To sow

33. "A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they had not much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched; and since they had no root they withered away. Other seeds fell upon thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty" (Mt 13, 3-8).

This passage indicates, in some way, the first step along a pedagogical path, the first attitude of the one would place himself as mediator between the God who calls and the one who is called, and is inspired by God's action. God the Father is the sower; the Church and the world are the ground wherein He continues to sow His seed in abundance, with absolute liberty and without any kind of exclusion, a liberty that respects that of the ground where the seed falls.

a) Two liberties in dialogue

The parable of the sower shows that the Christian vocation is a dialogue between God and the human person. The principle interlocutor is God, who calls whom He wills, when He wills and how He wills "in virtue of his own purpose and grace" (2 Tim 1, 9); who calls everyone to salvation, without allowing Himself to be limited by the dispositions of the recipient. But the liberty of God meets the liberty of man in a mysterious and fascinating dialogue, made up of words and silence, of messages and actions, of looks and gestures, a liberty that is perfect — God's — and one that is imperfect — man's. Vocation, therefore, is totally the action of God, but in a real way it is also the action of individual people: the work and penetration of God into the heart of human liberty, but also the effort and struggle of men and women to be free to welcome the gift.

Whoever accompanies a brother or sister on the path of vocational discernment enters into the mystery of liberty, and knows that he will be able to help only if he respects that mystery. Even if, apparently, that must mean a small result. Like the sower in the Gospel.

b) The courage to sow everywhere

It is precisely this respect for both liberties that signifies above all the courage to sow the good seed of the Gospel, of the Lord's death and resurrection, of faith and, finally, of following (sequela). This is the necessary condition; no pastoral work for vocations can be done if there is not this courage. We have to sow everywhere, in the heart of everyone, without preference or exception. If every human being is a creature of God, he is also the bearer of a gift, of a particular vocation which is waiting to be recognised.

Often in the Church we lament the shortage of vocational responses and we do not recognise that, just as often, the proposal is made within a limited circle of people, and probably immediately withdrawn after a first refusal. It is worthwhile here recalling the words of Paul VI: "Let nobody be ignorant, through our fault, of what he or she should know in order to alter his or her life in a different and better direction".(⁹⁷) And yet how many young people have never received any Christian proposal regarding their life and future!

It is excellent to observe the sower of the parable in the abundant gesture of his hand that sows "everywhere"; it is moving to recognise in this icon the heart of God the Father. It is the image of God that sows in the heart of every living person a plan of salvation; or if we wish, it is the image of the "waste" of God's generosity, that is poured out on all because He wants to save all and call them to Himself.

It is this same image of the Father that is evident in the action of Jesus, who calls sinners to Himself, chooses to build His Church with people who appear to be inappropriate for this mission, knows no barriers and makes no difference between people.

It is in reflecting this image that the vocational worker, in turn, proclaims, proposes, arouses, with identical generosity; and it is precisely the certainty of the seed placed by the Father in the heart of every creature, that gives the strength to go everywhere and sow the good seed of vocations, of not remaining within the usual limits but of confronting new environments, in order to attempt different approaches and address ourselves to every person.

c) Sowing at the right time

To scatter the good seed of vocation at the most promising moment is part of the wisdom of the sower. This does not mean hurrying the times of choice or pretending that a pre-adolescent has the same maturity to make decisions as has a young person; rather it means understanding and respecting the vocational sense of the human life.

Every season of life has a vocational significance, beginning from the moment when the child opens himself to life and needs to understand its meaning, and tries to question himself on his role in it. Not asking the question at the right time could prevent the sprouting of the seed: "pastoral experience shows that the first manifestation of a vocation arises, in the majority of cases, in childhood and adolescence. Therefore it seems important to recover or propose formulas that could encourage, support and accompany this first vocational manifestation".(⁹⁸) Without, however, being limited to this. Every person has his own rhythms and time for maturing. The important thing is that he have a good sower at his side.

d) The smallest of all the seeds

For reasons already known to us the job of a "vocational sower" is certainly not a simple one nowadays: there is, properly speaking, no vocational culture; the prevalent anthropological model seems to be that of the "man without vocation"; the social context is ethically neutral and without hope or projectual models. All these elements seem to come together to weaken the vocational proposition and allow us, perhaps, to apply to it what Jesus said regarding the Kingdom of God (cf Mt 13, 31ff.): the seed of a vocation is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown, or when it is proposed or indicated as being present, is the smallest of all the seeds; it does not often stir up any immediate agreement; rather it is negated or denied; and, suffocated by other expectations and projects, it is not taken seriously; or it is regarded with suspicion and diffidence, as if it were a seed of unhappiness.

And then the young person refuses, declares himself not to be interested, has already planned his future (or others have planned it for him); or perhaps he is pleased about it and interested, but he is not so sure, and then it is too difficult and he is afraid...

There is nothing strange or absurd in this fearful and negative reaction; the Lord has already said this. The seed of vocation is the smallest of all the seeds, it is weak and does not force itself, precisely because it is the expression of the liberty of God who intends to respect to the utmost the liberty of each individual.

And so the one guiding the person's journey also needs liberty: a liberty of heart that allows one to keep going in the face of an initial refusal or disinterest.

Jesus says, still in the parable of the mustard seed, that "when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs" (Mt 13, 32); therefore it is a seed with its own strength, even if it is not immediately evident and disruptive and, in addition, needs much care in order to mature. There is a sort of elementary secret that is part of common wisdom: in order to guarantee some kind of harvest in the right season, we have to take care of everything, from the ground to the seed; to pay attention to everything, from what encourages growth to what impedes it. Even against the unfathomable bad weather of the seasons. In the field of vocations something similar happens. The sowing is only the first step, that must be followed by other generous care so that the two liberties may enter into the mystery of the vocational dialogue.