The Wheat and the Weeds

One of the conundrums of being a Christian is the [sometimes] explicit belief that God has a purpose for everything in creation. It was not an accident that the stars align the way they do, that the moon orbits where it does, or that there are dandelions in your yard. There were no accidents listed in Genesis. There were no footnotes explaining the exceptions. God made what He did with intent and forethought. That brings up a very worthwhile question about people who choose to follow the teachings of the Society and those who don't.

Don't all have a role to play in God's purpose for the Earth?

We all remember the parable known by the title of this entry. A servant of God sowed figurative wheat in a field. While he later slept, another came and sowed weeds among the wheat. The undesirable weeds became intertwined with the wheat and could not be plucked without also risking the wheat.

Often, those of the apostate crowd are likened to the weeds. We grew spiritually with the faithful, and though we were known to be different, we were allowed to continue until we were mature enough to be harvested along with the ripened wheat and duly separated. The weeds have no value, after all. Except... see the comment above about all of creation having a purpose.

Weeds are sometimes the only thing that will grow in an inhospitable environment. Where water is scarce, the thick and tenacious roots dig deep underground to find it. The prickly and dense leaves protect them from the scorching sun or hungry animals. They bloom flowers to attract bees that are responsible for most of the pollination world wide. They anchor the soil to prevent erosion from wind and rain. Weeds are necessary.

Accepting that this unfortunate child of creation has an undeniable and critical function in our ecosystem, is it fair to discriminate against them simply because they're hardy and coarse? Perhaps not, but we were taught to dismiss them anyway. We develop products to selectively eradicate them. We pay our children to go out and pull them for a modest fee. It is culturally normal and acceptable to exclude weeds from our gardens and yards.

Isn't that bucking God's purpose? It's kind of a subtle middle finger to the Creator if you think about it. And since we, the weeds, are part of creation and therefore from God, what is our purpose?

We all live under the burden of other people who think they are better than us. Some are vocal about it. Others, less so. It stems from the mistaken assumption that living is a competition. For them to have what they want, they believe (because they are taught to) that we must go without. In the case of Witnesses, they also mistakenly believe (because they are taught to) that they are the only source for what we want.

Our indoctrination often included anecdotal evidence that people who left the Society were miserable. This was not without merit, since we'd also been indoctrinated to find happiness in the company of spiritual brothers and sisters. In taking that away from us, they also took our happiness. The Society, intentionally or not, taught us how to imprison our own minds.

I've previously written on the concept of scotoma. It is a fancy word that encompasses a mental "blind spot" of sorts. Some may phrase it as the mind "seeing what it wants to see". I prefer to think of it as a barrier that is present only in the abstract and that we cannot see around. You know, for example, that you cannot lift a five-hundred pound barbel. Any object that you mistake for a five-hundred pound barbel will be immovable because you are mentally adamant that you cannot lift it. This phenomenon has been proven under hypnotic suggestion, so there is scientific basis for the claim.

In a similar fashion, being programmed with the mental scotoma that you cannot be happy without the association of your spiritual family can effectively prevent you from finding it. But remember that you have been classified as an undesirable weed by people who accept that everything in creation has a purpose... except you. They invalidate their own belief.

Here's the good news. Scotoma are entirely voluntary. You can get rid of them if you want to. First, be accepting that you are good. You have purpose, which no other person may define. Secondly, there are sources of happiness out there that do not rely on the fickle associations of common faith. Choose to surround yourself with people who reflect your values. It's not difficult. In seeking out that which speaks to you, you will encounter those who share your vision. Embrace them. Remember that your happiness comes from being you. Not from being who someone else wants you to be. And people who share your values will not ask you to change for them.

As you move forward in your journey, with or without the association of Witnesses, remember that no one gets to define you, except you. It is not within the grasp of any other person to understand your purpose, or quantify your value. If they do not see you as wheat, it is simply because they have not yet discerned what you bring to the table. And that failing is entirely theirs.