July 2008

Stories Seldom Heard

107th Edition

A Parable - Luke 13: 1-9

Welcome to Stories Seldom Heard. This edition has three parts to it. Part I is an invitation to write a modern day parable. Part II reflects on a "Summer Parable". Part III offers some suggestions for prayer and reflection.

Part I: If Jesus were living today what subjects or examples would he choose for his parables?

Each year about this time I receive a phone call from friends of mine, Dominican sisters from New York, who ask for hospitality while they attend the Bioneers Conference which is held in San Rafael, CA. It might sound like a long way to come for a conference, but this organization is on the leading edge of environmental issues. The Bioneers explore practical environmental solutions and innovative social strategies for restoring the Earth and communities.  Over the years the Conference has grown dramatically.  It now attracts over 3,000 people and two years ago, it was beamed by satellite simulcast to 18 locations across the US so that another 10,000 people could participate.

As religious people we have more than one reason for being concerned about the universe, the health of our environment and the well being of all living things.  Not only do we know that there is a direct connection between the integrity of the environment and our own well being, but also we know that the natural world around us and the universe beyond our imaginings are sacred and holy.  Even if we didn’t have St. Thomas Aquinas’ reminder that there are two books of revelation - the Book of Scripture and the Book of Nature – we might have caught on by just observing the wonders and mysteries of our created world.  Creation is filled and overflowing with God’s expression of life, creativity and majesty.  God has offered us a magnificent gift – life beyond understanding – not just our own, but the ever growing universe that is teeming with new life and life yet to be born!  In return God requires of us a sense of gratitude that reveals itself in the care, protection and proper use of the material world around us, as well as the sharing of the goods we have.

As I am writing this article, it is the last week of June. Dramatic environmental disasters are headlining our newspapers. In the international news we hear that the Philippines is being lashed by huge waves as a result of the typhoon. Many small towns are covered with water. Many people have died and/or are still missing. This recent typhoon has also created thousands of internal refugees. The national and state news also carry photos and stories about flood victims in the Midwest and the wildfire fires in California. More than eight hundred large and small wildfires are burning right now in California and that is counting only those in the northern part of the state.

Even if we don’t have personal friends who are affected by these events many of us have offered help in our local areas by housing those who have lost their homes and taking care of domestic endangered animals. However, we don’t have to live in these areas to understand the hardship, fear and grief that these tragedies bring. We hear their concerns in our community prayers at Mass and they are also included in our private daily intentions.

As I listen to the news today, I wonder. If Jesus were living today in Galilee or in Palestine, in Tibet or Zimbabwe or even in the United States, what subjects or examples would he choose for his parables? Would he use examples from nature, the environment and/or famines, wars and oppressive governments? What stories would he tell to open our understanding of who God is and what God wants of us in our times? Why not try writing a modern day parable?

Part II A Summer Parable: "The fig tree" Luke 13: 1-9 and the Prophet Micah 4: 1-4

Chapter 13 begins with a strange conversation between Jesus and "some people who arrived and told Him about the Galileans who suffered…" (LK 13:1) This story is followed by a reference to those who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them. Neither of these stories seems to be based on an actual historical event. But the question that is asked of Jesus and his response are important points for us to ponder because some of us have the same question. We often wonder if bad things happen to people because they have sinned. Or to put this question in other words, we often question why bad things happen to good people. Why do typhoons, wildfires, bad fortune, illness, great suffering come to people who live good lives?

In the gospel Jesus makes it clear that there is no connection between the suffering a person might have to endure and the sins that person has committed. However, Jesus doesn’t end the conversation there. He takes it one step further. What he says is not new. It is something we all know, but also something we would rather shove aside for another day’s conversation. All of us sin. All of us suffer. All of us die. And there will be a day of reckoning for all of us.

This is the context in which Jesus tells the parable of the fig tree. The image itself, the fig tree, brings with it echoes of Micah the prophet who speaks of a time of peace and prosperity. "God will yield authority over many peoples and arbitrate for mighty nations; they will hammer their swords into ploughshares, their spears into sickles. Nation will not lift sword against nation, there will be no more training for war. Each man will sit under his vine and his fig tree – with no one to trouble him." (Micah 4:3). The fig tree in this passage reminds us that when God has God’s way on earth everyone will share the goods of the earth and in doing that everyone will have what she/he needs.

Hidden within this lovely bucolic image of a person resting safely under her/his fig tree Micah presents a radical call for a shift in behavior. In order for this kind of peace and prosperity to take place Micah reminds the people of his day that exploitation and greed have to be replaced by an awareness that the goods of the earth belong to everyone. Everyone has a right to what she/he needs to live a healthy and productive life. Even though Micah lived thousands of years ago, his prophetic message of change rings true for us today. He says that if all of us were satisfied with a peasant’s standard of living – that is having land, food, water and the other essentials for life - all of us would have enough to prosper.

If we put Micah’s words in modern language they echo the sentiments of modern day prophets: "Live simply so that others might simply live." Sometimes when we think about greed and exploitation we think about those other people – out there – somewhere. It is always easier to look at others, but that is only part of the picture. Each of us is called to examine our lives. What are our excesses? Whom do we exploit? How does our carbon footprint affect our environment? How can we balance our life styles so we will be able to donate time and money, as a regular practice, to enhance the life and dignity of others?

All of us are in need of conversion whether we look at our lives through a microscope or through a lens that includes our interactions and interdependence with others and our universe. There are areas of our lives we need to change. Some of us need to change the way we judge family members, relatives or co-workers. Others of us need to look at how our daily choices affect and limit the choices of other people in poorer nations.

The parable of the barren fig tree reminds us that a day of reckoning will come. This parable could be emphasizing judgment and condemnation. The vineyard owner sounds determined. "Cut it (the fig tree) down: why should it be taking up the ground?" But when we listen to the whole story there’s a twist in the parable and that twist makes all the difference in the world. No doubt the owner of the vineyard knows a lot about the production of grapes. That is his profession, but the story is about a fig tree. Who knows why the owner had the fig tree planted, but it was not unusual to have one in the middle of a vineyard. Trees were planted to provide shade as well as fruit, but this tree seems to have nothing to offer. It has been taking up space for at least three years, and probably more. Since fig trees usually take three years to establish themselves and another three or so to produce fruit. This tree has been around for a while.

The owner of the vineyard makes a reasonable request, but the vinedresser’s response saves the tree. "Leave it one more year and give me time to dig around it and manure it: it will bear fruit next year; if not, then you can cut it down." (13:9) The vinedresser pleads for time: time for the tree to grow, time for it to produce fruit. He/she doesn’t promise a rich harvest or branches laden with figs, but promises to energetically tend the tree with the hope that the tree will bear fruit.

What could have been a judgment oriented parable turns into a parable of grace because Jesus is not talking about a fig tree. He’s telling us a story about God, a God who wants the best for us. It’s a parable of grace which reveals to us the patience of God. God does not want to catch us at our weakest moment. God gives us time to change to look at our lives and see where we need to accept our gifts and use them well so that the talents God has given us will bear a rich harvest. Yet, God and we know change is hard. Even small changes are difficult. (All we have to do is think about how many times we begin new diets in one year.) That is why God has sent the vinedresser to work with us. Jesus is not only the teller of the story he is also the one who has been sent to plead on our behalf. We don’t know how much time we have, but what we do know is that today we have the opportunity to begin the change. The purpose of all life is to do the will of God so that all of creation can prosper, come to fullness and be at peace.

Part III Possible Responses

The parables are simple stories at first glance, but when we spend time with them our eyes begin to see differently. For sure, the parables do more than just stimulate our imaginations. When we enter into their world and reflect on our experiences in light of God’s power we begin to see God’s kingdom in living color. As we look at our lives and the lives of those we know we see God’s reign incarnated in our lives and in the lives of those we know and love. The parables encourage us to envision, by the grace of God, a different future for ourselves and for our world.

After slowly reading the parable a couple of times sit quietly.

1. Allow your mind and heart to be filled with gratitude. Give thanks to God for life, sight, hearing, beauty, health, the universe.

2. Ask yourself what needs to be changed in your life. What blocks your fruitfulness?