Just a word before we go...Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time...June 16. 2024

So many of Jesus’ parables contain these words, “The kingdom of God is like,” often followed by examples from nature to describe God’s reign.  Whether speaking about the treasure in the field, or an abundance of fish in the net, or today’s story of the mustard seed, Jesus employs imaginative language, many times using exaggeration to make his point. And that point is usually multilayered in meaning.  Jesus is the master at referencing the material to represent the spiritual, and each listener might glean a different level of understanding of the idea the Lord is hoping to convey. The parables lead us in a direction but do not provide a roadmap; an openness, an appreciation of the spiritual nature of life, and even a sense of wonder is required.  As the growth of a seed is secret process to which we are not privy, but the result of which we can see, the bursting into life of the seeds planted by God’s Word takes place in God’s time, in God’s way.  We can only trust in the process, in the goodness of creation, and play our part, recognizing our limits and the ultimate truth that God is in charge.  We live in hope.

Seeds planted and coming to fruition are not confined to the world of trees and vegetables but occur in human life as well.  In my own life, when I was engaged in a career in the business world, a friend kept slipping books and brochures about spiritual and religious programs through the mail slot in my front door.  Another friend often remarked that I should think about working in the church world, and another helped to nurture my eventual journey in that new world with encouragement and positive critique.  These friends all were planting and nourishing the seed of vocation in my heart.  I imagine that many of you have similar people in your lives.  The thing about planting and caring for seeds is that we can’t always discern the hidden growth.  There is an element of surprise involved in the process and each surprise reinforces the fundamental nature of planting seeds, which is hope. 

A poem by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer says it well:

“Hope has holes in its pockets.  It leaves little crumb trails so that we, when anxious, can follow it. Hope’s secret: it doesn’t know the destination—it only knows that all roads begin with one foot in front of the other.”

Whether we are speaking of planting a cedar of Lebanon, encouraging a person, or helping to build God’s reign, HOPE is the requisite staring point.  May we always be a people of hope!