blames 'the evil one', whatever that might mean. If we think of the 'evil one' not as a personal devil but as the weight of human limitation, we might conclude that this most common failure is both the greatest obstacle and the least culpable. In other words, Jeshua accepted the fact that most people don't think much about the larger issues because they don't realise the value of what they are offered. The upshot is they simply get robbed of their precious gift. Divine patience is showing through here. I imagine Jeshua is sharing lessons he had learned from experience to strengthen his disciples against future discouragement.
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A word now about the methodology of this extraordinary rabbi. The disciples immediately ask him: "Why do you speak to them in parables?"
The answer is surprisingly divisive. I wonder if this was the mood that day by the lake, or does this insertion reflect the atmosphere at the time the gospels were put together some three or four decades later. Was it Jeshua choosing to give preferential treatment to the few he had chosen while damning the rest for their stupid blindness, or was the early community coming to terms with the fact that growth had slowed? Looking to understand this change of circumstances they found references in the ancient prophets which taught them that this resistance was to be expected. In fact this inertia is the most common enemy they face, the obstacle they will meet everywhere, for people as a whole are callous and generally hardened against spiritual things. So the approach must be through story telling and puzzles to engage their interest and also to protect the divine mysteries from the ridicule of stupid buffoons.
This is how Phillips treats this section:
13:10 - At this the disciples approached him and asked, "Why do you talk to them in parables?"
13:11-15 - "Because you have been given the chance to understand the secrets of the kingdom of Heaven," replied Jesus, "but they have not. For when a man has something, more is given to him till he has plenty. But if he has nothing even his nothing will be taken away from him. [This is axiomatic and all too common in our own experience – My comment.] This is why I speak to them in these parables; because they go through life with their eyes open, but see nothing, and with their ears open, but understand nothing of what they hear. They are the living fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecy which says: 'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the heart of this people has grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their heart and turn, so that I should heal them'.
Where do we go from here? The question arises as to the meaning or intention of this story. We've long been subjected to a tradition in which those who fell within these three categories were berated with warnings of damnation unless they changed their way of life. But today I wonder if it was ever intended as a cautionary tale. If we take out the Isaiah inserts it is remarkably benign, a matter-of-fact description of the way things are. It describes the kingdom in terms of a seeding that is generous, even carefree and unrestrained, rather than carefully targeted as a parsimonious hand would target it. It is broadcast across the area and some falls in unsuitable places. The conditions that make them unproductive are detailed simply as facts, almost as excuses. Likewise what falls on good soil produces astounding harvests, but unevenly – again with no reason given. It's just a fact. The yield is uneven.
I don't think we can conclude that there is no moral hidden in the story. It is, at least, a challenge, and in its closing sentence the challenge is to trust in the power of that word which will produce such a remarkable yield.
If we think of it as illustrating Jeshua's strategy, then we might say it does not allow for exclusions. There is no instruction to choose carefully where you cast the seed or limit the sowing to soil that shows promise. Here and in other parables it is implied that any such selection is not our job, but God's. Next Sunday the story will be about the farmer's dilemma when an enemy sows weeds in his wheat, and the instruction is to leave it be for only at the harvest will the bad be separated from the good. In view of the need which some feel to identify who is a worthy or valid member of the kingdom and who is not, this will give us something to think about.
Today's story is more about the target audience and how to reach them. For modern communities of christians, large or small, it is a matter of priorities, of how to use resources. For starters, focussing on an in-group seems to be excluded. Secondly, the approach is to present your message, God's word, in a way that engages the interest of those ready to listen, without threats or blame. Some are too dumb to get it, some too careless, and some too busy getting ahead in the world. But there are plenty who will absorb the message and bear fruit beyond your wildest dreams. That's just the way it is.
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I wonder can we draw some further conclusions for the communities. The first priority for the farmer would be to provide fertilizer and water for the crop growing in the good soil, but a certain type of person, very serious about everything he does, would also resolve to plough closer to the path, to bring in heavy equipment to rip out those rocks and dig that ground deeper, and to get those thorns under control, whatever it takes. In the religious field this kind of zealotry can be very damaging. It is not the way of Jeshua as outlined in this first key parable. The world continues to function in its own way, and the transformation takes place almost unnoticed, as will be seen in the following parables.
There are seven parables in this collection. Are they a random collection highlighting some curious things about the 'kingdom', or are they deliberately chosen to illustrate essential features of a community in which the Spirit is acknowledged and active? 1. Sowing the seed on different and indifferent soils; 2. Tolerating weeds planted by the enemy; 3. A tiny seed that grows into a tree big enough to accommodate nesting birds; 4. A spoonful of yeast acting mysteriously to leaven the whole batch of dough; 5. A man who sells everything to buy the whole field in which he has discovered a treasure; 6. Likewise for a pearl of great value; 7. A net catching fish of all kinds which are sorted at the end of the day.
It's an untidy collection. The images are too disparate to allow for the construction of a coherent and harmonious edifice. But some features stand out: tolerance of diversity and alien elements, development by organic growth, hidden forces or energies at work that also provide powerful motivation for some, and finally, the sorting out of the unsuitable is to be left to the end of the day. I used to think it was unfortunate that these images had gone flat like yeast that was past the use-by date. Now I'm inclined to think that the images can still be translated into modern conceptualisations; the problem is the church has lost contact with its origins.
Even in this last story, when the fish are being sorted and the bad are thrown away, I noticed that the Greek word translated as 'bad', sapros, means rotten as when fruit is over-ripe and worthless, or in the case of the fish, unsuitable for human consumption. When speaking of 'bad' as evil and immoral poneros is more often used, as in Mt 9:4 'Why are you thinking evil in your hearts?'. 'Bad' seems to be our favourite three-letter word. It is applied to anything from a poorly designed curve in the road to an evil disposition that can kill in cold blood. It's disappointing to find it used indiscriminately in our translations when it appears the gospel writers were more circumspect.
Postscript
Much of what I've written here is in the nature of an exploration on my part. I hope it can help others to do a bit of digging for themselves. There's an invitation at the end of chapter 13 couched in terms of one “who can produce from his store both the new and the old."