Green parables, biodiversity, and ecological understanding of Sperma in Matthew 13:3–9

Abstract

Reading Matthew’s Gospel ecologically, scholars have investigated several dimensions of Matthean ecological conversations and have provided interesting insights into the ecological agenda of the gospel. Despite the contributions, studies have paid little attention to Matthean theology of biodiversity, the green nature of the parables, and the central importance of sperma (seed) as embodying the entirety of divine ecological revelation of God’s words and the ecological theology of Matthew. Exploring how Matthean ecological discourses call for new perspectives on our ecological crises, this article engages the parable of the sower from the perspective of the green nature of the parable, biodiversity, and the use of sperma as the centrality of God’s ecological/spiritual revelation. Its aim is to present new creative discourses for the ecological study of the Gospel of Matthew and offer an understanding of the parable from an ecological approach that can help us engage with our present environmental crises.