Hidden Truth in Jesus’ Parables

"And the disciples came, and said unto him, “Why speakest thou unto them in parables?” He answered and said unto them, “Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given....Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.”

When Jesus was asked by his disciples why he taught the people in the subtle illustrations of parables, he answered, in a paraphrase by Paramahansa Yogananda “Because it is so ordained that you who are my true, devoted disciples, living a spiritualized life and disciplining your actions according to my teachings, deserve by virtue of your inner awakening in your meditations, prayers, and contemplations to understand the truth of the arcane mysteries of heaven and how to attain the kingdom of God, the beautific vision hidden behind the Word - that is, the harmony of my Father's creation. But ordinary people, unprepared in their receptivity, are not able either to comprehend or to practice the deeper wisdom-truths. From parables, they glean according to their understanding simpler truths from the wisdom I send out to them. By practical application of what they are able to receive, they make some progress toward redemption.”...

The ultimate truths of heaven and the kingdom of God, the reality that lies behind sensory perception and beyond the cogitations of the rationalizing mind, can only be grasped by what St. John of the Cross called "spiritual intuition"—awakening the intuitive knowing, the pure comprehension, of the soul.  Too often however, if we default to reading about religion, watching movies about it, or talking about it instead of praying a rosary, contemplating the Divine mystery, walking the Stations of the Cross.  This "excuse" for true holyness keeps us insulated from the deeper understandings extolded by St. Theresas in her master work "The Interior Castle".

This takes time. Sure, praying in the little moments - at the traffic light, before a meal, are all good and beneficial as they attune the mind ever-more to the practice of the presence of God (as St. Lawrence would call it).  But real prayer - the type that brings to the door upon which Christ knocks, this takes time, and silence, and one-pointed devotion.  All the Catechisms and commentaries by Church Fathers and all the writings of the Saints combined won't give it to us. We have to ascend the ladder ourself.  So put down this article, find a quiet corner, and pray in the inner, silent temple you are building for God in your heart.  Each day, make your prayer more intense than the day before.  "Father, Jesus Christ, reveal yourself to me.  I am your son and your beloved. Holy Spirit, come to me as you came to Mary, as you came to Joseph.  Holy Mother, take my hand and lead me to your most perfect Son." Amen