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Sermon
3 Lent
A sermon preached by The Rev. John E. Laycock
(Mar 7, 2010)
“Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig round it and put manure on it.” (Luke 13:8)
From what we read in the New Testament, one might conclude that Jesus didn’t like figs and fig trees. The references all seem rather negative. This morning’s gospel includes the parable of the Barren Fig Tree, a story only Luke tells. Matthew (24:32-35), Mark (13:28-31), and Luke (21:29-33) all have the Lesson of the Fig Tree, in which Jesus says that the leafing out of the fig signals the coming of summer, just as certain signs will indicate the coming of the apocalypse and the kingdom of God. And Mark (11:12-14, 20-24) and Matthew (21:18-22) have the story of Jesus cursing a fig tree. All these stories are pretty grim.
So, does Jesus have it “in” for fig trees? I doubt it. The gospels don’t provide a full reflection of Jesus’ feelings about figs or many other subjects, such as divorce and remarriage (Matt. 5:32; Mark 10:12; Luke 16:18) or “rendering unto Caesar” (Matt. 22:21; Mark 12:17; Luke 20:25). The gospels are statements of faith in Jesus Christ. They tell us what we must know about our Lord; they do not tell us everything we would like to know.
However, we can assume that Jesus was very familiar with, and enjoyed the fruits of, fiscus carica, better known as the common fig. This shrub or small tree, growing 20-30 feet in height, with smooth gray bark and distinctive leaves, is native to the eastern Mediterranean, Iran, and northern India. It is almost certainly one of the first plants ever cultivated by human beings. Archaeological evidence indicates that the fig was domesticated more than 9,000 years before Christ, and before the cultivation of wheat, barley, and legumes. Some consider it the first clear example we have of agriculture.
Our early ancestors who sampled the fruit undoubtedly figured out what science has confirmed — that figs are not only tasty, but good for you. Dried figs are an excellent source of fiber, vitamin K, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and other essential minerals. Figs became a major part of the diet where grown, and when dried, they were a valuable trade good.
Moreover, the fig has the distinction of being the first plant specifically mentioned in Holy Scripture. When Adam and Eve recognize they are naked and are afraid to stand starkers before God, they fashion coverings made from fig leaves. Medieval painters carried on this tradition, and today we speak of using a “fig leaf” to cover up something embarrassing.
Scripture is rich in fig symbolism and metaphor. In Deuteronomy we read that “the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land... a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates... where you will lack nothing....” (Deut. 8:7-9) So figs are symbolic of abundance. But what the Lord gives, the Lord can take away. In Amos we read, “‘I smote you with blight and mildew; I laid waste your gardens and your vineyards; your fig trees and your olive trees the locust devoured; yet you did not return to me,’ says the Lord.” (Amos 4:9) Figs may also symbolize deprivation.
Grape vines and fig trees are frequently paired in scripture, so we can assume that farmers often grew both in close proximity. For example, the author of the First Book of Kings notes that during “Solomon’s lifetime Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beersheba, all of them under their vines and fig trees.” (1 Kings 4:25) This image of safety and security is repeated by the prophet Micah who predicts that those who are faithful “shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and none shall make them afraid....” (Micah 4:4)
However, not all figs are created equal. Fig trees typically bear two crops each year. The first, on the previous year’s shoots, are not so good. The main crop, which develops on the current year’s shoots, is superior in quantity and quality. Thus the prophet Hosea says of those who whore after the false god Baal, “Like grapes in the wilderness I found Israel. Like the first fruits on the fig tree, in its first season, I saw your fathers... [they] became detestable like the thing they loved [that is, Baal].” (Hosea 9:10)
Perhaps the fig tree’s habit of producing two crops, one superior to the other, is the origin of Jeremiah’s striking metaphor of the two baskets of figs. This comes from the time of the Babylonian Captivity. In 598 B.C. Nebuchadrezzar II, king of Babylon, conquered Jerusalem, plundered the city and temple, and took into captivity King Jeconiah of Judah, many of Jerusalem’s leading citizens, and some 10,000 others. Nebuchadrezzar then appointed Zedakiah, Jeconiah’s uncle, as a client king to rule over what was left of Judah. However, the exiled Jews never accepted the puppet Zedakiah as their true king. In exile, then, the prophet Jeremiah reports having a vision of two baskets of figs, one good and one bad. The good figs are the faithful Jews languishing in exile in Babylon, while the bad figs are Zedekiah, his court, and those Jews who remain in Judah but do not follow the Lord’s ways. (Jer. 24:4-9)
It would appear, then, that when Jesus speaks of a fig tree which bears no fruit, he is intentionally tapping into a rich range of associations for his listeners. These are people for whom figs are a major part of their diet and livelihood. Figs are also a potent religious symbol, sometimes of God’s gift of abundance, peace, and security, and sometimes of the loss of God’s favor because of humankind’s transgressions.
Still, having said all this, the meaning of this parable of the Barren Fig Tree is not easily discerned. What is it that Jesus wants his listeners — and us — to understand about this tree which gets a stay of execution? We can see that the vineyard owner is impatient. After three seasons without a crop, he is frustrated. So he instructs the gardener to cut down the tree. But the gardener pleads with him, saying, “Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.” (Luke 13:6-9)
This sounds to me like a parable about neglect. We know that our own vegetable gardens don’t grow well without weeding and fertilizing. Perhaps this fig tree has been neglected, and the gardener is saying that some additional effort will produce a good harvest. Perhaps Jesus tells this parable so that his listeners will see that the gardeners in the Lord’s vineyard — the Pharisees and Sadducees — have been neglectful of their responsibility for God’s people, and that proper care by a dedicated gardener will result in the people bearing good fruit. Or perhaps the people themselves have been negligent, and must work harder.
Neglect — the failure to take proper care of something — is a common failing in so many areas of life, and its results are rarely helpful. One memorable example of negligence drawn from our common political life is a proposal in the late 1960s by Daniel Patrick Moynihan, then serving as urban affairs advisor to President Nixon, that the issue of race could benefit from a period of “benign neglect” in order to allow racial tensions to ease after the struggle over civil rights in the 1950s and early ‘60s. About that time a Rand Institute study found that most of the fires in the South Bronx and Harlem neighborhoods of New York City resulted from arson. Moynihan apparently felt that arson was an unavoidable “pathology” characteristic of impoverished urban areas, and recommended that fire departments not waste their resources trying to fight arson — in short, they should practice “benign neglect.” Unfortunately, further analysis of the Rand Institute data failed to show that arson fires occurred more often in the South Bronx and Harlem, populated predominantly by African-Americans, than in wealthier, more Caucasian neighborhoods of New York City. Thus Moynihan’s term “benign neglect” became a catch phrase for government abandonment of urban areas and their minority residents.
Another example of neglect cropped up in the February 21st edition of the New York Times Book Review. The book in question is The Death of American Virtue, by law professor Ken Gormley. It deals with the 5-year investigation of Bill Clinton, first for financial wrongdoing, and then for extramarital adventures; his impeachment by the House of Representatives in 1998; and his trial before the Senate in 1999. Reflecting on this memorable period, reviewer Richard Berke says: “In today’s world of suicide bombers and a ravaged economy, [the Clinton impeachment] seems not merely frivolous, but ludicrous. And it’s especially disconcerting to think that while so many were preoccupied by [the impeachment], Osama bin Laden was most likely preoccupied with attacking the United States.” (NYT Book Review, 2/21/10, p. 10)
In my view, Berke makes a valid point. When our national political discourse degenerates into something like a food fight in the school cafeteria, important public business, and even our national security, is neglected. We have been in a period of hyper-partisanship for at least 15 years, and probably longer. Both political parties bear responsibility. And I am not convinced that our elected representatives in Washington really care, or are prepared to do something about it. Such neglect can be very costly.
Neglect is certainly not confined to the realm of politics. During my time as interim in the churches at Grosse Ile and Romeo, I saw credible research which indicated that students in these very affluent communities had significantly more likelihood of using drugs than students in less wealthy school systems. The reason was quite simple: in general, Grosse Ile and Romeo students had more money to spend than their poorer peers, and quite a few spent their “discretionary income” on drugs. I’m sure the parents of these students thought they were doing their children a favor by giving them extra spending money, and that they were honoring their children’s autonomy by not inquiring too closely how they spent all that cash. If someone characterized their behavior as neglectful, I’m sure these parents would have been deeply offended. But as Jesus says, fig trees require attention, and even some manure, if they are to be healthy and productive. So do children.
And, of course, we may neglect our spiritual lives. The Litany of Penitence in our Ash Wednesday service — which makes good reading at any time during Lent — offers us a whole vineyard full of neglected fig trees. This prayer reminds us that we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves... have not forgiven others as we have been forgiven... have yielded to our self-indulgent appetites and ways while exploiting other people... have envied those more fortunate than ourselves... and have been negligent in prayer and worship. The list goes on and on, so much so that we may feel God is being unfair, too critical, too unwilling to provide us ...a fig leaf!
But Lent is a time for honesty — a time to be honest with ourselves and honest to God. God knows our sins and shortcomings far better than we do. God sees when we turn a blind eye. God wants good fruit from us, and desires only that we recognize that the tree won’t produce figs without some digging, and a bit of manure, provided by attentive gardeners.
Let us remember Paul’s words to the Corinthians: “God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Cor. 10:13) The Lord does not demand more than we can offer. And what he does demand will make us stronger in faith, better stewards of his vineyard, and more grateful recipients of his abundant grace. Amen.
— The Rev. John E. Laycock, Interim Pastor
Readings for Year C, Lent 3: Lesson — Exodus 3:1-15 • Gradual — Psalm 63:1-8 • Epistle — 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 • Gospel — Luke 13:1-9
Collect for Lent 3:
Almighty God, you know that we have no power in ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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