Astonishing growth!

Jesus was a master at telling parables, but there was always a twist

WORD OF FAITH: A breakdown of each week's upcoming Sunday readings to better understand the Word of God at Mass.

In our bioregion, we are approaching summer and the readings are in sync with the season of planting and growth. They help us experience the work and wonder of tending a garden or a farm. Jesus knew how to connect with the crowds who followed him; many of them were people of the land who knew the tasks of farming.

Jesus took the everyday things of life — seeds, light, salt, yeast, grain — and used them to teach about the Kingdom of God. Jesus was a master at telling parables. Initially, these stories engaged his audience with something they knew well. But then there was a twist to a parable: the story teased or surprised or shocked the hearers into a new understanding or awareness.

In the first parable of the man who scattered seeds, the whole business of seeds growing is astonishing, just like the kingdom. The man sows the seeds and goes about his daily life and the seeds mature into grain that can be harvested to feed the community! The twist is that the man “knows not how” this miracle happens. Perhaps we are jaded by our scientific knowledge, but pondering this gift of life and photosynthesis could also astound us! Can we see the miracle of the kingdom happening in our midst? Can we be open to the many ways that God brings about its growth and flourishing? God gives the seed and the harvest. Ultimately, the kingdom is God’s. We do our part and wait. We do not bring about the kingdom by our efforts alone, but we need to be aware of its growth among us!

In the second parable, Jesus focuses on the tiny mustard seed, which is slightly bigger than a grain of sand and can develop into a plant nine feet tall. The plant creates amazing growth and astonishing extravagance. Jesus chooses the tiniest of seeds, so maybe his hearers weren’t impressed at first. But the twist is that in the kingdom, mighty growth comes from small, insignificant beginnings. This plant “springs up to become the largest of plants, so that the birds can dwell in its shade.” Where is the kingdom growing like this in our lives, in our families, in our parishes? We need to pay attention to those small acts of kindness, those soft gentle words, and those seemingly unimportant ways of living the works of mercy. The kingdom finds its greatest strength in the least and the lowly.

These themes from the parables are also introduced to us in the First Reading from the Prophet Ezekiel. He is probably writing from exile in Babylon, where he and hundreds of Jews have been taken. Bereft in a foreign land, Ezekiel reflects on the plight of his people and on what has brought them to such a terrible state. In our reading, he holds out hope for the restoration of the people. The mighty cedar is a symbol for God’s people. The tree is being pruned and re-planted. It thrives and grows and becomes a safe haven for every kind of bird. However, Ezekiel makes it very clear that this is God’s doing, “I the LORD bring low the high tree, lift high the lowly tree, wither up the green tree, and make the withered tree bloom.” 

Jesus taps into his tradition to create parables that illustrate the workings of God in creating the kingdom. The kingdom is mysterious, filled with hope, laced with challenge. Like the mustard seed, it calls us to be attentive to the slow and dramatic workings of God among us. It asks us to be wowed with wonder at how small, seemingly insignificant people and situations can become the vital building blocks of the kingdom.