Nothing Wasted

Gospel: Matthew 13: 47-53

Over the years of human experience we have come to realize just how little actual trash and useless material exists.  We have come to recycle most every material - paper, glass, rubber, metals.  We can turn even weeds into usable compost and new soil.  Items we once would throw into a landfill can be used for all sorts of helpful items to benefit the earth and its inhabitants.  That we often fail to do so is a reflection on our own character and not on the inability to accomplish the feat.

In the context of this parable our human experience is important for us to reflect upon the implications of the lesson.  For we will come to discover that what we regard as trash God does not, and that the amount of trash is far less than we imagine.  This fact will disappoint those who long to cast others into the flames of hellfire, though their own actions contribute more than anything else to such a fate than they would care to admit or realize.  

So, our discernment of what is trash and what is of value requires deep reflection, just as in the parable of the wheat and weeds.  We might be too hasty in both instances in removing what we think is bad when in fact it might not be and may actually be positive good.  Happily, judgment is God's alone, not ours, and the goodness and mercy of God far exceeds ours in every respect.  May we seek to imitate God's vision and not our own. 

Genuine Pearls

Gospel: Matthew 13: 44-46

The meaning of these two parables is obvious enough: the kingdom of God is so precious we should do all we can to acquire it.  What is more challenging is the fact that so often we misjudge just what the kingdom of God is and where it can be found.  We imagine it as some earthly power or institution that leads us astray.  We move from one to another in disappointment such that we think at some point it does not exist at all.  

John Steinbeck wrote a novel called The Pearl wherein he reflected on this topic.  A poor man finds a rare and valuable pearl.  Thinking he can get a bright future for his infant son, he goes about in search of the highest price for the pearl.  Chased by traders and scammers, the man's infant son winds up being killed in the midst of this pursuit of wealth.  It is only at that point that the man realizes that the real pearl was his son, this irreplaceable and precious child.  

It is the same with the kingdom of God.  It is found in relationships with other people, not in buildings made of stone or in power, influence, or institutions seeking such.  The kingdom of God lies within each person and it is there in relationship that we find the kingdom and real treasure.  When we attend to these relationships, honor, and cherish them, then we acquire the kingdom of God, and we do not ever want to lose it or these relationships. 

A Lesser Part?

Gospels: John 11: 19-27; Luke 10: 38-42

We have been instructed over the centuries to regard Martha as a lesser figure to her sister Mary, who seemingly chose the better part.  And yet here we are today celebrating Martha's feast day while her sister Mary has no corresponding day.  We have been instructed to view Martha through the lens only of this encounter at her house wherein Jesus rebukes her for her anxiety over many things, an instruction that ignores two important facts.

First, Martha is like many women leaders of the Church in the New Testament.  She, like many other women, make their homes available for the celebration of the Eucharist and other gatherings.  They provided for and presided over the assembly as Martha did in her home.  The second point is that Martha is at the tomb of her brother expressing faith in Jesus and the resurrection while Mary is at home.  Martha utters the very same profession of faith as Peter.  

Just as Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law in his home and she rises to serve others, so Jesus comes to Martha's home to raise up her brother Lazarus.  Martha is no less great than Peter or any other disciple.  Her faithful devotion to the Lord in her hospitality and in her profession of faith in the midst of a hostile crowd who use this occasion to plot against Jesus shows that Martha indeed has chosen the better part and is rewarded for it.