Mt 13, 24-43
“The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed…”
Jesus spoke in parables because the parabolic language allows one to say the deepest things that can be said about God and human beings; that which cannot be expressed except through this language. He attempts with them to present the “divine” in human language, facilitating for the listeners that other dimension of reality that is unseen and cannot be directly stated in conceptual language.
The result is that through parables Jesus presents the best theology of history; a theology that is not reserved for the wise and initiated, but within reach of all; mainly of the humble. Very often, we wise people complicate its extreme simplicity, blur the message, and learn nothing.
Referring now to the vegetable parables, I am still surprised by those photos showing temples built with enormous rock blocks, and now swallowed by the jungle and destroyed stone by stone by the overwhelming force of branches and roots. It is incredible that something so apparently soft and harmless, born from a fragile and insignificant seed, ends up imposing itself over time upon what initially was born to be indestructible.
Jesus believed in the uncontrollable power of the seed and embodied his criterion in this set of singular parables that we call “vegetable parables”. Each one has its own message, but from their collection we can draw two common conclusions: the first and most important is that the Kingdom does not grow by the force of money or the imposition of power, but is sown and grows by the inner strength of the Word.
The second is practical in nature: coexistence in peace and justice will never be achieved if it is based on the coercive power of the state, which dictates laws and threatens punishments. Because coexistence cannot be imposed; rather, it must be sown in the form of forgiveness, compassion, and service. And we are not saying that we can do without laws, but only if we change our hearts can we achieve a full coexistence.
Referring now to the two parables in today’s text, the mustard seed is a dangerous bush that invades the fields where it falls. It is very likely that with it Jesus was showing his confidence that the criteria of the Kingdom would eventually impose themselves upon the old religious structures of Israel, and it is not by chance that he does this before scribes and Pharisees, who were undoubtedly there and undoubtedly felt the blow.
The other parable –the weeds– lends itself to misinterpretation, and in fact, it is often misinterpreted: “In the world there are good and bad people living mixed together, but at the end, God will separate them and condemn the bad ones to the fire.” A very unfortunate interpretation and far from reality. Good and evil are opposing forces that struggle tenaciously within us, and in that struggle, sometimes one wins over the other. No one is free from evil, or as Ruiz de Galarreta said: “There are no righteous and sinners, but only sinners loved by God.”
Miguel Ángel Munárriz Casajús
To read an article by José E. Galarreta on a similar topic, click here