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Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field." He answered and said to them: "He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"- Matthew 13:36-43
On Saturday, we read that Jesus gave another parable to the crowds,
saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took
and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but
when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so
that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." Another
parable He spoke to them: "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a
woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all
leavened." All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables;
and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be
fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."
Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His
disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the tares
of the field." He answered and said to them: "He who sows the good seed
is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons
of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The
enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age,
and the reapers are the angels. Therefore as the tares are gathered and
burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of
Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom
all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will
cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing
of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom
of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" Jesus gives to the disciples in private the explanation of the parable He told to the crowds, just as He had also done for the parable of the Sower, the first of the parables He began teaching. See Matthew 13:1-23. In today's reading, Jesus is explaining to the disciples the parable of the tares of the field, found in Friday's reading. A note in my study Bible on this parable explains that it builds on the previous parable of the Sower, but here the focus is on the enemy who has sown his seed among the seed (or word) of Christ. My study Bible says that as falsehood came after truth and false prophets came after the true prophets, so the Antichrist will come after Christ. Just as the weeds in the parable appear similar to the wheat, so the devil fashions his lies to resemble the truth, as is the case in heresies. That the devil sows while men slept indicates that heresy and lies creep in when people are apathetic.
Jesus' explanation of the parable of the Wheat and Tares makes it very clear that He speaking about judgment. As we reviewed in the commentary on the reading in which He first gave the parable (here), there is a type of weed which closely resembles wheat, but it's toxic for human beings. So, first of all, we could think of the seed as that which grows something; there is a clear message here about what type of crop is produced. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warned His disciples of false prophets to come, in what is a parallel teaching to this parable. He said, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire" (Matthew 7:15-19). We can see the parallels, even in the allusion to the trees that don't bear good fruit being thrown into the fire. But let's think of this important metaphor of Christ that He used so often, about the seeds that spring up into "good" or "bad" plants. If we take this understanding of the enemy's seeds as lies that mislead and trick people (especially if, like heresies, they bear a resemblance to truth, such as in half-truths), then what we hear from Jesus is how building our lives on lies or partial truths leads to a bad outcome for us as persons, in the wholeness of who we are. So the foundations of the soul, of real identity, also depend upon how we're nurtured, what we base on own growth upon. Like plants, human beings are in a constant state of growth or change, one way or another. We go in one direction or another, and it all depends upon how we're nurtured and what start we give ourselves each day. In another way of looking at the parable, we might take it that we want to make sure we're ingesting the good wheat (as in the Eucharist), the things that nourish us for our best spiritual health in life, because this determines the growth of the soul. In light of Christ's strong assurance here of a judgment to come, and the giving of His interpretation of the parable, He asks us yet again to take this quite seriously, because our very lives truly depend upon it. The growth of the soul in life is something many people find it easy to forget about, given how busy modern life can be. We find ourselves consumed with cares regarding work, family, keeping our lives and loved ones safe and in good care, our housing, and all manner of things we are constantly demanded to pay attention to. It's so easy to lose focus on that slow growing, quiet inner life that concerns the state of the soul. But nevertheless, there it is, and there it always is. People notice us hardening our hearts; we can get to the place where we don't recognize what we're doing to ourselves in the face of these "necessities" of life. But Christ has taught us that there is really one thing most needful, one thing most necessary, in the story of Martha and Mary (found here at Luke 10:38-42). In light of all of His teachings, we can say that when we forget about this most needful thing, our lives are upside down, disordered in terms of what is most necessary for us. At this time, many of us are gearing up for the period of the holidays, in which we will be bombarded with all the things that seem "necessary" for those holidays. Black Friday, the time of the great sales in stores in the United States, is already being advertized -- all a part of the rush for things we "need" for the holidays. But on the contrary, it's the time (in the Northern Hemisphere at any rate) when nature is slowing down, getting ready for the needful rest of winter, the earth's necessary Sabbath. We should perhaps keep in mind that the holidays we celebrate are "holy days," and the very reason for celebration should not be lost. We give thanks to God for our blessings. It may be a national holiday, but its roots are in our faith. Of course, the same is true for the Nativity of our Lord, Christmas. From the earliest times of the Church, the great and most celebrated holiday was Easter, the commemoration and celebration of Resurrection. Christmas has been built up into the major holiday it is to a great extent by advertising and sales. We're all encouraged to give, but the hastening of so many things to prepare, to buy, to fix, to show, and all that goes with it, often seems to miss the entire point of the festival and the season. The little family in Bethlehem, taking refuge in a cave used for farm animals, should serve to remind us that love, joy, grace, and God's glory in the message of the angels are in the midst of all of it, and this is in contrast to the anxieties that are stoked in the ways we celebrate. It's also in tremendous contrast to the sense of competition and comparison it seems to create. Many people are lonelier than ever at this time, or perhaps feeling want in the face of all the celebration that others seem to be doing. With our social media what it is now, this is ever-increasing as studies confirm. So let us remember, as we go into this "quiet time" toward winter that we need our Sabbath as does the earth and all of creation; and we need to remember God. Remember the good growth Christ urges us toward, and what we need for the kind of persons He calls us to be, for nurturing that in ourselves and in our families, friends, communities. Remember anything we have to be grateful for and give thanks to God, remember Christ the infant who would give Himself for the life of the world. Let us put aside time for the things which are most necessary, so that we may grow into the "good trees" bearing the good fruits Christ desires. Let us set aside time for the things which are most important and needful of all, and order our priorities His way. For righteousness is about good order, right relations to ourselves and all else as Christ would order them. Let us make time for the good seed He sows in us.
