Readings: Wisdom 12:13,16-19; Romans 8:26-27; Matthew 13:24-30
The Bastard Wheat
There is a parable about Good and Evil. One day,
Good and Evil met upon the shore of the sea. They said to each other, “Let us
disrobe and bathe in the sea.” After they bathed in the sea for some time, Evil
came to the shore, clothed itself with the Good’s garment, and walked away.
Later, Good too came out and found that Evil had taken away its clothes.
Feeling ashamed to go naked, Good garmented itself with the Evil’s clothes. To
this day, both Good and Evil walk around in their disguised clothes. Only those
who know the face of Good and Evil can identify their true nature despite the
garments.
Today’s readings demonstrate the problem of evil in
the world. We know of its presence. We see it every day. We read about it, not
just in history books, but witness it in our streets, at home, in church, in
our neighborhood, and in the nations of the world. How do we explain the
manifestation of evil all around us? A young man went into the grocery store, spat
into bottles of iced tea, and laughed about it. A young woman spits on food
items in another grocery store, licks butter, and scoops ice cream into her
mouth. Many other atrocities abound in social media. What about the man who sets
a dog’s tail on fire and delights himself as the dog writhes in pain? Or those
who tell lies about their neighbors or shoot and kill human beings just for the
fun of it. Or taking the lives of unborn children in the womb; setting a house
on fire and watching with glee as the occupants suffocate and die; or
intentionally manipulating figures to look good after mismanagement and misappropriation
of funds. We sometimes feel like Bob Marley and the Wailers, who in 1973 sang,
“Stop that train, I’m leaving.” No
wonder the rich want to get out of the world and move to Mars. It makes us
question the effectiveness of the Gospel and the labors of missionaries and
religious leaders in our country and beyond. Has Christianity failed? G.K.
Chesterton would say, "No,
Christianity hasn’t failed; it just has never been tried. For if enough
people lived the Gospel message in its fullness, the difference would be clear.
The parable of the Weed and the Wheat teaches us that
saints and sinners must coexist in the world. After all, they were both created
by God, out of love. The weed or darnel was so indistinguishable from wheat at
the early stage of its growth. It was called bastard wheat. One may uproot the wheat in an attempt to
uproot the weed. The farmer must therefore wait patiently till harvest time.
The wheat and the weed must be allowed to grow together till the end. According
to the first reading from the book of Wisdom, “You (God) taught your people, by these deeds, that those who are
just must be kind; and you gave your children good ground for hope that you
would permit repentance for their sins.” No matter how bad the world
may be, there is still hope for those who have faith. And so, St. Paul, in the
second reading, enjoins us to ask the Spirit for assistance in prayers. We are
weak; on our own, we can do nothing good. But “The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how
to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible
groaning. And the one who searches hearts knows what the intention of the
Spirit is, because he intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s will.”
Today’s readings teach us that there is a hostile
power in the world competing with the power to do good. The power of evil
always seeks to destroy the good in us. Evil can disguise and fool us like darnel
weed and the wheat. They looked exactly alike in their shape and size. There
was only a slight color variation. But when eaten, the darnel was poisonous.
This can make us mistake evil for good. St. Paul exclaimed, “For I do not do the good I want, but I
do the evil I do not want.” (Rom. 7:19). But trusting in the mercy of
God, Paul overcame his weaknesses. Therefore, we must be on our guard so that
evil may not overpower us. It is not always easy to
distinguish those who wish us good from those who seek to destroy us. It’s not written on our faces the
intentions of our hearts.
This is why we should be on our guard. When the
servants, in the parable, asked the Master, “Did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come
from?” He answered, “An enemy had done this.” Who is your enemy, who is
ready to plant bad seed in your farm? They are those who laugh with and eat
with you, who you confide in, but who tell your business to the whole world.
They will block your promotion and make up stories about you. They are your
trusted friends who tell you how much they care for you. But they are just
waiting for you to fall asleep, so that they will plant weed among your wheat. They
intend to destroy you. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inside are
ravenous wolves. They hate because they are jealous of your achievements, your
children, and everything you are and own. They come to you as friends so that
they may have easy access to your life and know just where to hit and destroy
you. They are in the church, in your office, and in your neighborhood. Beware
of them! Someone may appear to be good to you but is in fact the devil
incarnate, and those you think are evil may indeed be good.
Today’s parable also teaches us that judgment
belongs to God, and yet he is slow to anger but rich in mercy. Hence, the first
reading says, “But though you are
master of might, you judge with clemency, and with much lenience you govern us;
for power, whenever you will, attends you.” At the end, evil will be
overcome, because there is a seed of destruction in every demon. It has a day
of reckoning and will sooner or later destroy itself. On the Day of Judgment, a
day of harvest, it will be gathered and burnt. It doesn’t matter how long evil
will triumph in the world; one day it will meet its end, and the children of
light will shine like the stars of heaven. So, this parable warns us against
judging people. It is wrong to be quick to judge and condemn people without
knowing the facts about them. Do not judge someone by one single act or stage
in life. People must be given the benefit of the doubt. Judgment cannot come
until the end of our lives. In the end, the judgment of God will come on all
sinners. Hence, swift and jungle justice are not the solution for a composite
being like man. A man can have a change of mind and heart at any time. All
judgments must be left in God’s domain, for if you, O Lord, should mark our guilt, Lord who can stand? May
the Holy Spirit aid us as we pursue a life of holiness and justice and
recognize the hidden enemies of our lives.
Amen.
Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP
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