by Fr. John Martin Shimkus, O.S.B.

      Given the common experience of gardeners the world over who struggle with weeds, we may be surprised to hear in today’s gospel the story of a man who plants a field of wheat, is victimized by an enemy who sows weeds in the field by night, and then patiently looks on as these weeds overrun his field.  In fact, he not only directs his servants not to pull up the weeds, but he tells them to let the weeds and the wheat grow together until it is time for the harvest when they will at last be separated.

     This parable is of course not about gardens or wheat fields, but about God’s kingdom, which has its humble beginnings here on earth among those who follow Christ and do the will of God in their lives.  But the kingdom of God is not complete here on earth; it is in its growing stages; it is awaiting its fulfillment in heaven.  And so here on earth there are many weeds among the wheat; there are good and faithful Christians, and there are others who are not so good and not so faithful; we ourselves can be divided in our motives and actions, sometimes following Jesus in building up the kingdom and other times becoming agents of sin and selfishness

     The point of Jesus’ parable seems to be that as surprising and perplexing as it is to many people, God’s plan allows for the existence of weeds growing up along with the wheat; God’s plan allows for goodness and evil to exist side by side, in the same Church, in the same community and in the same individual.  And this humble and unique wheat field of God’s kingdom is not threatened by this reality, but still presses on to the final harvest when God will purge it of all evil and sin.

     As Christians who have been introduced by Jesus into the mysteries of God’s kingdom, and therefore have a special mission to build that kingdom in the way God wants it built.  Just as the servants in the parable were asked not to pull up the weeds from the wheat field, so we are asked to be patient with one another’s faults and also to be patient with ourselves.  Just as the servants were directed to let the wheat and the weeds grow together, we are to let God separate the good from evil, and to do so in his time, because only God has the wisdom and selfless love to deal with each person in the way that is best.  Weeds are never pleasant, and they are no more pleasant whether they seem to be in ourselves or in someone else.  Yet God asks us to follow his example of careful judgment, to trust that his goodness and love will in time bring about the very best harvest in his eternal kingdom.

---