Homily July 30, 2017

Transcription

1 Homily July 30, 2017 I have to admit that I m not very much into wearing jewelry. I have a nice watch and a ring that some parishioners gave me years ago but they re really not what I would consider pricey jewelry. My ring is gold but the little rubies in it are synthetic. Even so, I sometimes watch the gem shows on TV it s a good way to learn about the different gemstones that there are: where they are mined, how valuable they are; how to tell a real gem from something that s made in a laboratory. It s all very interesting to think that we have assigned such value to metals, stones and crystals that are found right in the ground. Pearls, however, are a little different. A pearl is the only gemstone, really, that is produced in the tissue of a living thing. That makes it unique. Pearls are formed inside the shell of certain mollusks as a defense mechanism against a potentially threatening irritant such as a parasite inside the shell, or an attack from outside that injures the tissue. The mollusk creates a pearl sac to seal off the irritation. Layer by layer, it encloses the irritant and, over time, a pearl is formed. The ideal pearl the one of greatest value is one that forms naturally without human intervention. Natural pearls are extremely rare and very costly. The search for natural pearls was well known in biblical times and even before. Pearl diving was known even in biblical times as the Red Sea contained oysters and other clams that produced pearls. Because natural pearls were so rare (hundreds of shells were opened and killed in order to find one pearl), they were assigned great value. The finest pearls were used, even back then, as gemstones and objects of beauty for many centuries. Because of this, a pearl has become a metaphor for something rare, beautiful and valuable. In the Gospel, Jesus offers parables metaphors that best describe the search for God s Kingdom. He says that the Kingdom of God is like a buried treasure that someone finds in a field. In his desire to obtain the treasure, he sells everything he has and buys the field so that the treasure now belongs to him. Jesus also says that the Kingdom of God is like a dragnet that gathers all kinds of things from the sea. 1 of 5

2 The fishermen then sort through the catch and take what is of value for eating or selling or whatever. Then, Jesus says, the Kingdom of God is like the merchants search for fine pearls. When he finds the pearl of great value, he sells everything he has in order to obtain the valuable pearl. Isn t this a great metaphor for our search for God s Kingdom? You know, God s Kingdom is not simply for the taking. It s not obvious to us. It is hidden in the midst of a world that is still dominated by sin. It is the buried treasure that we must find. Whether we realize it or not, we are all searching for what is beautiful and meaningful and fulfilling in life. Like the merchant looking for the valuable pearl, we go through life on a search for what is truly valuable. Like the merchant who is on the lookout for the valuable gemstone, we must develop the necessary skills to be able to discern the value of things. We must use our knowledge and wisdom and a good amount of discernment before we find what is of great value to us. Sometimes we don t even know what shape the treasure we are searching for may take. We may not even know where it is to be found or how it s going to be discovered. What is important is that we learn to search faithfully until we find it. And when we finally discover what is of greatest value, we long for it and we do what we need to do in order to obtain it. We realize that we can t live without it. We make sacrifices along the way in order to make sure we get what it is that is of so much value. As we go about our search for that which is of greatest value, we may shop along the way and try out different things but we keep moving forward until we find what it is we are truly looking for. Sometimes, in our desperation, we may settle on what is not so valuable. We grow tired of the search and we settle on what is second best or that which is not very valuable at all. Sometimes we may think that the real treasure is not obtainable so we settle for the cheap imitation. I can think of a few examples of how we do this along the way. A young person may have a dream about what they want to do with their life. Their dream job or the career where they know their gifts will be put to best use. 2 of 5

3 They follow that dream for awhile, doing what is necessary to attain that dream but they grow discouraged or impatient with the journey. They say that the career they were meant for is out of reach, requires too much schooling or will take time and experience first. In their impatience to earn a living, they embrace a career that is less than meaningful. How many people make decisions about a career simply because they can earn money maybe a good amount of money but are not happy or satisfied? They later regret that they didn t go after the career that is most valued. Or take the person who really wants to find the life partner to marry and raise a family with. So often, I hear people say that they are impatient with trying to find the right person. They go through many different relationships hoping to discover the right person. All the while, they may not be really praying about finding the right person. They may simply rely on their own needs and how some relationships make them feel without discerning whether the person they are having a relationship with will be their true treasure. Sometimes, people fail to discern the right partner because they think that time is running out for them so they settle on a partner who is less than what they are really looking for. At times, they are even willing to compromise their values. They don t really get to know the person they are settling down with. On so many occasions, I hear people say that they rushed into marriage or that they didn t take time to get to know the person they are marrying or that they sacrificed values (such as faith) in choosing a marriage partner. How many people secretly live with regret that they didn t follow through on the difficult search to find the true and loving marriage partner? Or think about how some people come to choose a church in the hopes of finding the Truth? Some people don t really think about the great treasure that a church should be. So, they settle on one that has exciting music or the charismatic pastor or the most ambiguous beliefs. I sometimes think about people who were raised in the Catholic Church who go off to another church. They have overlooked the great treasure that is right here in the Eucharist and in the other Sacraments. That s because they haven t taken to time understand the treasure or they fail to do the work necessary to identify the treasure that is our faith. Instead, they are drawn to 3 of 5

4 some imitation church that makes them feel good but that has little to offer them in the way of solid, spiritual growth. I m not suggesting that other churches are bad or that we should all quit our jobs or divorce our spouses if we realize we didn t get the pearl of great value but the parable does provide us with a word of caution about how tedious the search for that which is truly beautiful and valuable can be. We must be willing to be like the merchant who takes time searching and searching for that one pearl before he finds it and sacrifices everything else in order to obtain it. Now, the purpose of these parables is to remind us that in our search for the Kingdom of God, we must work hard and we must discern where that Kingdom is to be found. But the search is difficult and fraught with challenges. Jesus speaks about how difficult it is to enter the Kingdom of God. There s only one Kingdom worth entering and that is the Kingdom that Christ offers us. To find it requires time, wisdom, prayer, struggles, and commitment. The Kingdom of God the Kingdom of Truth, Love, Justice, Peace is real. But there are also lots of cheap imitations out there. Cheap imitations that try to convince us that they are an OK substitute. We may be attracted to a treasure that helps fulfill our emotional or physical needs. We may be drawn by a treasure that requires no sacrifice or commitment. We may be tempted to seek out a treasure where truth is whatever you want it to be. These are all synthetic treasures. They are not the real thing. They are the fake pearl the costume jewelry that is common and easy to obtain. Whereas Jesus says that the gateway to God s Kingdom is narrow and difficult to walk and requires that we make sacrifices along the way. God s Kingdom requires much of us in terms of the way we live; the way we think. And God s Kingdom lasts forever. Again, like the merchant who searches for the finest pearl, we must be willing to search faithfully for what is of true and lasting value. The Kingdom of God offers eternal joy and fulfillment. But there is work to be done to discover it and embrace it. 4 of 5

5 I suspect most of us are here today because we have discovered the treasure right here. This treasure, our Catholic faith, may not be the Kingdom of God, but it certainly points the way to a treasure that will never end. 5 of 5