Cycle A - Year II:  

26 July 2020:  Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical Color: Green)

Readings:

First Reading:        1 Kings 3:5, 7-12

Second Reading:   Romans 8:28-30

Gospel:  Please Read  Matthew 13:44-52

"Searching for God's Treasure..."

There was a time when treasure hunting was popular among adventure seekers, especially immediately after the last world war.  The obvious reason is the promise of quick wealth, and so easy life after, and even fame.  Treasure hunting is the physical search for treasures.  For example, treasure hunters try to find sunken shipwrecks and retrieve artifacts with market value.   

In modern times, treasure hunting may also take the form of big lotteries and other game of chance. even popular casinos.  Would you take your chance in treasure hunting?

The Gospel for this Sunday tells something about hunting for treasurers, for God's treasures and not the physical treasures.  Let us listen and reflect on the Gospel message.

Now our Lord Jesus Christ speaks often about the kingdom of God in His public ministry.  In today's Gospel reading, Jesus uses different images in His parables to describe what this kingdom is like -- the hidden treasure, a pearl of great value, the dragnet thrown into the sea which brings in all kinds of fish.  Recall that these images were everyday life situations in Jesus' time, and our Lord uses them to tell something about the nature of God's kingdom and how people need to respond to it.

Before proceeding further in our reflection,here's a word of caution though.  We do not mean to speak of spiritual things in mercantile terms because they cannot be really the same. Obviously, the kingdom of heaven cannot be purchased or earned, because it is a free gift to those who believe.  The point is that by these parables, Jesus calls our attention to the cost of discipleship.  How much is the kingdom of heaven worth to you?  How much are you willing to give up to have that intimate and eternal relationship with God, which really the kingdom of heaven is all about?

How do we make of the meaning and message of these parables about the kingdom of God in our lives today?

The central message of comparing the kingdom of God with a hidden treasurer or a peal is that God's kingdom is so valuable that everything else must be sacrificed for it.  Now, the meaning of "kingdom" here is not a place or a physical location; rather, the "kingdom" is a direct and close relationship of ourselves with God. So that to accept God's kingdom we are challenged to give up something important to us, like certain personal ambition perhaps, or to abandon certain bad habits or ways of life, to take on a discipline and self-denial that are not always easy.  Because there is no other way to true peace of mind and heart in this life, and to glory in the life to come. But in the end, it is worth any sacrifice to possess God's kingdom and to live in friendship and communion with our Lord Jesus Christ.

The last parable specifically describes the kingdom of God as a great net that catches various kinds of fish, some worth keeping and some not.  The point of this last parable is to remind us that there will be judgment day to separate the good and bad catch.  The "fish" worth keeping are those who have realized and accepted the supreme importance of the kingdom of God in their lives, and who tried with all their strength to conduct themselves according to God's way of life.  In other words, the kingdom of God allows both saints and sinners in this life (like the message of last Sunday's parable of the weeds and the wheat).  The Lord gives to every person the time and opportunity to become more and more transformed into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ.

But we must also remember that the time given to us for transformation is not meant to be forever.  Our lives on earth will come to an end someday.  Therefore, Jesus reminds us today in the last parable that we must put God's kingdom first in our list of priorities.  And when we do this, we will be counted among the "fish" that are worth saving.

Let us be wise to the lesson and warnings of these parable.  In the first Reading, King Solomon asks God for wisdom rather than wealth and other material things, to be a better judge of the people God entrusted to his care, and be able to distinguish right from wrong.  Let us ask our Lord Jesus Christ for the same "wisdom" in seeking for God's kingdom.

This Sunday is also Fil-Mission Sunday.  Let us remember in our prayers and sacrifices the Filipino Diocesan Priest-Missionaries of the Mission Society of the Philippines (MSP) and all Filipino missionaries all over the world who continue the work to preach the kingdom of God to every people and nation.

A blessed Sunday to us all.  And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!