The metaphor of the seed dropping into the ground in this connexion occurs (I think) twice in the New Testament,2 and for the rest hardly any notice is taken; it seemed to me extraordinary. You had a dying God, Who was always representative of the corn: you see Him holding the corn, that is, bread, in His hand, and saying, ‘This is My Body’,3 and from my point of view, as I then was, He did not seem to realize what He was saying.
