One of the most prominent features of the four canonical gospels in the New Testament is the parables attributed to Jesus. Estimates usually place the number of parables somewhere between thirty and eighty, though if the definition of “parable” is expanded to include any simile or proverb, then just about every statement attributed to Jesus can qualify.
It’s clear, then, that the idea of parables is critical to understanding the gospel texts. Interpreting them has become a popular industry in Christian theology, though less time seems to be spent on understanding the nature of parables generally than in trying to discover “true” Christian meanings behind the stories.
Most of Jesus' parables appear to be based upon behavior and traditions from everyday life in first century Palestine — something that is used to argue that at least the parables themselves can be traced back to that time and region, regardless of who was their original author. If the gospel authors were not from that place, then they must have gotten the parables from someone who was, and that “someone” was Jesus, according to Christian theologians.
At the same time, though, the parables also typically include something very extra-ordinary in the story. An everyday situation is contrasted with rather unusual events and the result is a tale which is conceptually strong, has interpretive depth, and which can remain with a person for a long period of time. All of this means that they were supremely suited to illustrate abstract concepts like forgiveness, love, faith, and duty.
The great interpretive depth of the parables, though, may offer another reason for their repeated use: in Mark 4:10-12, Jesus is depicted as informing his disciples that he taught in parables in order to conceal his true meaning and teachings from the masses. They, his inner circle, could be privy to the truth but everyone else would have to be satisfied with whatever superficial interpretations they might come up with.
It is certainly true that the use of riddles and allegories could be handy for someone who wanted to get their message to those “in the know,” but still conceal it from hostile forces — in Jesus’ case, the Jewish authorities. Even if those hostile to him did perceive what he was trying to say, it would be very difficult to prove that that is what he meant.
A further Christian tradition about why Jesus relied so heavily on parables is that stories like this allow one communicate a particular message without appearing aggressively preachy. When a person perceives that they are about to hear a sermon, they adopt a particular attitude towards what they are hearing, even if unconsciously. This can be especially problematic if one is not inclined to be receptive to the message being promoted.
If one is about to be told a story, however, then a very different attitude is likely to be adopted — one that can make a person more receptive to the underlying message without them entirely realizing it. This was arguably one of the goals behind C.S. Lewis’ creation of the Narnia books: they are allegorical representations of Christianity that were designed to communicate basic Christian messages in a world where people had become inured to Christianity.
A number of problems and conflicts have afflicted Christian interpretations of the parables over the centuries. One has been the opposition of allegorical vs. general interpretive methods. Through most of Christian history, theologians have scrutinized the parables to discover specific allegorical parallels between each detail in the story and some larger spiritual truth. Others, however, have argued that the details aren’t important and a more faithful interpretation is one that focuses only on the general meaning of the parable as a whole.
Another issue involves the degree to which the parables are taken out of their original context. Throughout much of Christian history, theologians have interpreted the parables as if they were created in the context of Christianity. More recently, however, theologians have pointed out that the parables were created in specific historical contexts: either by and for Jews of first century Palestine (if one assumes Jesus as the author) or by and for early Christians in the Roman empire (if one assumes at least some redaction of the part of the gospel authors). Therefore any reasonable interpretation must be made with all of that in mind.
