A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, “See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?”
He replied, “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 is a story told by Jesus as a response to questions about misfortune, punishment and sin. Most people interpreted this story this way: The “man” is God. We are the fig tree. God is not pleased that we don’t bear fruit and threatens to destroy us. The gardener is Jesus, who pleads for us and buys us some time—a grace period to get out acts together.
I was one who subscribed to this interpretation until I studied this
text with a group of Chinese refugees from Southeast Asia. After listening to the story, one of the
participants asked, “What’s a fig tree doing in a vineyard?” This question opened my eyes to new dimensions
of this story I had never thought of before.
“What kind of fruit is this man looking for?” He continued his inquiry. “If he is looking for grapes, he isn’t going to find any. Besides, the Chinese name of fig is ‘no-flower fruit’; so a fig tree bears fruit very differently from the grapevines.” As we explored further as a group on this theme, another participant said, “Back in Vietnam, I was a doctor; now I wash dishes in a restaurant. People in America don’t see the fruit we bear.”
We often think of a “grace period” as getting a little more time to do what we have to do to get by. In the last few months, we have witnessed how the Congress of the United States procrastinated during the grace period over the so-called “fiscal cliff” at the end of 2012 and is doing the same with the “sequester” cuts. Instead of using this grace period to understand the issue in new ways by seeing it from different perspectives, our nation’s leaders have simply reinforced their one-dimensional beliefs during this time. In other words, they are saying the same old thing: we want our “fruit” as we define it. They have used the grace period as a time for more political maneuvers to get their way.
Perhaps it is time to see the fig tree for what it is, and not expect it to grow and bear fruit like grapevines. Perhaps we need to use this time to listen to those who are impacted in local communities (the fig trees), and appreciate the gifts and talents they bring to the nation. (In the Exodus story, God had “observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt” and “heard their cry.” God, with the help of Moses, solved the slavery problem with an innovative solution: I will liberate them!) Only when we are able to see the issue from the perspectives of those who suffered, we will then find innovative solutions to our problems.
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2013 Opportunities to Study with The Sustainist: April 15-19 July 15-19 August 19-23 Register at: www.kscopeinstitute.org |
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Reflection Questions for the Second Sunday in Lent (Year C) Exodus 3:1-15 Psalm 63:1–8 1 Corinthians 10:1–13 Luke 13:1–9 |
Eric H. F. Law
Kaleidoscope Institute
For competent leadership in a diverse changing world
www.kscopeinstitute.org
