Message of Abbot Paul - Sunday 23rd July 2023
Abbot Paul • July 23, 2023
How quickly Sunday comes round again and how quickly the days are drawing in. The rain and the cold give Belmont an autumnal feel about it and soon it will be August, the gateway to Autumn and the long trek to Winter and Christmas. I’m looking forward to next weekend, because I’m going away from Friday to Monday, a little break, a rest. I can really do with it, as I do get tired. Perhaps I should sleep more, but I’ve always been one for going late to bed and then up before the crack of dawn.
Today we have another long Gospel reading, as we did last Sunday, and from Matthew, (Mt 13: 24-43). Jesus presents the crowd that follows him with three parables in which he describes the kingdom of heaven for them: the parable of the wheat and the darnel (though really about the men who sowed them), the parable of the mustard seed and that of the yeast that leavens the dough. We are told that Jesus always spoke to the crowds in parables to fulfil the prophecy in Psalm 77(78), and yet he doesn’t explain the parables to them, so what did they make of them? It’s only in the house, leaving the crowds outside, that Jesus explains the parable of the wheat and the darnel to the disciples. The explanation is detailed, point by point, but in a rather simplistic way.
What is Jesus saying to his disciples and to those of the crowd who might understand him? The first parable, why do good and evil coexist in the Church, which is he kingdom of heaven on earth and why doesn’t Jesus or his heavenly Father eradicate it here and now? Why is evil left to flourish in the Body of Christ? Jesus’ reply is that God knows best and we should leave the final decision to him. If evil is removed, that might damage what is good. God will sort things out on the last day. The other two parables concern the question of growth: why is the Christian community so small and persecuted at that? Jesus gives his answer in the mustard seed and in the yeast, the first that grows of its own accord, the second that causes growth in others. Small beginnings can lead to surprising growth and a flourishing Church. Ultimately, Jesus is asking us to trust in God, to believe that he knows best and to allow him to bring about the kingdom as he sees fit. Faith is trusting in God and loving our neighbour.
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