Fall silent
and bear fruit
Week 3
Opening Prayer
+ Lord, I fall silent before you, knowing it is you alone
that produces fruit within me.
Scripture
Jesus said to them in reply, “…Those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”
And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but
found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. So cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ The gardener said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’” (cf. Luke 13.1-9)
Meditation
As I reflect on this week’s reading, it immediately strikes me how upon first blush, the man in our parable who allowed the fig tree to grow for three years would be someone that many would consider to be a patient man! Allowing any project or task to “work its magic” for three years in our society would certainly be considered a task of great patience. We as a society hold instant gratification as a norm and are often very quick to cast aside items that don't reveal their fruit almost immediately. Yet, the man in this week’s parable is certainly someone who seemed reasonable in his expectation that fruit would be produced from this tree.
In our world today we often cast aside others who we see as “not bearing fruit” in our quick judgments. It can be easy to see the faults in our colleagues, family members, and friends, and cast them off just as the man did with the tree in Jesus’ parable. However, the key difference between reasonable patience and the life-giving patience to bear fruit takes shape in the cultivation and the fertilizing of the ground.
In the parable the gardner asks for a chance to let the tree continue to grow. He takes it upon himself to cultivate and fertilize the ground for it to bear fruit. This commitment by the gardener takes the patient love of God and brings it to life for us. Too often I am quick to judge others or dismiss their possibilities because I am looking at the relationship from a quick-win perspective. The tending of the ground in relationships takes the patient effort of the gardener. All of us are still fig trees working to bear our most precious fruit. We need to be cultivated and fertilized, just as we need to cultivate and fertilize our relationships with others.
We can bear fruit by falling silent to the temptations of our society to more fully tend our relationships. In a fast-paced world, the noise and distraction of our days, our careers, and our devices can blur out any chance of living a life of the patience of the gardener. For me personally, distraction and pace have a tremendous impact on my relationships. This Lent I am praying for the Lord to help me fall silent to the pace of our world in order to invest more, be present, and tend to relationships with the hand of the gardener. I am seeking to fertilize and cultivate with intentionality, so that my relationships and my life can bear the fruit God has created it to bear.
- Aaron Becker, K-8 Principal, Cedar Valley Catholic Schools/St. Edward Parish
Reflection
1) Who do I find it easy to judge or write off? When am I most likely to do this?
2) What are the areas in my moral and spiritual life where I have grown and matured over the years?
3) What are the areas which require more practice and more patience?
4) What does it mean to me to "bear fruit"? How am I called to Fall Silent for this to happen?
