2) What is a Seed and its Life?
Before a tree can start growing by photosynthesis, a dormant plant seed must go through the process of germination. Likewise before our faith can actively grow by and sustain itself by our interactions with God, the messages of God and suffering, our faith has to develop, just like a seed does.
Seed
A seed is roughly composed of three parts, the seed coat, the embryo and the endosperm. The seed coat is the hard projective outside layer that protects the inside of the seed. The baby tree embryo inside is composed of what will become the roots and branches, (called the hypocotyl and epicotyl, respectively). The endosperm, (later called the cotyledon) is basically the food that sustains the seed during dormancy* and gives the tree the ability to grow before photosynthesis can take place.
Dormancy
The seed will remain dormant until favorable conditions for germination have been met. These include ideal amount of water, oxygen and heat, as well as and what’s necessary for the seed coat to break open. Once a seed is planted properly, the seed slowly absorbs water and oxygen and it cause the seed coat to open and start the process of germination.
Germination
Once dormancy has ended, the embryo starts growing downward to establish a root system. As the roots develop they are able to draw water and oxygen* from the soil, allowing baby branches to grow upwards and break through the soil. This is the process of germination, which then continues as the tree grows and opens its first leaves to start the process of photosynthesis.
In the view of Botanical Epistemology, every person’s faith is like a tree at some stage of development, and by this I mean that for some, their faith is like an undeveloped embryo of a dormant seed, while others, their faith is a healthy, growing tree. The seed coat represents our bodies, and like a dormant embryo our faith, too, will remain dormant until one life is in the right conditions for a heart to open. Only then does our faith begin to take root in what we understand about God and the Gospel, to be later shown in our actions (as represented by the baby branches that emerge from the soil).
