Pastor's Spiritual Reflections

By Fr. Leo Schneider (7/20/2008)

Dear People of Holy Name,

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could plant a garden or sod our lawns and never have to worry about weeds. How perfect it would look without the difficult work of maintaining it with hand and hoe. Such a hope would be unrealistic as weeds always seem to find their way in and thrive to the detriment of the garden and the lawn.

The same injustice exists in the world of human beings. The good and the bad are mixed together. We see this around the world as daily stories come to us of man’s inhumanity to man. In the name of religion, politics and culture there are daily those who kill others, the bad moving in and choking out the good. It is truly unfair!

We see the same in our own neighborhoods as reports of muggings and murders surround us. We find ourselves affected too by the greed of a few that keeps those who work so hard from making a better life for themselves. Each of us is affected by the unfairness of the ‘weeds’ among us.

Today’s gospel from Matthew gives us a parable that addresses this unfairness, giving us another way to look at our plight. First it acknowledges the reality that the good and the bad live side by side. Then it promises justice, as God will sort out the good and the bad, rewarding the good with eternal life and the bad with punishment.

We are encouraged to place our trust in God’s justice, but that doesn’t mean we wait around to die so that justice may be ours. We are also called to weed out the injustice of our world. St. Paul speaks of the Spirit that groans within us to intercede for the holy ones to God. We are to ask God to help us in our weakness that his justice may be ours.

Our parable also teaches us something about how God’s justice works. The master resists the temptation to go out and uproot the weeds because that would harm the good plants. If we were to go and take revenge on the bad, what would that make us? Instead, patience is called for, so that each plant can bear its fruit and receive its own reward.

From the Book of Wisdom we hear of God’s lenience and how he judges with clemency. Just as Jesus came for us, we are called in his Spirit to permit repentance for sin, even for our enemies, the bad seed. This world is a place to come to know the Lord and to grow in his spirit. As we share in Christ’s redemptive mission, we embrace injustice and pray and work for forgiveness and justice. Through us, by the grace of God, maybe one of those weeds will be transformed into good seed, and wouldn’t that be more wonderful in the end to witness redemption, than to keep ourselves separate from what threatens us?

Such is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and in our world. Let us pray for the gift of God’s Spirit, that he may pray within us and work through us to make a world that is transformed into the image of his Son, who is all justice and mercy. Alone we cannot change the world, but with God’s grace all things can be transformed and the harvest can be rich. The Gospel calls us to this hope, and eggs us on to live and die for the coming of God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Can there be a greater joy or anything more wonderful?

May God bless all people with the overwhelming gift of his Spirit!

In Christ’s peace, Fr. Leo