On One Field of Humanity
July 19, 2026
Rev. Traceymay Kalvaitis
Psalm 139
Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you. Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Matthew 13: 24-30
He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The slaves said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he replied, ‘No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, ‘Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”
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Today’s sermon is titled On One Field of Humanity.
Lately I have not been tuning into the daily news because, when I do tune in, I find it difficult to function effectively in my work; I have needed a break. The big news finds me, I noticed. Mid-day on Monday, news began to spread through the network of clergy that a young man had been shot and killed by an ICE agent in Biddeford, Maine. Johan Sebastián was 25. A husband and a father. Johan, a native of Colombia, lived just around the corner from where he was shot. He was on his way to work. Johan was not here illegally; he had been cleared for employment. Johan regularly came to a local laundromat owned by Sadie Dilboy and he would often bring his 6 year old daughter. Sadie said Johan would give his daughter quarters to buy candy from the vending machine. Sadie said, “He was such a good person. He was always cleaning up.” ** The shooting of Johan Sebastián was the second in less than a week, bringing the total to 9 individuals. Thankfully, there have been no deaths of ICE agents since 2024.***
Our reading from the 13th chapter of Matthew today offers us a powerful message about the potential harm that can be done if our goal is to separate, and to eradicate. The farmer in the parable has probably worked very hard to nurture his crop to maturity. Many of us know what it takes to prepare ground for planting. We know what it means to prepare the ground, to take care in choosing what kind of seeds to plant. We know the deep satisfaction in seeing the first sprouts, then the growth of the seedlings, the careful tending and vigilance all the way through harvest and storage. But I doubt if any of us have ever grown wheat and we would never have had to deal with the poisonous bearded darnel that, for weeks and weeks of its growth, is identical to wheat. It is not until the plants have reached the final stage, referred to as “in the ear,” when the seed is ripening in its husk, that the bearded darnel shows its tell-tale beard. The farmer in the parable who was so careful to prepare his field and sow good seed realizes that despite his best efforts and intentions, his plans have been foiled and his crop is in danger.
The workers are quick to offer to eradicate the poisonous plants and I can imagine that the farmer would love to be rid of the threat, but the farmer is wise not to act too quickly. The farmer is caught in this place of tension between wanting to be rid of the poisonous weed growing in amongst his good wheat and not knowing how to go about it without damaging what he worked so hard to cultivate.
Brothers and Sisters, I fear we, too, are caught in a similar tension. We have been told that there are dangerous criminals from other countries living among us and that they must be found and eradicated. As a result, we are funding immigration enforcement with over 20 billion dollars a year for the next four years. There are now 212 active detention centers across our 50 states, twice as many….twice as many as last year. In fact, the prison industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the US at the moment. It turns out that there is an incredible profit to be made in eradicating the unwanted.
Tufts University is actively and intentionally divesting in the prison industry and I encourage anyone who holds stock to make sure they know exactly what they are funding. Tufts sites the following statistics: “Mainstream narratives suggest that an increase in crime has led to our nation’s increase in incarceration. Since 1970, our incarcerated population has increased by 700%. This was not accompanied by a similar increase in criminality. In fact, crime rates have been rapidly declining since the mid-1990s. For example, Forbes reports that the murder rates in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles have shrunk by 76% and 90% since 1992. There is a clear disconnect between decreasing crime rates and skyrocketing incarceration rates. ‘…prison construction and the attendant drive to fill these new structures with human bodies have been driven by ideologies of racism and the pursuit of profit.’” (Angela Davis, 2003, 84).****
We know that where there is big profit, there is big resistance to change. People are organizing, though. Just yesterday, hundreds of people gathered at 5 different locations across New Hampshire to bring awareness that Citizens Bank is supporting Core Civic and Geo Group, the two largest builders and operators of immigration detention prisons. All account holders are invited to move their funds elsewhere, if they so choose. The state of New Jersey just moved 64 million out of Citizens Bank holdings.****
When crime is decreasing and prison construction is increasing, one has to ask why. When, according to the CATO institute, over 73% of immigrant detainees do not have a criminal record, one has to ask why we are funding such a massive effort of eradication, one that is resulting in unintentional deaths of innocent people.***** What is the cost of eradication of human beings? The cost is astronomical, financially, to be sure, but also morally. The poisonous weeds growing in our fields are not immigrants. The poisonous weeds growing in our fields are what hold us back from a higher way of living, a higher way of being. They are what hold us back from realizing and perfecting the American promises that countless lives have fought for and died for. The poisonous weeds thrive on the roots of all evil: greed, fear, dishonesty, and the assigned superiority that leads to racism and classism. If left to grow and mature they break down society, they pit brother against brother and sister against sister, they break apart families. Gaps are widened and some benefit but not nearly all. It would be easier if these harmful agents were only on the outside, within our organizations, systems of commerce, and government but they are not. They are also within us.
Friends, we have the knowledge that history and hindsight provide. We know that humankind is capable of horrible atrocities when a group is identified as unwanted and national interests shift towards eradication of the unwanted at all costs. The holocaust is a recent event by historical standards, so may we never forget that when any group of people are systematically silenced and disappeared, all of us suffer. If all are not safe, then none of us are truly safe.
In closing, I hope we will remember the wisdom of the farmer in our parable for today. The farmer did not trample the good grain in an effort to hastily remove the poisonous weeds. He gave it careful thought and he came up with a solution that did not tear out what he had worked to nurture and grow. May we, too, take some time to take a look within ourselves and prayerfully consider what in us needs nurturing and what needs weeding out. May we remember that we are one growing being in a vast field of humanity; what affects one directly affects all indirectly. Lastly, may we remember the prayer of the psalmist we heard today, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” The force of goodness we call God will guide us, I pray, so that all can flourish and prosper. So be it. Amen.
*https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/parents-say-their-6-year-old-son-survived-brutal-dog-n1234036
**https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/dhs-says-ice-officer-who-fatally-shot-driver-in-maine-was-fearing-for-public-safety
***https://www.ice.gov/topics/eow
****https://sites.tufts.edu/prisondivestment/the-pic-and-mass-incarceration/
*****https://www.cato.org/blog/5-ice-detainees-have-violent-convictions-73-no-convictions
Pastoral Prayer
God of earth and sky, we are blessed with so many gifts; open our hearts with gratitude for the areas of our lives that are full and healthy and functioning. Inspire us to give thanks to the people who have been most instrumental in our lives, the people who have believed in us, the people who have loved us just because of who we are. Bring them to our minds, Lord, in prayer. When we are faced with challenges, lack of necessities, sorrow or loss, illuminate the presence of goodness in our lives, past and present, so that we may be guided homeward by your holy light. In the ways we need healing, I pray we are open to receive. For all of our brothers and sisters that are struggling, may they be noticed, may they receive the care and comfort they need, we pray, in the name of Christ. Amen.
Benediction
I leave you now with words from Ephesians chapter 1:
“May the eyes of your heart be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which God has called you.” Amen.