RBWords

     It is hard to describe the feeling one may have in discovering something that seems to give all of one's life a central meaning!  It's like falling in love with THE ONE PERSON that one wants to spend the rest of one's life with, or, finding a cause so important that it is worth dedicating one's life to it.  Jesus uses examples that are more concrete - buried treasure and a pearl of great price.  What is important to notice is that the images are not about the relative value of what is discovered, but the discovery itself!  It is the joy of that discovery that leads to actions to secure what has been discovered.  I have occasionally asked a couple who are struggling with their relationship to recall what it was like to "discover" one another and fall in love.  Maintaining that feeling through all the challenges that come with commitment is difficult but can make all the difference.  Disciples will find that discovering the Kingdom of heaven may mean trials and suffering.  The joy of discovery can seem to fade.  The loved one may have faults.  The important cause may have implications that disappoint.  

     Popes Benedict and Francis co-authored an encyclical entitled LUMEN FIDEI ("the Light of Faith").  The part that shows Pope Benedict's influence mentions that Christian faith is the response to an encounter (a word Pope Francis loves as well) with a love greater than any love one could ever experience.  The discovery of the Kingdom of heaven is like the discovery of love, something far greater than treasure or fine pearls.  This is not mere romantic sentimentality, which can fade quickly as discovery proceeds.  It is something worth one's whole life.  The Kingdom of heaven means exactly that.  AMEN