What is the world’s oldest profession? – and it’s not what you are thinking. As an avid gardener, I realized some time ago that it is gardening which can rightfully claim the title of “world’s oldest profession.” In fact, the Book of Genesis makes ii abundantly clear that the garden is a metaphor for the mystery of human life and endeavor when God delegates to the man and woman a responsibility to oversee the various life forms, animal and vegetative, placed in Eden. To phrase it in pun form, man’s first job was guarding the garden. Yet even after the man and woman failed in that original task, thus allowing the invasive weeds of sin and death to mar the beauty of His garden, we see that God already had a ‘Plan B’ in mind.

The woman herself would become the bearer of new life, designated to nurture and bring it to fruition. Man was likewise commanded to “till t he earth” although both of their respective tasks would henceforth be carried out in difficulty and pain. To the woman God promised, “in pain shall you bring forth children” and to the man, “Cursed be the ground because of you. In toil shall you eat its yield… thorns and thistles shall it bring to you as you eat the plants of the field.” (Gen. 3:16-18) The garden then became an image of our human destiny to be played out in each and every human life. When we are born we inherit a symbolic patch of earth to cultivate, but only for a season before it passes on to another generation.

When we are first born, this symbolic ground of our body (“Remember man that thou art dust”) is dormant from the winter frosts but as spring approaches it begins to thaw and sprout new organisms and budding flowers. This represents childhood when everything is new and fresh to our senses. We are filled with discovery and hope. Life seems endless and opportunities are unlimited as the springtime of our life holds out its myriad promises. But as the days lengthen we realize the need to organize the profusion of growth within us into some kind of order. Each person must thus assume the responsibility of planning and ordering his or her garden, meaning one’s personal life, This entails plowing and planting; deciding what flowers or other plants one intends to raise. Depending on variations in climate, different soils, and particular localities, etc. added to the different talents and interests of any given individual there will undoubtedly emerge thousands, even millions, of diverse garden schemes. No two gardens will look exactly alike, for each human life represents a unique and original contribution to the story of mankind.

Regrettably, some who are too lazy or disinterested will simply allow their allotted garden plot to fill in with brambles and weeds. In the end their lives of sloth yield nothing of value so that when the autumn arrives they will have no fruits to harvest. Most people however are more responsible, taking the initiative to plan and lay out their living gardens, meaning the major life decisions they will make: what vocation to pursue, who will I marry, what friends do I choose, etc. We lay out our plans in neat rows and initially provide water to help them germinate. This is the easy part because little do we realize in that youthful stage of optimism that the real work of cultivation has yet to begin in earnest. (Parents who have raised teenager know exactly what I mean.)

As the seasons of one’s life gradually merge from the cool rainy springtime into the hot and dry days of midsummer, various weeds not only appear but begin to take over our garden patch if left untended. We notice a seemingly infinite variety of weeds which materialize as though from nowhere and begin to crowd out our freshly planted seedlings. Weeds represent not only our own shortcomings and sinfulness but also the challenges which arise from our interactions with others, including family members, co-workers, and neighbors who often exhibit very different gardening techniques and preferences from our own. Conflict, in other words, is an inevitable part of keeping our garden in good order, akin to various birds and critters who like to feed freely on the crops we are working so hard to grow. But it is the weeds which demand the bulk of our time and effort to suppress, and our garden’s ultimate success or failure depends on how diligently we work to control those weeds.

One type of person begins their planting with great optimism, clearing and raking the soil; planting and watering until fresh tiny seedlings appear. But assuming that all is well, they retire to pursue other interests until a month later they are shocked to discover weedy vegetation so thick that one can hardly recognize the good plants from the encroaching weeds. At this point he or she may half-heartedly hoe a few rows and decide it’s not really worth so much effort under a blazing sun. By late summer the cut down weeds will have regenerated to absorb most of the water and nutrients needed by the good plants. In the end what few fruits have survived will be small and anemic, hardly worth harvesting.

Others are the type who spot the weeds but feel it is enough to simply mow them down periodically. While somewhat effective, the weeds remain rooted and active beneath the surface so as to continue competing with good crops for water and nutrients. These represent the superficial members of humanity whose lives appear to be neat and orderly but only on a surface level. They expend little effort to dig out their deeply rooted habits of sin but only concern themselves with the cosmetic aspects of everyday living. They put on the mask, mainly to gain the approval of friends and neighbors, and in working so hard to deceive others they only delude themselves as to their own shallow virtues. Being neither hot nor cold, they become barren trees that bear no fruit which Our Lord says ought to be cut down and thrown into the fire.

Against these others stands the serious and committed gardener who does not wait for the weeds to become fully established. He frequently cultivates and hoes his plot, cutting off the weeds from their roots, and laying down mulch to inhibit future weed growth and help retain moisture in the soil. Good gardening is reflective of the healthy spiritual life. Aware that the weeds of concupiscence and sin invariably spring up in every person’s life, the committed Christian takes frequent advantage of the sacramental life to keep these spiritual weeds at bay. Even so, there are some sins (weeds) that can grow largely unnoticed in the more obscure corners of any garden. It does little good to hoe or cut down these most aggressive invaders, so when discovered, the good gardener will not hesitate to uproot them entirely, even if doing so requires inordinate time and effort.

Our ultimate aim should be that of presenting to our Heavenly Father an immaculate garden of sublime beauty, blazing with colors and sweet scents. For when “the Lord God walks through the garden in the cool hours of the day” (Gen 3:8) it must be a place both pleasing and pristine in His sight, free of any noxious weeds. We were all commissioned to contribute some small part, infinitesimal as it may be, to that heavenly master garden. Every human soul was created to become an integral part of the floral tapestry which comprises the divine garden which will endure not merely for a season or two but for all eternity ~ a place of visual delights and refreshing coolness. “For see, the winter is past, the rains are over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth, the time of pruning and vines has come, and the song of the dove is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines in bloom give forth fragrance. Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one, and come! (Song of Songs 2: 11-13)

Gardening is not an easy task at any level and we are called to be gardeners of the soul. That means avidly cultivating virtuous habits while diligently uprooting the weeds of sin and vice that routinely take root through everyday living, all by God’s availing grace. Recall that humanity’s career began in a garden, and it was there that innocence was lost and death ushered into this world. Yet it was also in a garden (Gethsemane) where the bitter passion of Christ which would restore mankind to life and justice commenced. Every human life is based upon that same template of regeneration. We are intended to cultivate this earthly garden of the soul so that we might one day attain to the heavenly garden which promises eternal life and unending bliss. But this is a limited time opportunity. We all have but one season, our life’s span, in which to cultivate, bundle, and harvest those fruits of grace which will insure our admission to that final, perfect, and sweetest eternal garden.

Francis J. Pierson +a.m.d.g.