From Our Pastor
In today’s Gospel, we continue hearing more parables. This time, they are very brief and have no interpretation. The treasure hidden in a field and the very valuable pearl. The element of the relative smallness of the present form of the kingdom continues. In 13:44 it consists of treasure in a much larger field. In 13:45 it consists of just one pearl.
Likewise, there is continued emphasis on the element of hiddenness. The treasure is hidden in the field while the pearl is not initially obvious. The repetition serves to underscore the importance of these perspectives.
But new emphases emerge, particularly the interplay of searching, finding, celebrating, and selling all, in order to possess something of great value. The person who finds the treasure joyfully “sells all” to buy the field. The merchant “sold all” to buy the pearl. The discoveries disrupt normal daily life and priorities; they require risk and sacrifice. In these actions, the power of that which has been found is seen to be at work. The treasure and pearl possess the finders and shape their lives. So, to participate in and to be possessed by the kingdom of heaven, it is worth everything. No matter how small your contribution in building the kingdom of God is, let us allow God to use us.
Many of the world’s great stories are about treasure-hunting. Today’s gospel reading is also about that theme. The treasure being sought is “The Kingdom of Heaven”. What is that? We can paraphrase it as “The Presence of God”. A rich young once man asked Jesus, “What must I do to possess eternal life?” (Likewise, we could paraphrase ‘eternal life’ as ‘The Presence of God’.) Jesus replied, “Go sell what you have, give the money to the poor, and come follow me.” But that sounds much more like dispossession than finding treasure. So, the young man went away disappointed because he was very wealthy and didn’t want to trade tangible wealth for the intangible. That is the trap that holds us all captive.
I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your many contributions, either financially or in actions, that you continue to give to our parish. Thanks to you, we are continuing to improve our Serra Center Worship Space. There will also be more improvements in our Serra Garden. We hope that this space may become a place to socialize more and make new friends.
Peace and all good, Fr. Oscar
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