The Ancient Witnesses

Chapter 8: The Fulfillment of Time • 283

“Yes,” I said, “the weeds, or unbelievers, grow up alongside the wheat—the true believers.” “Well said!” he replied, “and what takes place at the consummation of the age?” “At the end of the world?” I asked, and he nodded. “God sends his angels to gather the weeds and separate them from the wheat,” I said. “And where does he find these stumbling blocks?” asked Augustine. “You mean the weeds?” I asked, uncertain why he mentioned stumbling blocks . Augustine nodded, and I answered, “I suppose he finds them in the Church.” “Sadly, it is just as you say,” he replied. Then to Joseph, who was following all this in his Bible, Augustine asked, “What do the Scriptures say about this, pastor?” Joseph read aloud from Matthew’s Gospel. “ The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law- breakers.” 33 “What do you make of that?” asked Augustine. “The parable seems to say that the kingdom and the Church are one and the same,” I admitted. We all expressed our thanks to the Bishop as he returned to his place. Listening to his insights, I realized that I did not know my Bible very well. Augustine knew every detail of every passage we had discussed, and he must have had much of the Bible memorized.

33 Matthew 13:41.