Homily Notes 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Can we Find the Treasure? 17th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Our readings this summer day cause us to question what is of value as well as what is not. In the first lesson, King Solomon can have anything in the world, but he does not choose riches or power. He asks to have an understanding heart. Paul says to us in the Letter to the Romans, “We know that all things work for good for those who love God.” Trusting in God’s mercy is the most important thing in Paul’s mind. All spiritual values flow from that.
And then we have the parables Jesus tells in the Gospel of Matthew. What is the point of a parable? A parable causes us to look at the world in a different way. A good parable can cause us to have a change of heart. We all like a good story. Stories can lead us toward a different way of looking at things.
We have a whole genre of stories that can cause us to question how we look at things. We could call them Genie in the bottle stories. One story goes something like this.
Once there was a middle-aged woman who was walking along a beach. She saw something in the surf when the sun flashed off it. She reached down pulling the object out of the sand. She washed it off finding it was a bottle. She pulled the cork out of the bottle. Suddenly there was a big puff of smoke. A genie appeared.
The genie said, “I am so happy to get out of that bottle. I am going to give you three wishes.” The woman said, “I know exactly what I want. When I was younger I had a lover and he died in a war in a far-off land. I loved him so much. I would like him to come back to me right now.” The genie said, “Wish granted.” Suddenly, a young man appeared. The woman looked at the young man with excitement. She said, “My love.” He looked at her in horror. Who was this middle age woman grasping at him? He ran away up the beach. The woman was crushed. The genie said, “You can never turn the clock back. You have to live in the present.”
The woman she said to the genie as she wept. All I want is happiness. The genie reached out putting a grain of sand in her hand. He saw her disappointment. He said, “Happiness is where you find it. It can even be in a grain of sand.”
The genie said, “What is your third wish.” The woman thought for a moment. She realized that her whole interaction with the genie was different from what she thought it should be. She said, after a long while.” I want to give the third wish to you.” The genie was taken aback never in thousands of years had anyone wished something for him. He said, “I have been alone in a bottle for so long. To be a genie is a solitary thing. I wish I could be mortal so I can enjoy love. I can experience pain. I can experience struggle. I can unite myself with others for a common cause. In other words, I can find meaning.” Instantly he changed in to a man. He then walked hand and hand with the woman up the beach.”
When we reflect on the ultimate meaning of things we change. Jesus in his preaching, taught us not to value the things of the world, but to treasure the things of the Kingdom, but as Solomon knew that takes an understanding heart.
I have had many friends and relatives who have died through the years. What has been a signal to me of a change of heart is when they have begun to give things away that they treasure. When I have been at someone’s house who is dying. Perhaps they give me their favorite book. Then again, they might give me a picture that the always loved.
I remember being with a dying great uncle once. We had always talked about sports. When I went to see him, I was a young seminarian. I started to talk about this non-threatening subject. I thought it would get his mind off his pain. But my uncle said, “I don’t want to talk about sports. I want to talk about the things of heaven. What do you think about death?” He had come to see what was most important. I struggled through a difficult, but uplifting conversation with a man of deep faith.
Scripture scholars agree that the scribe that is mentioned at the end of the gospel, who sorts out the old from the new, is none other than the gospel writer. The passage we read then is very personal to Matthew. He believes what Jesus has taught him is what is most valuable. The wisdom did not come to Matthew easily. At first, he probably resisted it. But when he put his faith in the values Jesus preached he had found a treasure beyond price. The sooner we find this treasure the better.
Please note this is a rough draft, grammar may not be perfect.