‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest.
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest.
16th Sunday in Ordinary Time A
Wisdom 12:13.16-19, Ps.85:5-6. 9-1015-16. Rv.5, Romans 8: 26-27, Matthew13:24-43
The virtuous man must be kindly to his fellow men
O Lord you are good and forgiving full of love to all who call.
The Spirit expresses our plea in a way that can never be put into words
Let them both grow till harvest
Gospel
Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying:
“The kingdom of heaven may be likened
to a man who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?
Where have the weeds come from?’
He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’
His slaves said to him,
‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
“First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
“The kingdom of heaven may be likened
to a man who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?
Where have the weeds come from?’
He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’
His slaves said to him,
‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
“First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
He proposed another parable to them.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that a person took and sowed in a field.
It is the smallest of all the seeds,
yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.
It becomes a large bush,
and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’”
“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that a person took and sowed in a field.
It is the smallest of all the seeds,
yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.
It becomes a large bush,
and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’”
He spoke to them another parable.
“The kingdom of heaven is like yeast
that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch was leavened.”
“The kingdom of heaven is like yeast
that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch was leavened.”
All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.
He spoke to them only in parables,
to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:
I will open my mouth in parables,
I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation
of the world.
He spoke to them only in parables,
to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:
I will open my mouth in parables,
I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation
of the world.
Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house.
His disciples approached him and said,
“Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,
the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom.
The weeds are the children of the evil one,
and the enemy who sows them is the devil.
The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,
so will it be at the end of the age.
The Son of Man will send his angels,
and they will collect out of his kingdom
all who cause others to sin and all evildoers.
They will throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun
in the kingdom of their Father.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.”
His disciples approached him and said,
“Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,
the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom.
The weeds are the children of the evil one,
and the enemy who sows them is the devil.
The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,
so will it be at the end of the age.
The Son of Man will send his angels,
and they will collect out of his kingdom
all who cause others to sin and all evildoers.
They will throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun
in the kingdom of their Father.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.”
Are you really so good?
We have heard of people who leave the Church saying: “They are hypocrites”, “There is no faith in the Catholic Church” and “They don’t practice what they preach”. The unstated word is: “We, of course, are not like that”. Can anyone stand up and say, “I am without sin”. None of us is pure wheat! Fortunately our God is a God of mercy and compassion. When on earth, he was the friend of sinners. He spent his time with them. He never demanded repentance to earn his love. He loved them as they were. Those who touched him were also touched by him and transformed. It is only at the very end that we will be able to separate the wheat from the darnel.
God never gives up on the human race or on any member of it. He lives in hope that one day the sinner will change. He desires that everyone will come to the knowledge of the truth and be saved. He doesn’t weed us out straightaway. Rather he gives us more time.
What looks like darnel now may turn out to be wheat in the end. If the early church had eliminated Saul the persecutor, would the Church have ever taken off? In other organizations Peter after denying everything he stood for may have been grudgingly kept on, but who would have put him in charge? The history of the Church is strewn with examples of wheat that looked like darnel – Augustine, Ignatius and so many other saints. To judge is to be a Pharisee - I am not like these sinners. We all know what Jesus said about the Pharisee at prayer. It is better to look at ourselves and say: Lord have mercy on me because I am a sinner. That is the truth whoever you are.
There will be many surprises in the end: did we not work miracles in your name, did we not preach in your name. “Go away I do not know you”. Rather than pulling up what looks like darnel but may well turn out to be wheat let us make sure at harvest time that we are gathered into the barn as wheat and not cast on to the fire as weeds.
Have you ever been disgusted with the Church community? Have you thought they have denied Jesus? Have you thought then of leaving? If you have, then search for the perfect church and when you have found it rejoice. Join it immediately. But when you have joined just remember one thing: it isn’t perfect any more (Anthony De Mello).
Father, may I see the plank in my own eye so as not to be a Pharisee.
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