How it is with the kingdom of God

It seems pretty clear that the kingdom of God cannot be described straightforwardly. Why else would Jesus teach in nothing but parables? This question remains even when we grasp that Jesus explained the parables to his closest followers privately.

It also seems pretty clear that the kingdom of God is already here, even if imperceptibly or, like a mustard seed, in barely perceptible ways. In other words, perhaps now we can only get a glimpse of it now and then, here and there. Ezekiel's tender shoot of a cedar tree that becomes a mighty cedar at the top of the mountain is an image of Israel. Jerusalem, as those who've visited the Holy Land know, is on top of a mountain. It seems pretty clear why this reading was paired with today's Gospel.

In thinking about the barely perceptible nature of the kingdom of God, my mind often goes to a song by Michael Card: "Distressing Disguise," especially this verse:

Every time a faithful servant serves
A brother that's in need
What happens at that moment is a miracle indeed
As they look to one another in an instant it is clear
Only Jesus is visible for they've both disappeared

It is part of Christian hope that the kingdom of God will be fully established at some indeterminate time in the future. And that its establishment does not depend on any human being, let alone any human government or state. It seems opportune to once again assert that hope is not optimism: hope that is truly hope happens when optimism comes to an end. I think this is why I find a certain hope in many of the works of Samuel Beckett, especially his best-known work Waiting for Godot. Faith and hope pertain to what we do not see or know.

However, I think we can derive some insight from the fact that the farmer in Jesus's first parable scattered the seed that then grew to harvest. What is the seed but the word of God? What is evangelism if not the scattering of the seed of God's word?

How this all works out is a bit of a mystery. When it comes to evangelization, how often do your best-laid plans work out the way you planned, or even seem to work out at all? This is why I never understand programmatic approaches to evangelism. As Paul tells us in our second reading today, "we walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Cor. 5:7). For someone who is a disciple of Jesus evangelism is as natural as breathing.

As to the explanation of parables, the inspired author of the Gospel According to Mark, through his writing, gives us private access to Jesus's explanations of his parables. The written Gospel places us on the inside. The privileged place for the proclamation of the scriptures is in the Church's liturgy, particularly in the Eucharistic celebration. As with his apostles, we are not given this privileged access only for ourselves. Keep in mind that an "apostle" is someone who is sent. At the end of Mass, you are sent not merely, or even, to preach but to make the kingdom of God present.