Parable

Together with fable and apologue, parable is a type of allegory. Definition: Parable, through paradox, explains the reality (the essence of reality) better (more thoroughly and more deeply) than the reality would explain itself. (Dürrenmatt - The Physicists) Parables are typical stories in The Bible. Known are Jesus’ parables. We can say that in the Bible, every other sentence is a parable. It is a short story with a moral basis which should not be taken literally but rather it should be interpreted. Many atheists deny the Christian faith because they take (not only) the parables in the Bible too literally and thus, they see them as nonsense. To fully understand this topic, a man should spend all their life studying Faculty of Arts - the topic is so complex.

Examples of parables in the Bible (I expect that these stories you already know - they are well-known - and this is to show you that these stories are right the parables ): 

• the God created the world in 6 days, 

• Adam and Eve in the Eden, 

• the story about Kain and Abel, 

• the flood of the world,

• the story about a prodigal son, etc.

Another examples - I mention particular stories-parables in detail with explanations-interpretations to further explain them so that you better understand them - they can also be found in the Bible:

Example 1 - A parable about a sower: A sower was sowing seeds: Some seeds landed on the rock and nothing came from them, others landed to the side of the road and became plants but poor. But there were also some which landed on fertile soil and beautiful plants grew from them.

Interpretation: The seeds are like pupils in the class and the sower is like a teacher (or similarly children and a parent in a family): In the class there are pupils who are hard to be taught something and it is almost impossible to bring them up. Whilst some pupils are like the seeds which land on the fertile ground - i.e. they are good to be taught something and because of the upbringing they can become excellent people.

Example 2 - A parable about possessions: A man told Jesus: I have done everything right in my life according to your teachings, what else should I do to ensure an eternal life for myself? - Jesus’ reply: You should give away your possessions to the poor.

Interpretation: This doesn't mean that a man should give up everything (every piece of possessions) he has - because then the man would become homeless and perhaps dead in the street because of hunger. But it means not to gather more money than the person would consume in their life and not to cling excessively to possessions which is primarily not the sense of life.

Example 3 - A parable about a sin: If a sin tempts your hand, it is better to cut off the hand and come to God's kingdom without the hand than to come to hell with the hand. If a sin tempts your eye, it is better to gouge out the eye and come to God's kingdom without the eye than to come to hell with the eye.

Interpretation: This doesn't actually mean that you should cut off your hand or gouge out your eye but it means that a sin is bad and you should avoid it.

Parables represent surreality, they uncover the sense of reality and lead to real awakening. Reality appears in the paradox. (Dürrenmatt - The Physicists)

Related works:

• Friedrich Dürrenmatt: - The Physicists - represents a paradox;

• Gilbert Keith Chesterton: - Great Little Things, - The Blue Cross, - Orthodoxy, - Heretics - all of them represent a paradox;

• Albert Schweitzer: - Reverence for Life;

Sources (what I read):

• Chesterton, Gilbert Keith. Ohromné maličkosti. Vyšehrad, 1976.

• Dürrenmatt, Friedrich. Fyzikové. Orbis, 1963. 

• The Bible.

Lenka Audyová, UČO: 403085