"Gott hat Geduld" - Predigt von Domdechant Robert Kleine

Dean Robert Kleine began his sermon with a calendar saying: "There are two kinds of people: those who see the flowers in the garden first, and those who see the weeds first." Anyone who has a garden or a field knows the problem. No sooner does something good start to grow than the weeds appear. At the same time, Kleine recalled his biology teacher, who said: "A weed is a plant in the wrong place." From this image, Kleine turned to the Gospel. Jesus tells a parable that was already well understood in Galilee. A farmer sows wheat and does everything right. But during the night, an enemy comes and sows weeds among the wheat. The evil one doesn't come with a roar, but creeps in. Even in the Garden of Eden, a doubt in God's word was enough to disrupt the harmony. The good is not destroyed, but thwarted. When the servants discover the weeds, they react, according to Kleine's interpretation, in a human way: they want to pull them out and tidy up. Kleine applied this reaction to everyday life. People often know exactly where the "weeds" are in others and where things need tidying up. In their own hearts, however, they sometimes need a magnifying glass. Jesus responded differently to the servants' eagerness to act: "Let both grow together until the harvest." This answer is difficult, Kleine said. People long for clarity. They want evil to disappear and good to triumph. Even in their own lives, they often want to quickly eliminate imperfections. But Jesus understands the reality of human nature. Good and evil are often intertwined—in the world, in the church, and in their own hearts. Those who judge hastily risk hurting people and uprooting the good along with them. The farmer takes his time with the uprooting. The farmer's patience is not a trivialization of evil. For the farmer knows that wheat and weeds can look similar at first and that one can easily pull up the wrong thing when uprooting. Jesus also followed this principle. He didn't give up on Zacchaeus, but visited him. He did not abandon Peter after his denial, but called him anew. The persecutor of Christians, Paul, became an apostle. God sees not only what a person is now, but also what they can become. Therein lies the message of the parable: God is patient, not because evil is indifferent to him, but because humanity is precious to him. This patience is an opportunity for repentance. This also applies to each individual. Figuratively speaking, wheat and weeds grow side by side within a person: generosity and selfishness, trust and fear, love and envy. Kleine clarified that this perspective does not mean condoning evil. Christians are called to stand up for what is good, to oppose injustice, and to live love. At the same time, the parable warns against making oneself the judge of others. The final judgment belongs to God alone. In conclusion, Kleine returned to Jesus' words: "Let both grow together until the harvest." With this, Jesus shows what God is like. God never loses hope. He sees in every person talents, abilities, and the potential for maturity, conversion, and fruitfulness. The Gospel invites us to ask ourselves where we judge others too hastily, where more patience is needed, and where we can trust that God will also cause wheat to grow in our own lives. The harvest is a reminder of the Last Judgment. It is not humankind that draws the line between wheat and weeds, but God—just and merciful. The task of Christians is to become good wheat themselves.