This Sunday we hear the first of five parables in Matthew that deal with the growth of God's kingdom on earth. Jesus' preferred method of preaching was the parable. A parable, like a poem, operates at deeper levels of communication. What Flannery O'Connor said about the 'short story' genre can be said about the parable: 'the story is a way to say something that can't be said any other way.' Jesus' parables put his listeners in touch with their hearts, opening them to the meaning of their lives.
The first parable of this group offers a comparison between the word of God and seed scattered by the sower. Jesus focuses on how to get the word of God to grow in the human heart. That's where the kingdom begins. That's where we find it or lose it. He identifies three obstacles that prevent the seed from growing, that abort the word of God trying to take root in our hearts.
The first, the image of seed falling on a footpath where there's no soil, is about hearing the word of God but never giving ourselves the chance to understand it. Most people on the planet have heard about Jesus Christ and the message of Christianity. While every Christian learned the catechism, not everyone understands it. Personal openness and commitment to God's word is the first step. The next is to educate ourselves more deeply about our faith. Pray and read the bible with a good Catholic commentary. Take a night class in the faith for grown-ups. Our faith needs healthy nourishment if it's to survive in the non-Christian culture that surrounds us today.
Another obstacle that prevents seed from taking root is rocky ground. Seed sown in rocky ground is short-lived. There's not enough earth for it to put down roots. Many people are initially fascinated by God's word, the story of Jesus and spirituality. But too often their enthusiasm doesn't last. Some of those who become Catholic through the RCIA at Easter fall away within a year. Many good folk are initially attracted by a charismatic personality in the faith community and want to become more Catholic than the Pope. Again, their enthusiasm wanes and disappears in due time. Why? The hang-loose attitude to the faith they find among those in the community, who appear not to take it seriously, rubs off on them. When you take something seriously you develop certain disciplines and practices to make you appreciate it better. Look at how serious athletes practice their sport! Jack Nicalaus, Tiger Woods or Rory McIlroy never play golf in a hang-loose manner. So, too, if we are to grow God's word in our hearts we need to listen to it seriously Sunday after Sunday, and be serious about putting it into practice during the week.
Thorns are the final obstacle to the seed's growth. They choke any development. Jesus compares the thorns to the voices of our secular culture. They will prevent spiritual growth if they become more important to us than God, our faith, spirituality. We need to pay attention to the needs of our families - house, mortgage, money-making, work, saving, health etc.. But they ought not obscure and compromise that which should be dominant in our lives as Catholics: God's word. Jesus is saying that the word ought to be the central and defining dynamic of life for us - just golf is for the pros. I know many Catholics who order and organize their other interests around God's word. But there may be many more that do not.
Jesus, in this parable, lays out the central and organizing principle of life for anybody who wants to follow him. It doesn't happen during a few minutes on Sunday. It has to be worked at during the week. What kind of soil needs to be in place for God's word to bear fruit? I offer five qualities: understanding, a keen sense of prioritization, discipline, practice, and perseverance.
PASTOR EMERITUS
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