Three Scandalous Parables!
Year A – 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Matthew 13:24–43: the parables of the darnel, the mustard seed and the leaven
‘The kingdom of heaven is like…’. After the parable of the sower, which we heard last Sunday, today’s Gospel presents us with three more parables that reveal the mystery of the presence of the kingdom of heaven among us. We are in chapter 13 of the Gospel according to Matthew, in what is commonly known as the ‘discourse in parables’.
Jesus continues to speak through the wisdom of parables, which is accessible to everyone, because the kingdom of God is not an abstract reality enclosed within philosophical concepts or theological formulations. It is a living reality, close to all who have ‘eyes to see’ and ‘ears to hear’.
1. The parable of the wheat and the darnel:
the scandal of evil!
A field, the sowing of good wheat and the unpleasant surprise of darnel! Darnel is a plant that closely resembles wheat, but its dark grains are toxic and can have narcotic effects. The text speaks of ‘darnels’ in the plural, as though to remind us how numerous are the forms in which evil manifests itself in the field of the world.
We too know this bitter surprise very well: in the reality of the world, the Church, the family and our own lives.
Our first reaction is to question the landowner: ‘Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?’ Sowing the seed was, after all, the responsibility of the master of the house. Are you not, Lord, the Creator of a beautiful and good world? Where, then, does evil come from? God is almost always the first to be accused in our complaints.
Our second reaction is immediate: ‘Do you want us to go and pull it up?’ We want a field cleared of every weed! But the landowner’s answer is disconcerting: ‘No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow together until the harvest.’
But how can this be?! Does the prophet not say, ‘Your people will all be righteous’ (Isaiah 60:21)? Did John the Baptist not say that the axe was already laid to the root of the trees and that the Messiah would come to baptise with fire, to gather the wheat and burn the chaff in a fire that would never go out (cf. Matthew 3:10–12)?
The apostles ask for an explanation of the parable, perhaps not because they have failed to understand it, but because they find it difficult to accept. And so do we!
Our dream, in a certain sense, is the dream of the prophet Elijah and of John the Baptist: to burn the darnel and the chaff immediately. Yet, as Saint Augustine reminds us, God alone truly knows those who belong to him. Good and evil, in fact, do not coexist only in the world; they also pass through the heart of each one of us. To uproot evil too hastily might mean wounding or destroying the good that is still growing.
There have never been any shortage of ‘zealots’ in the history of the Church. How many condemnations, pronounced without discernment, have ended up treating everyone alike and causing tragic consequences! This is why God reserves the role of judge for himself. God’s judgement seeks to justify and save; ours, all too often, condemns and kills.
2. The parable of the mustard seed:
the scandal of smallness!
Immediately afterwards, Jesus adds another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed […] the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is bigger than the other plants in the garden and becomes a tree.’
The black mustard plant of Palestine, from which a very flavoursome condiment is obtained, can grow into a large shrub, reaching a height of three or even four metres, especially in the region around the Sea of Galilee. Through the contrast between ‘the smallest of all the seeds’ and ‘the largest of the garden plants’, Jesus wishes to emphasise the astonishing growth of the kingdom of God.
There is, however, something unusual about this comparison. Mustard is a tenacious, almost invasive plant: its tiny seeds spread easily and reach everywhere. Moreover, in the Bible, mustard appears only in the words of Jesus, in this parable and in his teaching about the faith capable of moving mountains (cf. Matthew 17:20).
Perhaps Jesus is also alluding to the prophecy of Ezekiel 17:22–23, in which God takes a tender shoot from the top of a cedar and plants it on a high mountain of Israel. It becomes a magnificent cedar, beneath whose branches all the birds come to dwell, symbolising the peoples of the earth.
Yet the smallness of the mustard seed could not satisfy the expectations of Jesus’ listeners, who were awaiting a visible, powerful and imposing messianic kingdom. This smallness scandalises us too, because we would prefer clearer and more extraordinary signs of God’s presence.
3. The parable of the leaven:
the scandal of humility!
‘He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like the leaven a woman took and mixed into three measures of flour, until the whole batch was leavened.”’
Three measures of flour correspond to about forty kilograms: an enormous quantity, capable of feeding a great many people. Yet that entire mass is made to rise by a small amount of leaven, which works silently and disappears into the dough.
The kingdom, hidden within history, is leavening the world. It is a discreet, humble, gentle and mysterious presence, which contrasts with our desire for visibility, our longing to be recognised and our wish to matter in public life.
The kingdom, by contrast, makes no noise.
This is God. This is love!
For our reflection this week
Let us now try to apply these parables to our lives.
The parable of the darnel warns us against the temptation to demand a community made up exclusively of perfect people. This temptation can reveal itself in our intolerance towards those who make mistakes, but also in our perfectionism, which is unable to accept our personal limitations.
Do I believe in God the Father, who is patient and merciful towards everyone?
The parable of the mustard seed warns us against the temptation of greatness. In our imagination, God is above all the Almighty; yet, in Jesus, he made himself as vulnerable as we are.
Do I believe in Jesus, who made himself small and chose humble means to establish the kingdom?
The parable of the leaven warns us against the temptation of seeking attention and prominence. It invites us to act with humility and without seeking recognition.
Do I believe in the action of the Spirit, who is quietly leavening the dough of the world?
Fr Manuel João Pereira Correia, MCCJ
Fr. Manuel João, comboni missionary
Sunday Reflection
from the womb of my whale, ALS
Our cross is the pulpit of the Word
