Scripture: 16th Sunday, A cycle, Wisdom 12:12,16-19. Psalm
86:5-6,9-10,15-16. Romans 8:26-27. Matthew 13:24-43. Lectionary # 107:

Since this year is dedicated to the reading of Matthew's Gospel, we
continue to walk, wander, and sometimes run through the field of Matthew's
beautiful Gospel. We now are in the middle of the wheat field of the
Evangelist and we are listening to Jesus as he now begins a series of
parables--stories fitting in nicely with our surroundings. To help orient
ourselves we should give a quick look at the whole field through an outline
of the Gospel. This is easily found at the beginning of most books on this
evangelist or even in some of the New Testament translations. We find that
Jesus leads us through the fields that Matthew paints for us with his
structured writing usually broken into five parts. We are brought into
contact with the land of Israel, Jesus' hometown, and its surroundings in
Galilee.
We move from the parable of the weeds and the wheat to a mustard seed
and then on to a woman baking bread while using the yeast or leaven to
raise the bread. We can think of Mary the mother of Jesus for having given
Jesus some insight into this third parable. Jesus is Wisdom when he gives
us these short colorful examples of the daily life in his time. He speaks
concretely, practically, and with a lesson that we are to learn. Are we
ready for this?
Jesus is the Word of God that has come down to live among us and to
speak a language that we can understand if we listen attentively. Each of
the three parables of today's liturgy are meant to influence our life
patterns and behaviors. Jesus intends to hit us square in the eyes with
these short stories that illustrate an attitude to be had and a religious
principle to be lived. Jesus parables are unique as a literary form and
has its roots in the Hebrew Scriptures, in his own experiences of life in
Galilee, and they continue on in rabbinic literature as well.
A good parable is one that speaks to each person and hits them where
they are right now. How do we respond to these parables that we have
before us? Are we growing like the wheat? or are the weeds sort of choking
the wheat? Do we have faith that grows similarly to the littlest of known
seeds during Jesus' time, the mustard seed? And what are we going to do
about those weeds in our hearts and souls?
Psalm 78:2 is interpreted by Matthew to fit this chapter of
parables--nine of them!: "I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter
dark sayings concerning the things of old." By the expression "dark
sayings" the Hebrew phrase means a riddle or a pronouncement upon an
enigmatic problem. By inclinng our ear to the saying we receive instruction
from God. Psalm 49: 5 says, "I will incline mine ear to a parable; I will
open my dark saying upon the harp. Then, we can say, "My mouth shall speak
wisdom, and the meditation of my heart shall be understanding." (Psalm
49:4). This understanding in biblical language means enlightment upon the
perplexities of our human experiences. At one of the World Fairs, the life
of Jesus was called "The Parable."