Word to the Wise
Sunday, March 22, 2015 - 5th Sunday of Lent - B
[Jer 31:31-34; Heb 5:7-9; John 12:20-33]Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. [John]
As one who loves to garden, these words of Jesus always catch my attention. Every Spring (which has just begun), I look at those glossy seed catalogs with longing to grow all of the beautiful plants that they promise! I order some and plant them with varying degrees of success! Still, I never cease to be amazed that a tiny seed disappears and a large plant appears that eventually bears fruit. The transformation is both radical and natural. The seed is no long a seed, but the plant is in continuity with the seed. A tomato seed will not produce a squash plant.
Jesus' words to the "Greeks" who approach him seem to anticipate the transformation that will occur with his death and resurrection. [Cf. also St. Paul's use of the image of the seed in 1 Corinthians 15:42-44]. This level of understanding is part of the drama of Jesus' experience in Jerusalem. On another level (the Gospel of John always seems to offer more than one), Christian meditation on these words has taken them to mean the change that one must undergo if one wishes to have a profound relationship with God. The scripture from Jeremiah today seems to point to this, too, with the new covenant written on the heart.
Those of us who attend the Easter Vigil service may witness baptisms and professions of faith by individuals who wish to become Catholics. It is an impressive ceremony but it is only just a beginning for them, just as our own baptism is a continual beginning for each of us. If we wish to bear fruit, we must be willing to be transformed by faith. The approach of Holy Week reminds us that this process can be very difficult. But if we want to get the most out of our faith commitment, we must, like the seed, change into a fruit-bearing plant. AMEN
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