Word to the Wise
Wednesday, July 30, 2025 - Wednesday in the 17th Week in Ordinary Time
[Exod 34:29-35 and Matt 13:44-46]"The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it." [Matthew]
This dual set of images in the Gospel According to Matthew will soon find an application in the young man who approaches Jesus and asks what he must do to gain eternal life. When Jesus advises him to sell all he has, give away the proceeds and follow Him, the young man goes away sad, "for he had many possessions." [Matthew 19:22] That sadness contrasts with the joy that should occur when the "treasure" or "pearl of great price" is found! Discipleship comes at a cost. The "buying and selling" process in the parables is a challenge!
The Gospel According to Luke recalls another saying of Jesus in this regard: "Where your treasure is, there also will your heart be!" [Luke 12:34]. The "kingdom of heaven" may seem a bit abstract until we take the time to ask what our treasure truly is. Is there anything that we have that we would be willing to give up all our possessions and even risk our life for? The early Christian community thought the preaching and living of the gospel was worth that much. Their individual decisions, made on faith, were physically manifested in their care for one another. The Acts of the Apostles, also by Luke, speaks to this in Acts 2:42-47: All who believed were together and had all things in common....
The "Kingdom of heaven" may be closer to us than we think but it will require self-knowledge and sacrifice. What IS our treasure, and how much is it "worth" to us? AMEN