New Testament scholar Karoline Lewis writes that parables are for exploration, to engage the imagination, and for discoveries about how faith works.
At first glance, the two parables about seed seem so simple, and yet… What is being planted? Who is the sower? What will the harvest be like? Then what? Are we being called to sew indiscriminately, not concerned about what will happen, and just go about our daily routine? Are we to expect a harvest or meant to witness who benefits from the results? The more I read and reread these parables, the more my imagination is engaged.
As we live in these troubling times, I find myself realizing how important it is for us to keep on spreading the gospel as best we can, trusting that the kingdom of God is sprouting and growing and producing harvests that will yield both ripeness and shelter, no matter how small such things may seem. It doesn’t seem to matter how small my faith may seem to me or how little difference I seem to be able to make in the world around me.
It also seems to me that I am witnessing faith sprouting and growing and producing harvests in new ways I never dreamed possible.
Teller of parables, help us to explore, imagine and discover. Amen. —