Reaching out through parables

By Usha Bande

"WHY speakest thou unto them in parables?"

*"Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given".

This short conversation in Matthew 13:10-11 speaks of the importance of teaching by parables which Jesus had perfected. Whenever he had to reveal a truth, he had recourse to some interesting parable. Sometimes, he would explain the meaning, sometimes leave it to the people to probe it themselves.

The word parable means "placing something along side something else in order to throw light on the latter". "Parable’’ is, therefore, applied to a story of some familiar or intelligible incident which serves by comparison or contrast to illustrate some less familiar or difficult truth. Sometimes, even a simile or a metaphor acts as a parable in its germ-form. When Jesus rebutted the charge of casting out demons by Beelzebub with a simile he was using a parable (Mt. 12:25-27) Similarly, the sayings about the new wine in old wineskin, and blind leading the blind illustrate different truths by suggestive comparisons.

In fact, similes, metaphors, metaphorical sayings, paradoxes and even enigmatic sayings are not parables in the strict sense of the word but, the use of term "parable" in its broadest sense is probably due to the translation of Greek and Hebrew words into English. The Hebrew word Mashal for a parable was translated into Greek as parabole or paroimia. The Greek and Hebrew words have a broad meaning to include allegory, stories, similes and so on.

When Matthew uses the phrase from the Psalm 78.2. "I will open my mouth in parables", he hints at proverbial saying rather than stories (Mt. 13.35). The Hebrew word mashal meant primarily "sayings" and secondarily "stories", while the Greek word parabole meant primarily "stories" and secondarily "sayings".

The use of parables to convey spiritual truth was not a new concept during Jesus’s time. Concrete illustrations and suggestive parallels are easy to grasp than abstract definition and logical argument. As such, parables were used frequently even before Christ. The Old Testament has many parables to interpret the law and the sayings of the prophets. For example, the parable of the vineyard in Isaiah 5 underlies the parable of the wicked tenant-farmers in Matthew 21:33-41 Similarly, many stories are found in the literature of Rabbinic Judaism. Thus, Jesus’s use of parables to convey his ideas was not new; it was an accepted form and much in use.

What was so unique about Jesus’s parables was that he changed them from the traditional, class-room kind of illustrations to a perfect literary form. His observations were from nature and every day life and were fresh. This freshness and fidelity to nature give persuasiveness and cogency to the parables. The pictures are drawn straight from nature and from life and the details are neither strained nor enforced. Let us take, for example, the parable of the sower and the seed. Seeds scattered in four different kind of soil yield four different results. Here, the suggestive parallel is clear and convincing.

The parables also reflect the social background of the life and time of Jesus. We see Galilee, Judaea, Jerusalem and watch the men and women in their homes, their fields, their professions. We see the market place, watch the farmers, stroll with the shepherds and pull the net with the fishermen. Nothing seems to escape the master and he effectively draws from all walks of life to reveal big truths. If the parable of the king’s feast takes us to the pomp and plenty of a king’s palace, the parable of the lost sheep tells us of the value of each individual be he as lowly as a sheep.

Jesus adopted the method of teaching by parables because he intended to elucidate the truth to the people; he wanted them to hear and understand. It is also suggested by some scholars that his intention was to veil the truth of his teaching from his adversaries who objected to his messages. But, this later view cannot be substantiated with facts because Jesus’s messages were open and there was nothing obscure about him.

The purpose of teaching by parables could be his desire to sift his hearers. The story of the sower and the seed is also the story of Jesus and his words. He spoke, and his words had different effects on different people. Some heard but understood nothing, others understood only superficially, while the third category understood and grasped but were waylaid by worldly glitter; only those who had some depth yielded results according to their capabilities. Another reason why he adopted this method could be that he wanted to generate and sustain the interest of the people in his message about the Kingdom of God.

When Jesus started to teach in parables, his main theme was the Kingdom of God. Some of the early parables show the nature and growth of the Kingdom like the parables of the "mustard seed", and the sower. The parable of the sower suggests that coming of the Kingdom depends on the response men give. The mustard seed suggests that even small beginnings can fructify into huge results. This is a picture of outward extension which is visible. The leaven, on the other hand, illustrates the inner change.

But the coming of Kingdom is fraught with difficulties too. Wheat and tare grow side by side. In man’s life good and bad go side by side and he must be able to sift the right from the wrong. He may stumble upon a hidden treasure and the treasure may well be worth buying at any cost. Or he may find a "Pearl" after search Mt 13:44-45. It depends on him how he uses those precious gifts. The parable of the net (Mt 13:47-50) suggests that man must display the capacity to sift the worthy and the unworthy, the precious and the worthless.

Some parables can be grouped together as those of warning and judgement. The lesson of the fig-tree (Mt. 24:32) and the parable of the king’s feast (Mt. 22: 1-14) are meant to warn, while the parables of the two sons (Mt.21:28ff),of talents (Mt. 25:14ff) and wise and foolish virgin (Mt. 21:28ff), are meant to impress upon the followers the necessity of watchfulness and preparedness.

The two sons in the above parable represent the publicans and the Pharisees. While the publicans do not agree to follow the prophets first, they repent and accept the faith later; the Pharisees are like the second son who say "yes" but do not do the assigned task. In the parable of the virgins, those who are watchful and prepared are rewarded, the foolish ones get the punishment and humiliation of rejection. In the story of the talents we learn the significance of putting our god-given talents to proper use.

Apart from the above two main groups, we have stories intended to spread good-will and transform foes into friends; stories delineating the true Christian character; love of neighbour, love of enemies, charity, forgiveness and humility. For example, the unforgiving servant in Mt. 18:23-35 and the unreasonable husbandsmen in Mt. 21-33ff get severe punishment for their attitude.

The parables of Jesus are not in a chronological order, nor are they connected. Biblical scholars have grouped them according to their message and subject matter. One can find two main groups — those focusing on the Kingdom and those dealing with warning. One cannot miss a note of moral responsibility underlying in the parables of the ten virgins, the unforgiving servant and the incident of the wedding garment. The parables of the two sons and the first and last vineyard labourers contain warning to the Jews that in the Kingdom of Heaven they would be surpassed by the gentiles.