Homily: Seventeenth Wednesday of Ordinary Time
Seventeenth Wednesday of Ordinary Time (Mt. 13:4-46) “Where Your Treasure Is, There Your Heart Is.”
My family always had a safety deposit box at the bank in my hometown. I remember going into the bank as a child with my mother to put things into the box and take things out of the box. We would have to bring a key with us, and we would have to get a key from one of the tellers. We would walk through the immense metal door with all the locks. Only then could we get into the long narrow box that was behind the locked door.
I still have a safety deposit box, but I feel like I am from a bygone era. Most of the boxes are empty now. I don’t know if banks even rent them anymore. In our modern world where wealth is kept in electronic accounts, very few people keep gold and silver or jewelry or other hard currency.
In Jesus’ time protecting wealth was a lot more haphazard. If you had something that was precious, there was no bank to put it in. If you do not have a bank, then what? You must hide your valuables. The favorite way to hide your treasure was to bury it.
The example that Jesus talks about, was so fanciful, but not as unusual as it sounds. When we dig in our back yard, we might find a gas line or an old cistern. In Jesus’ day, often people would find a box or pot and inside would be valuables that had been lost for a long time. Perhaps the owner had forgotten where they hid them. Or what was more likely was that the person who hid their wealth had died.
Jesus’ listeners related to what he was saying. We dream of winning the lottery. Peasants in Jesus’ daydreamed of digging in their field and finding a fortune which would lift them out of poverty and make their life comfortable.
Jesus said that is what living in his kingdom is like. It is like finding a treasure or winning the lottery. If we can fully understand and choose to live our lives as Jesus outlined, then we might leave fear behind. This is not an act of will, but it is a matter of letting go of our agendas.
Reflection Questions:
- What do I treasure most in my life? How do I protect it?
- What would I like to have that I don’t have? What does that say about my values?
Dear Parishioners,
Remember this Sunday we are having 9 a.m. Mass outside. It sounds like it may cool off a bit. I remind people to bring their own lawn chairs. The first two Masses of the summer have been well attended.
I often feel like God’s cathedral is the out of doors. The choir is often the birds we hear singing. The wind that blows is our air conditioning. The sun that shines keeps us warm.
Come and join us. There are no restrictions on singing so come and let it rip. Hope to see you this Sunday.
May Our Lady and all the Angels and Saints watch over you.
Fr. Mark