{"id":481,"date":"2021-03-21T15:04:47","date_gmt":"2021-03-21T15:04:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rebelrebel.org.uk\/?p=481"},"modified":"2021-03-21T16:38:44","modified_gmt":"2021-03-21T16:38:44","slug":"sowing-seeds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.rebelrebel.org.uk\/?p=481","title":{"rendered":"Sowing Seeds"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Farmer<\/a><\/p>\n

Sermon #49 (21st March 2021 at Essex Church \/ Kensington Unitarians)<\/strong><\/p>\n

When people ask me about Unitarianism \u2013 what it is we do, what\u2019s special about our church \u2013 I never really give the same answer twice\u2026 but one thing I often say is that we seek wisdom from wherever we can find it. So, for example, in this week\u2019s service we\u2019re drawing on ancient stories from the Bible \u2013 one of Jesus\u2019 parables \u2013 also the best of contemporary Unitarian thought \u2013 my mate Bob\u2019s recent poem \u2013 and alternative expressions from spiritual-seekers around the globe such as that track we heard from Nimo Patel. But if we\u2019re going to talk about sowing seeds there\u2019s one authority on the subject we just can\u2019t ignore: Monty Don. So I made a point of tuning in on Friday night, for the first episode in the new season of Gardeners World to see if Monty had any wisdom that I could bring to you this morning. You can\u2019t say I don\u2019t take my research seriously! <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

So let\u2019s start with the Gospel According to Monty Don; if you\u2019re sowing literal seeds \u2013 on Friday he was encouraging the nation\u2019s gardeners to sow chilli seeds indoors and broad beans outdoors \u2013 Monty says (I was watching on iPlayer and I ran it back so I could write this down!): \u2018it\u2019s a mistake to think that you can just scatter the seed any old how and they\u2019ll all just sort themselves out\u2026 because then it just becomes survival of the fittest and a lot of the seedlings won\u2019t do very well\u2019. <\/em>The wise words of Monty Don. When I heard that I couldn\u2019t help thinking of our readings today. <\/p>\n

In that well-known Bible passage, the Parable of the Sower, that Antony ready for us earlier<\/a>, Jesus likens the seed being sown by a farmer to \u2018the Word\u2019 being planted in those who hear it. In this story we are the seedbed, the soil, into which \u2018the Word\u2019 is sown, with\u2026 variable results. So how might we interpret this notion of \u2018the Word\u2019, as Unitarians? Well, this parable turns up in three of the Gospels, Mark, Matthew, and Luke, in slightly different versions, with a different emphasis \u2013 \u2018the Word\u2019 also gets rendered as \u2018the Word of God\u2019 or \u2018the Word of the Kingdom\u2019 \u2013 as Unitarians we\u2019ll each have our own way of making sense of that language. My take on \u2018the Word\u2019 is to think of it as something like \u2018God\u2019s Way\u2019 or \u2018The Message about God\u2019s Way\u2019 \u2013 spiritual and ethical teachings about the way of Goodness, Truth, Justice, and Love \u2013 and also guidance on how we might best live in alignment with that path. Maybe what is being sown, then, is the seed of a better world for all. A vision of how life could <\/em>(and perhaps should<\/em>) be instead of the way it often is<\/em>. <\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t feel a particular connection with the Christian tradition, or even the God-language, perhaps this notion of \u2018sowing the seeds of a better world\u2019 is a more universal way of thinking of it. Those values of goodness, truth, justice and love transcend any particular religious tradition really. So maybe, in this teaching story, Jesus is saying that \u2018the Word\u2019 is a seed sown in each of us \u2013 we hear wise guidance about how we can live by those values and bring about a better world \u2013 but somehow \u2018the Word\u2019 doesn\u2019t always germinate, or take root, or grow to its full potential in us. We hear that wisdom \u2013 we might like the sound of it, in theory, and aspire to live by it \u2013 but there\u2019s a lot going on in our lives and any number of other concerns can divert us from our best intentions. Seeds of goodness, truth, justice and love don\u2019t always <\/em>reach full maturity in our lives and the world. I think most of us would acknowledge the truth in that. Spiritual seed-sowing is <\/em>a bit hit-and-miss. <\/p>\n

But let\u2019s take the themes of that parable and run a bit further with them, as Bob Janis-Dillon did in his poem, \u2018Idiot Wind\u2019<\/a>, which he read for us earlier on. In his version, the seeds cast into the wind represent all our cherished plans, and dreams, and hopes, and expectations\u2026 which, again, face a range of mostly-inauspicious endings: variously crushed, scavenged, shrivelled, and choked. A bleak outlook, perhaps. We want to shape our lives, or the world, for the better but it often seems the odds are against us. Yet sometimes \u2013 just sometimes <\/em>\u2013 things mysteriously come good. A few seeds do <\/em>thrive, despite everything. And it\u2019s not necessarily that we\u2019ve done anything right. There is an element of chance involved. A stray gust of metaphorical wind may just carry our precious hopes onto fertile ground so they miraculously \u2018rise above our heads in glory\u2019<\/em> and \u2018produce a harvest beyond our wildest dreams\u2019<\/em>. <\/p>\n

So, if we do want to try and bring about some significant change, despite the odds \u2013 whether that\u2019s to help create the better world that we (and God) dream of \u2013 or to realise our own personal hopes and aspirations \u2013 is there any practical wisdom we can extract from this metaphor of sowing seeds? Well, when it comes to seed-sowing, there\u2019s an old proverb that comes to mind. There are lots of variations but my version is: \u2018One for the rook, and one for the crow, one to rot, and one to grow\u2019.<\/em> The country wisdom being that, for every flourishing plant, you need to sow four seeds, to take into account the pests and diseases that will likely strike most of them down prematurely. So if we\u2019re going to sow seeds of change it helps to sow them generously. Take lots of small steps, small actions, in support of your hopes and dreams, and maybe a few of them might just succeed, nudging your life (or the world) just a little further along in the direction you were aiming for. <\/p>\n

And \u2013 I\u2019m sure Monty Don would back me up on this one \u2013 often there is something <\/em>you can do to prepare the ground and improve the conditions your \u2018seeds of change\u2019 are going to land in. Rather than scattering your seeds haphazardly you might actively seek more fertile ground (and add compost or mulch to enrich the soil, add vital nutrients, and improve its structure). You could water your little seedlings, diligently keep on top of the weeding, chase away the birds. Similarly, if you\u2019re trying to help bring about a better world, you might do well to focus your efforts where you\u2019re most likely to have an impact, in a way that plays to your strengths. Choose an issue, or a project, or a community you really care about and make that \u2018your patch\u2019, at least for a season or two, and get stuck in. Commit to the change that you want to see. You might call in support and encouragement from others \u2013 get the nourishment you need \u2013 and take care to protect yourself from naysayers and those who divert you from your purpose. There are all sorts of things that might improve our chances of bringing about the transformation we seek. But there will always be factors beyond our control \u2013 in the end, to sow, we have to let go. <\/p>\n

And, finally, it\u2019s worth remembering that the seeds we plant \u2013 the seeds of a better world \u2013 those seeds of goodness, truth, justice and love \u2013 might well bear fruit that we never get to see. We might despair of making any meaningful difference in this world \u2013 but we can never know what impact our actions will ultimately have \u2013 so we must sow and tend our seeds in faith. And in that spirit I\u2019d like to close with an echo of those words from gratefulness.org<\/a> which took us into meditation: <\/p>\n

\u2018This is a message that we can carry into our daily lives:
\nThe idea of planting seeds without expectation of the fruits.
\nTo plant seeds of love without expecting love in return.
\nTo plant seeds of hard work, without expecting success or accolades.
\nTo plant seeds of peace, without expecting the world to always be peaceful.
\nIn the end, this is what we can do\u2026 plant our seeds, water the plants,
\nthen let it take its own course\u2026 [for as the song says<\/a>]:
\nWe are planting seeds, nothing more.\u2019 Amen. <\/p>\n

Sermon by Jane Blackall<\/strong><\/p>\n

An audio recording of this sermon is available:<\/strong><\/p>\n\nhttps:\/\/www.kensington-unitarians.org.uk\/pod2011\/KU_jane.blackall_zoom_sermon_21.03.21.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n

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A video recording of this sermon is available:<\/strong><\/p>\n