Bishop Barron preaches on the Parable of the Sower from Matthew 13
Bishop Robert Barron delivers a Sunday sermon on the 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time.
Summary
Bishop Barron preaches on the Parable of the Sower from Matthew 13, the first of seven parables in that chapter dealing with the growth of the Kingdom of God. He draws on Jesus's own interpretation of the parable to examine four types of soil — the path, rocky ground, thorny ground, and good soil — as four ways the human heart can receive or resist the word of God. He argues that the obstacles to God's word are never on God's side, since God sows his grace extravagantly on saint and sinner alike, but always on ours. He cites a study finding that Catholics are among the worst religious traditions at passing on their faith, and connects this directly to the parable's warning about hearing the word without understanding it.
Key Takeaways
FULL TRANSCRIPT
Introduction and Context in Matthew's Gospel
Bishop Barron: Peace be with you, friends. This is the 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time. We continue our reading of the Gospel of Matthew — we have that great privilege during this Cycle A of readings. Matthew is a marvelous text, of course, and it is characterized by a series of discourses. Matthew 5, 6, and 7 is the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 10, which we have been reading from as well, is the missionary discourse as Jesus sends out the apostles. But in Matthew 13, which we are reading from today, that is the great section on the parables, where Jesus gives a whole series of these very memorable stories. There are seven of them, and the first four have to do with the growth of the Kingdom of God. The one we are reading today — the Parable of the Sower — is the first of these. So it is a very rich thing for us to be thinking about.
The Opening Scene: Jesus in the Boat
Look at how it begins. On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down and spoke.
A couple of things the Church Fathers loved here. Jesus coming out of his house — they saw that as emblematic of the Logos leaving his heavenly place to come into the world. And then Jesus sitting in the boat, floating on the water, calls to mind the Spirit at the beginning of creation hovering over the surface of the waters. So there are references to divinity coming into the world, divinity drawing order from chaos.
Also, the attitude of Jesus sitting. Same thing at the Sermon on the Mount — he sits down, his disciples at his feet, and the people arrayed before him. The seated attitude was the position of the teacher in the ancient world. You would sit down and people would arrange themselves at your feet. Same thing here: he sits in the boat in the attitude of the teacher. And then he delivers this famous Parable of the Sower — sowing on the path, on rocky ground, on thorny ground, and some falling on good soil.
The Extravagance of the Sower
The first thing to notice: what a strange sower of seeds this is. Seeds were precious commodities in the ancient world, and especially in that part of the world. Who would ever sow in such a haphazard way? Wouldn't you look for the good soil to sow in? But why would you be sowing so extravagantly?
That is the way our God operates. God is not calculating in his grace. He doesn't just measure it out in coffee spoons, as T.S. Eliot said. God is extravagant in the way that he makes his sun to shine on the good and bad alike, makes his rain to fall on the just and unjust alike. And so he sows the seed of his word and his grace on everybody — on saint and sinner alike. It is never a question of God being reticent or holding back his grace. That is not it. The problems are going to come from our side, as we will see.
The Word of God from Isaiah
Keep in mind, too, the first reading for today — that marvelous passage from Isaiah: Thus says the Lord: just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return till they have watered the earth, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth. My word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.
God's word is powerful and transformative — not merely derivative and descriptive as our words are, but God's word makes things happen. When God speaks his word into our hearts, things change. Now, as we see in this parable, can we block that word? Can we set up obstacles that prevent it from taking root? Yes, we can. And there is the drama of the spiritual life. We are not marionettes, not utterly passive and receptive. We can block God's word. We can refuse to cooperate with it. That is what this parable is all about.
Jesus's Own Interpretation of the Parable
So we have heard: some seed on the path, some on rocky ground, some on thorny ground, some on good soil. If you have heard my homilies before, you will know this is one of the rare times when Jesus himself gives the interpretation. He lays out the parable and then, when they ask, he says exactly what he means by it. So whenever this reading comes around, I always go back to what the Lord himself says about it.
The Seed on the Path: Hearing Without Understanding
What do we hear? The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it. And the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart.
It is really interesting. The word is sown — the powerful word of God — but if we do not understand it, it is not going to take root. Think of the word of Jesus himself. There is no way you could ever understand that word unless you understand Israel — that he is the fulfillment of Israel, the yes to all the promises made to Israel, the fulfillment of covenant, Torah, temple, and prophecy. If you do not get that, you will not get him. As St. Jerome said, ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ. If I never bother to study my own faith or study the Scriptures, the word of Jesus will not take root in me.
Something I came across not long ago that was really depressing: a study was done of the various religious traditions as to how good they are at passing on their teaching. The very worst, to my surprise, were Jews — that Jews were the worst at passing on their tradition. Now, I do not mean every single expression of Judaism, but in general. And you know who was the second worst? Catholics. We are the second worst at passing on our tradition.
There are reasons for that. I came of age at a time when the great value placed was on toleration — we do not want to disrespect anyone's religion, we are willing to listen to everybody. Okay. But what that can very often lead to is a sort of indifferentism: oh, well, if we all love God, aren't we all doing fine? Why bother rehearsing our long tradition when we are all saying the same thing in different ways? That is a problem. I am completely in favor of toleration, but when it turns into bland indifferentism and we no longer pass on our faith or seek to understand it, the word will not take root in us.
I am saying this to Catholic teachers and catechists, parents, everybody. Why is my child not a believer? Well, they hear the word of the kingdom without understanding it. If you hear about Jesus and say, "Oh, he is just one interesting moral teacher among many," he is not going to take root in you. So understanding is really important.
The Seed on Rocky Ground: Joy Without Roots
How about the second one? The Lord tells us: The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy, but he has no root and it lasts only for a time.
I see that all the time. In my years doing seminary work, there were some who would come to the seminary because they had had a powerful religious experience — from their reading, from a saint, from a retreat, or something. They had a powerful experience of God, and on the basis of that they were full of enthusiasm. They even wanted to become a priest. But then they never practiced the faith. There were no roots. There was no discipline that allowed that seed, initially sown so powerfully, to reach deep down into their hearts and minds and indeed their bodies.
All the disciplines of the spiritual life — going to Mass every Sunday or every day, daily prayer when you feel like it and when you do not, the rosary even when after the first decade or so you are no longer into it, the discipline of a religious community of like-minded people who will encourage you in the faith, the rituals associated with Catholicism — all of that is the way that an original joyful experience now finds its roots deep down in you.
This happens whenever you hear people say, "I am not religious, but I am really a spiritual person." Whenever I hear that, I think: not for long. You will not remain a spiritual person long unless you are grounding that spirituality in something. If we demonize religion — oh, that is just dusty old traditions, corrupt institutions — no. Religion is that whole congeries of practices and disciplines that allow the seed to take deep root in you.
I think there are a lot of people like this in our culture. They hear the word and receive it with joy. Maybe on the internet they hear a speaker, or they go to a conference, and they think: that is intriguing, that is great, I love that. But are they going to Mass every Sunday? No. Do they pray every day? No. Do they do the works of mercy? No. "I am not religious, I am spiritual." Not for long.
And what does Jesus say further? When difficulties and persecutions arrive — and they always do, everybody, always, not sometimes, not typically, always — the difficulties and persecutions will come, and unless the roots are deep, your spirituality is not going to endure.
The Seed Among Thorns: Distraction and the Lure of Riches
The third example. The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit.
Some people hear the word, take it in, and it is powerful. But they are unable to maintain their focus and sense of priority. The word of God has to be the central and defining element of your life. To know the will of God, the mind of God, and then to act accordingly must be the anchor and center of all that you do. Without it, you are going to lose your way in the cacophony of conflicting voices and conflicting inclinations within you.
That is why Jesus refers to worldly anxiety and the lure of riches. The worldly anxiety — what about this, what about that, I am worried about this, what is going to happen — or the lure of riches, which could be wealth but also all the other forms of attraction in the world. If I am distracted by anxieties and the lure of riches, I have lost my focus on the word of God, and so the seed is going to be choked off and will not bear fruit in me.
I would suggest that everyone spend time with this simple story and with this privileged interpretation that the Lord himself has given us. Examine your conscience to see if these three dimensions are not at work in you in some way.
The Seed on Good Soil: Fruit Thirty, Sixty, and a Hundredfold
Let us end on the happy note. The seed is also sown on good soil, where it takes deep root, and the Lord says it bears fruit thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
My diocese here is in the far southern part of Minnesota, just over the border from Iowa — we are like northern Iowa, you might say. And the farmers here — as I am recording these words, the crops are coming up. This is the kind of soil that just gives rise to beautiful fruits. It is emblematic of the soil of the soul: not choked off by riches, willing to accept the discipline of a spiritual life, not living it superficially but allowing the word to sink down deep. That is the good soil.
As long as that soil is present in us, the word that is always generously sown will unleash its power in you. And it will bear fruit thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
God bless you.