A Chance To Change And To Grow!

(Homily 16^th Sunday in Ordinary Time Yr-A)

          There is a traditional belief that the Christian God manifests his power and omnipotence through loving forgiveness and mercy. He does neither show up his power by extirpating the bad and evil people nor by annihilating his enemies. God’s approach towards humanity is that of Mercy and Love. A deeper reflection on the readings of this Sunday brings to our consideration the fact that the predominant motive and the recurrent theme revolve around God’s omnipotence demonstrated in a paradoxical manner, because His omnipotence is an omnipotence of Love and Mercy. In the first reading, the writer maintains that Yahweh’s strength is the basis of his saving justice and his sovereignty over all makes Him lenient to all. He is mild in judgment and governs us with great lenience. The Psalmist equally confirmed it thus: “Lord you are kind and forgiving, rich in faithful love for all who call upon you…God of tenderness and mercy, slow to anger, rich in faithful love” (Ps. 86:5.15). The Gospel narrative is nothing but the revelation of God’s patience and mercy made manifest in Christ. Thus, the patience and mercy of God is for us a chance to change and to grow, and this is obtainable by the power of the Holy Spirit (second reading). The Holy Spirit is the source of the power of the kingdom’s growth, expansion and transformation.

          In the first reading (Wis. 12:13.16-19) the Wise man started by admonishing us with the following words: “There is no God other than you”. The sage said this at a time when all men at least believed in divinities, if not in God. But today we battle with so many ideologies that tend to relegate God to the background, for instance, there is the current of secularism that discourages belief in any God. The modern man has modeled a god of his own, and today progress, pleasure and science are man-made gods. On the other hand, our attention is more on the admonition of the sacred author, he admonished us to be just, because God is just, he loves all, both the good and the bad. He is a merciful and just God, for this the sacred author says: “For your strength is the basis of your saving justice, and your sovereignty over all makes you lenient to all” (v.16) and again, “But you, controlling your strength, are mild in judgment, and govern us with great lenience, for you have only to will, and your power is there” (v.18). We are therefore invited to imitate the gesture of God, who is patient and merciful to all: “By acting thus, you have taught your people that the upright must be kindly to his fellows, and you have given your children the good hope that after sins you will grant repentance” (v.19). Thus, an upright person must love all, both the good and the bad, imitating the comportment of God, who is patient and merciful. The attitude and patience of the Owner of the field in the parable of the wheat and the weed speaks volumes for us. On the other hand, this passage invites the true sons and daughters of God to be people of hope, because God offers to all, the possibility of repentance after sin, a chance to change and to grow.

          The Gospel of today (Mt. 13:24-43) presents before us three parables with which Jesus intends to illustrate some aspects of the Kingdom of Heaven He has come to inaugurate on earth. The kingdom of Heaven is nothing but the project of salvation that God in his infinite love wants to realize through Christ. The “kingdom” which in its earthly phase, initially is identified with the community of the disciples of Christ, and therefore with the Church; has both an existential and eschatological dimensions. However, in order to understand properly the three parables, it is pertinent to underscore some vital points, thus situating us into the context of the Jews at that time: ►First, the Jews were waiting for the Messiah, the promised Savior, but they had a wrong idea of Him, for they were waiting for Him like a powerful King and a just judge, who will chase away evil and bad people, and welcome the just and the honest. Even the apostles James and John in that episode where and when they did not receive Him in a Samaritan village, asked: “Lord, do you want us to call fire from heaven to consume them?” (Lk. 9:54). John the Baptist too, announced that the Messiah has “His winnowing-fan is in his hand; he will clear his threshing-floor and gather his wheat into his barn; but the chaff he will burn in a fire that will never go out” (Mt. 3:12). But under these aspects Jesus disappointed all, because he presented himself as Merciful and Meek, to the extent that John the Baptist sent ambassadors to ask him: “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to expect someone else?” (Mt. 11:3). ►Second, it was circulated among the Jews the opinion that the Kingdom of the future Messiah would have been glorious, that it would have been imposed clamorously and it would have triumphed over all kingdoms on the earth founded on injustice and quest for power. But Jesus chose the ways of humility and mercy. With regards to the first idea according to which the Messiah would have been a powerful figure, Jesus clarifies the idea with the parable of the wheat and the weed, on which we would like to give more importance, because it is the  most important in the Gospel passage of today.

          The kingdom of heaven can be compared to a man that planted good seed. The kingdom of heaven can be compared to the mustard seed. The Kingdom of heaven can be compared to the yeast. These initial sentences of the three parables are enough to make us understand that Jesus is speaking about a kingdom of heaven that is here on earth. Only on earth in fact, there is space for weeds and for growth. Nothing of these will be found in the future and eschatological kingdom, but only God who will be all in all. By means of these three parables Jesus traced the situation of the Church on earth. They are three essential parables for the understanding of the nature, the duty and the destiny of the Church. In the parables of the Mustard seed and the Yeast Jesus explains how the Kingdom of God, though small and insignificant, has potentials for growth and the transforming force to change the world.

          First is the parable of the wheat and weed, a man sowed good seed in his field and while everybody was asleep his enemy came and sowed weed among the wheat. In fact, this parable raises the common question we often ask: How come the good and the bad people exist? Or even more precisely, why does God permit that the good and the bad, the wheat and weeds exist together? Why doesn’t God intervene and remove the bad people? Little wonder, the servants in this parable asked the owner of the field, “do you want us to go and remove the weeds?” But the owner of the field responded in the negative. The focal point and distinguishing factor of this parable is the perspective of the owner of the camp and that of the servants. The servants are of the idea to remove the weed immediately. But the Master has a contrary opinion; he prefers to wait till the time of harvest. Here, the teaching of Jesus is glaring, it entails that in the world, good and bad people co-exist, and good and evil will also co-exist. It is not our task to do the separation. For the existential space between the planting and harvesting time is a period of Mercy and forgiveness. Even inside the Church, among his disciples there can be and there is the mixture of wheat and weeds, faithfulness and unfaithfulness, good and bad commingle. The community of perfect people does not exist on this earth. The Church in se is holy, but it is made up of men, sinners, and as such always in need of conversion and of purification.

          The other two parables were very much understood by the disciples unlike the parable of the wheat and weeds, little wonder, they disciples when they were alone with Jesus asked Him to explain the parable of the weeds in the field. In response Jesus explained to them that the Sower is He Himself, the good seed indicates the children of the Kingdom, the bad seed indicates the children of evil, the field is the world and the harvest is the end of the world. However, much later in the history of the Church, theologians identified the field with the Church, where the good and the bad co-exist. Jesus through this parable expresses and reveals the image of God, that is a patient God, ever-forgiving and merciful, a God who waits! He does not want the death of the wicked, instead let him repent and live (Ez. 33:11) Why? Because He wants to offer us time for transformation, for He knows that the bad can become good. This present time is an opportune moment to extirpate every form of weed and evil in us and enrich ourselves of virtues and good works. Let us make every effort not to waste this time or let it pass us by, because ‘who has time does not wait for time’.            

          Second is the parable of the mustard seed and it replicates how the kingdom of heaven grows, just as the smallest of seeds grows into the largest plant. Jesus in the parable of the Mustard seed explains how the Kingdom of God, though small, will expand prodigiously and become a shelter for multitudes of people. By that Jesus intends to teach us that the Kingdom of heaven, the community of the disciples (the Church), is small in its initial phase on earth, but it possesses vitality, an incredible capacity of growth and of expansion.

          Third is the parable of the yeast, and it indicates the growth of the Kingdom, but a different growth, not necessarily in extension, but in intensity. The parable indicates the transforming force that the kingdom of heaven possesses in renewing all, making the multitude of men into bread to be presented to God. While the first parable tells us to wait, the parable of the leaven or the yeast tells us what to do as we wait, we are to mix in love with all, avoiding the temptation of separation, division and categorization into good and bad. In the Old Testament, the word “leaven” is a symbol of evil, leaven corrupts. In this sense, we may say that “a little bad can ruin all the good”. Some exegetes have said that this parable is not about bread but about love. As modern-day yeast changes flour into bread dough, so too, love changes our lives, we are therefore invited to spread love until it touches everyone.

          In the three parables narrated by Jesus to explain the mystery of the kingdom of Heaven, therein we encounter some contrasts: ●In the parable of the weeds in the field, the contrast is between the servants and the owner of the field. The first in their impatient zeal wanted to remove immediately the weed, in order to enable the seed to grow undisturbed. But the owner said no, he prefers that they grow together until the time of harvest when there will be separation. By this, Jesus teaches us that in the big camp/field of the world and in the community of his disciples, the good and the bad co-exist. ●In the parable of the Mustard seed, the contrast is the smallness of the seed and its capacity to grow and to expand. ●In the parable of the Yeast, the contrast is between the hidden presence, unobserved of the yeast and its extraordinary strength for transformation that enlivens the flour.

          In the same vein, the three parables sound like an admonition and as such call our attention to some vital points: *First, we are not to block the force and the vitality of the Kingdom of God inside us; we have to correspond with the divine grace and try to remove the weeds inside us. *Second, we have to become more like the yeast, to ferment with goodness and love those around us, we have to be like small seeds of grace that grow and expand. *Third, we do not have to abuse the presence of God that tolerates our in-congruence and our infidelity. *Fourth, the separation of the good from evil will come, but it will be done by God himself, the just and impartial Judge, let us not become God’s Chief Justice.

          In the second reading (Rm. 8:26-27) St. Paul presented the Holy Spirit in action, in the heart of the faithful. The Spirit is our great Helper in our weakness and our great Intercessor when we do not know how to pray. Not only that, He makes prayers for us in accordance to the will of God. Thus, in connection to the parables of today’s Gospel, we may well affirm that the kingdom of God still maintains its extraordinary force, capacity of expansion and transformation, irrespective of the imminent evil by the power of the Spirit. Indeed, with particular reference to the parable of the yeast, the yeast per excellence is the power of the Holy Spirit that is at work in the Kingdom. In all, the first parable invites us to a patient waiting, the second admonishes us not to see the waiting time as a moment of stagnation, but of growth and the third invites us to allow the power of the Spirit to increase His love in us. The Holy Spirit is the source of the power of the kingdom’s growth, expansion and transformation, for He comes to the aid of the members of that kingdom.

          Drawing the issue further, these passages from the book of Wisdom and the Gospel invariably invite us to shun the temptation and tendency of dividing and categorizing people into good and bad, for no one can claim to be completely good without any fault, or completely bad or evil. Again, we are invited to avoid the temptation of rigorism, of intolerance and intransigence towards others. We often ask for comprehension and mercy when we go wrong, but many a times we find it difficult to understand and show mercy to others when they go wrong. Furthermore, we need to avoid forming ideas that are too negative of the world and a pessimistic vision of life. And lastly, there is need of avoiding the temptation of abusing God’s clemency and patience, by procrastinating continually the commitment to conversion and the transformation of one’s life. For this, our evangelist admonished us thus: “Anyone who has ears should listen” (Mt. 13:43). And St. Paul puts it in a more dramatic manner thus: “Are you not disregarding his abundant goodness, tolerance and patience, failing to realize that this generosity of God is meant to bring you to repentance?” (Rm. 2:4).

          Against the backdrop of today’s parables and the readings, is the fact that there cannot be a perfect and spotless humanity made up of only the good people. Good and bad will co-exist till the end of the world, like in the parable of the Wheat and the weeds. Even the Kingdom of God on earth (the Church) is a mixture of good and bad people. As a matter of fact, when we look around in our present world, we see that evil and people who tend towards evil abound. It is true that in this world there are many weeds, but also there is the wheat, even though they may not be very much evident. However, the underlining point is that no matter how evil thrive, it cannot prevail over good. Indeed, no evil power can stop the Kingdom of God’s prodigious vitality and extraordinary capacity of transforming consciences in the world. The Good News of today is that the Lord is imploring us to change and he's giving us the time to do so. He has given us a chance to change and to grow. Let us ask the Lord to help us to collaborate with His grace at work in us, so as to continue to make effort to grow and become matured and better Christians and children of His Kingdom. Amen!!!

(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)