We are Weeds and Wheat

The homily at Mass this morning was about weeds and wheat. This is a reflection on Matthew’s Gosple from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today. The parable tells of weeds which are sown among the wheat of the land owner by his enemy. We often think of the wheat as the good and righteous folk, perhaps ourselves, who must grow up in the company of the evil and sinful folk, not usually ourselves. The parable seems to say that the wheat and weeds will be separated at the final harvest (death) and those unrighteous will share the fate of the weeds, the eternal fire (hell). Father led us to a more challenging reflection. We are the field. Good and evil grow within our being. The landowner (God) is fully aware of our nature. Wheat and weeds grow together. The separation is the Divine desire for us. We are the servant who will bind up our weeds and with the grace of God exorcise them from our lives.