As the young family was leaving church,
the daughter was telling her parents about her Sunday school class: “Today in
Sunday school we learned how Jesus loved to teach about a couple of cows.” The mother smiled and said, “I think you mean
‘parables,’ sweetie.”
Because I like “word play” humor, one of
my favorite cartoon strips—Funky
Winkerbean, had a strip in which the class was being given a vocabulary
test in which they had to define certain words.
In the strip there is a student who happens to be a “jock” and he is
pondering over a word . . . “parable.”
In the next frame of the strip we see him writing furiously his
definition of the word. In the last
frame we are given the opportunity to see his answer . . . “A pair of bulls.”
Get it?
A pair of bulls . . . a couple of
cows!
Personally, I think that it is funny in
its cleverness . . . but, when it comes right down to it, describing parables
and what they mean is not easy. In fact,
it can be downright difficult and frustrating.
Our reading this morning tells us: “With many similar parables Jesus spoke the
word to them, as much as they could understand.
He did not say anything to them without using a parable.” Which, we are led to believe by the writer of
Mark’s gospel, that they had a hard time understanding. The writer goes on to state: “But
when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.” Apparently, parables are not as easy to
understand as they sound when shared.
Yet, Jesus uses them all the time.
In our reading this morning, he shares
what biblical scholars call “Kingdom parables”—parables about what the Kingdom
of God is like. He tells the parables of
The Growing Seed and The Mustard Seed. The first is about how a sower scatters seeds
and nothing else, and all by itself the grain grows until it is big enough to
harvest. In the second, he tells how the
mustard seed—the tiniest of all seeds—grows into the largest of all garden
plants—big enough for birds to perch in its shade. These describe for the listener what the
Kingdom of God is like.
Sounds simple enough. We all get it, right? We understand the parables meaning,
right? It is as clear as mud . . . who
are we to admit that we don’t quite understand . . . that we don’t quite
understand how either of these parables relate to God and God’s kingdom. That’s a part of human nature. We would rather wink and shake our heads as
if we understand, rather than admit that we have no clue what Jesus is talking
about. It is not “black and white” in
its explanation . . . it is not concrete and literal.
Karoline Lewis, Associate Professor of
Preaching at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, states that parables are
not simple linear interpretive exercises in reasoning . . . like one plus one
equals two. Parables are not designed
that way. She states that in its root
meaning para means alongside, and bole comes from the root ballein
which means to throw or cast. Thus, a
parable is something that is thrown alongside something else—they run alongside
of each other like two parallel lines that will never meet. To understand one must use a back and forth
dialogue between the two—the interpretation lies in a mutual, reciprocal, even
circular motion. It is not a simple one
plus one equals two is the end result . . . no, the understanding comes as they
run side by side. (Dear Working Preacher blog, June 7, 2018)
In these two examples Jesus provides
specific parables to which the listeners are to imagine the nature of and truth
about the kingdom of God. He is
suggesting that by speaking in parables is a means by which to make sense of
things, as being a way to be in the world, and to operate in the world. Through parables the listener is offered a
lens through which certain concepts of faith or a means of glimpsing God’s
activity in the world. They point to a
reality of life . . . that there are often aspects about our lives, God
included, that only make sense in parable, states Lewis. In a way, then, we might even say that
parables are necessary for making sense of life. (Dear
Working Preacher, June 7, 2018)
And, guess what . . . since we all go
through and experience life differently, the odds are pretty good that none of
us is going to see parables exactly alike.
We are going to interpret them differently as our lives are different
and we experience life differently.
Plus, what we think they mean today probably is not what we are going to
think that they mean tomorrow. We are
constantly growing and changing as we journey through life, and our experience
of God changes as we change and grow in our faith. Thus, we do not always agree. Because of this, parables are tough to
explain.
Parables are simple word stories that
help us make sense of ourselves, our world, God, and God’s presence in the
world. Parables help us to
understand. Everyone loves a good
story. Since the beginning of time the
human race has used stories to help us understand . . . that is how we explain
things . . . make sense of things.
Which does not always happen.
Jesus did not tell parables for
explanation but for exploration. Jesus
was not looking for answers. No, what
Jesus was looking for was engaging the imagination . . . engaging the
heart. Jesus was not looking for
certainties of faith, but instead he was looking for discoveries about how
faith works. And, through his example,
he asks his followers to talk in parables . . . to tell stories to engage the
imagination . . . the heart; to open up discoveries not about faith, but how
faith works. Jesus invites his followers
to become storytellers.
As I said earlier, everyone loves a good
story. We all have stories to tell . . .
about life, about God, about life with God.
When asked about our faith we may not be able to put it in precise
theological words, but we can tell a story that conveys its meaning. We begin by saying, “God is like . . .” From there we open the imagination of others,
touch their hearts, and share the Good News of Jesus in such a way that it
allows others to experience God in their own lives. They get glimpses of the Holy . . . glimpses
of the Kingdom of God . . .
I am not sure that any of us can really
explain why it would happen. It is kind
of like that seed that is thrown by the man . . . it just happens . . . it
grows. No one knows why it grow, but it
grows. It grows beyond what anyone could
ever imagine . . . like a tiny mustard seed, it grows to be the largest of all
the garden plants. We can’t explain it,
but it is amazing how the words of a simple parable . . . a simple story . . .
can change not only our lives, but the lives of others.
Jesus asks us to be storytellers . . .
asks us to share parables. Jesus asks us
to do this because something happens in the telling of parables and stories . .
. for us and those who are listening.
So, go forth and teach about a couple of cows . . . get yourself a pair
of bulls. Be a storyteller. Amen.
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