Excerpt from Luke 8:4-10

"Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant."

Reflection by Felix Carrion

We don't have much use for parables today. We pride ourselves on wanting plain talk. Jesus' parables were exactly that: plain talk. No politics in parables!

A farmer goes out to sow seeds. Some seeds on the path get eaten by birds. Some on rock sprout fast but wither for lack of moisture. Some are choked by thorns. But some on good soil grew and yielded lots of fruit.

Which one of these represents you? You can say, "Well, it isn't that simple." And Jesus would reply, "No, it is simple, if you pay attention to the parable, if you pay attention to your life."

When you are in true possession of your life, this is your life at work (toiling, discerning, understanding, struggling, growing, producing). No one can find your life for you. You alone know it or don't; you alone find it or don't. Others will try for you. But Jesus warns us big against this. Only you can know and speak to the meaning of your life.

Nature doesn't play politics. Your true self doesn't play politics. Neither does God.

Prayer

O God, thank you that my life in its essence is itself a parable of truth. Help me to know it, find it, and own it as you do. Amen.