Today’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew has Jesus telling the Parable of the Sower. A parish school I worked with had a yearly scripture focus, and one year the slogan was “The Good Soil,” based on the Parable of the Sower. I bring this up because of an article I read whose author noted that one of the reasons Jesus used parables was his knowledge that most, if not all, of those he was speaking to could not handle the truth he was trying to convey in a more direct manner. T.S. Eliot once said, “It’s not for nothing that Jesus challenged us to speak our truth in parables because truth cannot always be swallowed whole, and the context and tone within which it is spoken generally dictate whether it’s helpful to speak it at a given time, or to a given person. Simply put, it isn’t always helpful, or charitable, or mature, to throw a truth into someone’s face.” Drawing on the Parable of the Sower and the school’s use of “the good soil” imagery, we know that seedlings need to be protected and gently cared for to grow strong and survive. Plants that have grown to maturity are strong enough to handle a variety of seasons and living conditions. Applying this reality to our brothers and sisters, we know that everyone is at different points in understanding their faith. Therefore, we need to be sensitive to where and how we speak the deeper truths that come from maturity in the faith.