The 10th Sunday After Pentecost (Proper 11A), July 20, 2008
BCP: Wisdom 12:13, 16-19, Psalm 86 or 86:11-17; Rom. 8:18-25; Matt. 13:24-30, 36-43
RCL: Gen. 28:10-19a and Psalm 139: 1-11, 22-23; or Wisdom 12:13, 16-19 or Isaiah 44:6-8 and Psalm 86:11-17; Rom. 8:12-15; Matt. 13:24-30, 36-43
“You have to take the good with the bad.” Common sense advice: We live in an imperfect world, and however many wonderful experiences we have, we also shall be forced to bear “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.” Evil, as the philosopher Hannah Arendt said, is “banal;” it is an inevitable part of ordinary reality.
In the parable of the weeds, Jesus suggests that just as wheat and weeds must be harvested together, so life must contain both the immoral and the moral. Evil is a given, a part of creation introduced, naturally enough, by “the evil one” (Matt.13:38). And because the entire universe is in “bondage to decay” (Rom. 8:21), we should hardly be surprised if our personal corners of the universe are also tainted. As fallibility seeps into our souls and hardens into sin, some slings and arrows are our own creation.
Happily, Jesus promises that “at the close of the age” (Matt 13:40), there will be relief. Paul agrees, writing triumphantly, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us” (Rom. 8:18). But if we accept this biblical worldview, how are we helped spiritually? Does the parable of the wheat and the weeds strengthen us when we encounter evil?
Well, it can be useful to realize that we can’t always sort out and discard the weeds because this cleansing process would disturb the good wheat. For example, many congregations have bitter, destructive people who are firmly entrenched and difficult to dislodge. In extreme cases, it might be necessary to try to eject them if that is the only way that the congregation can be saved. Usually, though, we will just put up with their negative presence for the sake of the more positive people in the parish.
As for the weeds that we plant in the gardens of our own souls, the Holy Spirit can support us in our struggles. “Lord, you have searched me out and known me; you know my sitting down and my rising up; you discern my thoughts from afar” (Psalm 119:1). In the end, God will separate the wheat from the chaff. So we may be encouraged, in the presence of evil, by Christ’s promise that one day “the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father” (Matt. 13:43).
Look It Up
In Matt. 25:31-46, Jesus presents another vision of how the good will ultimately be separated from the bad, like sheep from goats.
Think About It
What weeds are infecting my daily life right now? How can God help me to deal with them?
Next Sunday
The 11th Sunday After Pentecost (Proper 12A), July 27, 2008
BCP: 1 Kings 3:5-12; Psalm 119:121-136 or 119:129-136; Rom. 8:26-34; Matt. 13:31-33, 44-49a
RCL: Gen. 29:15-28 and Psalm105:1-11, 45b or Psalm128; or 1 Kings 3:5-12 and Psalm 119:129-136; Rom. 8:26-39; Matt. 13:31-33 44-52
