July 19, 2026. At Saint Peter, Saint William and Saint Agnes Churches in Naples, FL
Book of Wisdom 12, 13, 16-19 + Psalm 85 + Romans 8: 26-27 + Matthew 13: 24-43
“Kingdom Parables” I call them. We get three in a row this month, and this is the second, and all three of them have us out in the field: first with seeds, now with weeds, and then next weekend with a hidden treasure. I love the way this parable captures the attitude of our day toward things we don’t like. When the question is raised about how the weeds got there, BLAME rears its ugly head. “The devil did it.” There is always someone or something to blame.
However, that is not the point here. This parable, unique to Matthew’s Gospel, really speaks to us about evil not necessarily where it comes from or who did it, but what we do about it and how we live with it. There is an ethical question being raised by these servants. Should they pull the weeds? Their desire to do so reveals a too simple understanding, and the planter corrects that. The presence of the weeds or the presence of evil means that the wheat must now compete in a field with a plant that provides no nourishment, feeds no souls, but uses precious resources.
That planter responds that the good seed must just always contend with the bad, the pure with the impure. There is suggestion here that we must simply live with the weeds until the harvest comes. This planter’s advice invites us to reflect on the risk of unintended consequences, or what some circles call, “Collateral Damage.” Most of the time it only makes the evil worse. This is not to suggest that we just ignore evil, but that we begin get our act together and compete with it letting our good works and the truth prevail until the angels have their day.
There is one more little piece of wisdom in this parable that may escape us because we like to think of ourselves as the wheat, the good seed in this world or as the ones who should serve as God’s assistants and clean things up. You may judge for yourselves after some reflection, but I know that I am one of God’s plants, a complicated mixture of good and evil that I can’t always pull apart. Remembering that keeps my mouth shut when I want to criticize someone, and it tempers my too quick judgements about what or who is really good or bad.
To my relief, I remember that God does not rely on our actions. We rely on God’s merciful, steadfast patience to leave us here in the field, tangled up as we are rather than be pulled out early.