Minding our precious pearls (and being grateful)

‘on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it’ (Matt 14:46)

Matthew 13:44-52 (Year A: Seventh Sunday after Trinity 30^th July 2017)

The fictional story of Rose in the film Titanic conveys a deep truth. ‘A woman’s heart is a deep ocean of secrets’, said the elderly Rose about Jack Dawson lost in the sinking of the Titanic.  The dark blue diamond was thrown by Rose into the Atlantic Ocean in the vicinity of where the ship went down some 80 years previously – so the story goes in the film.

Finding a precious pearl and keeping it implies hard choices – sometimes painful choices for us and others.  Then again, losing or giving away a precious pearl implies hard choices – sometimes painful choices for us and others.

At this time in my life, what do you or I treasure the most?  Really? Does this match the way one lives?  It is one thing to say we live by such and such values or that some thing or relationship is our priority. It is another matter when it comes to the working out of our lives especially in near desperate situations.  The precious pearl hidden in our hearts might be a special love, a unique calling or a broad and vague intuition of something beautiful, greater, more lasting and deeper than is apparent at first sight. Our lives are lived on the threshold of hope as we wrestle with doubts and loves in this very, very messy world of ours.

Above all else what is the precious treasure or pearl of greatest value that I am not prepared to give away – ever?

Being clear about our goals, our values and our treasures is key to life’s journey and progress. It is a lifetime quest. But, it is worth it because a treasure of greatest price is just that.

Above all, we are treasured by the One who invites us to be our treasure. We can discover a light and an energy that is reflected and refracted in our very human treasures of loving and being loved.

Line by line

‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.’ [v. 44]

In this passage the field may refer to our heart. First, joy. Then going away to ‘sell all’ and coming back to ‘buy’ that treasure. Life is full of choices. We have our chances, we make our choices and we gather their fruits.

(And Mary treasured all these things in her heart….Luke 2:19)

Our treasures are often hidden and out of sight – to others and even to ourselves.  Note that the treasure didn’t just turn up: it was found following a search. We may also note that in finding the treasure the one who finds discovers joy. This establishes a connection from the heart to the object of desire. We read in Matthew 6:21:

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

We may discern – carefully – the action and inspirations of the Holy Spirit in the discovery of an inner joy and peace. But, this must be tested and re-tested because not every appearance of joy comes from God. Even still, on finding joy we may be like the one who went and sold everything he owned in order to buy the field in which the treasure was hidden.  She took a risk that the treasure would still be there. Moreover, she took a risk that the treasure would prove to be a treasure worth the sacrifice of all else.

What might our treasures be? They are many. How much are we prepared to let go of to secure that one treasure that counts? Which is the treasure of treasure of treasures that opens the way to all other treasures in our lives?

‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it. [v. 45-46]

This repeats the point of verse 45, above. However, the image changes slightly to refer to a merchant going about his business in the market for pearls of outstanding value.  In the weekend edition of the Financial Times, a glossy brochure is included with information and promotions of all sorts of luxury goods and things well beyond the reach of all but the richest of readers of the Financial Times.  Though many of these have more than enough they continue to search for that ‘one thing’ that will bring them a special reward. I guess that it is about security and it is about being different from the crowd (or ‘better’ than the crowd). The human mind and the human heart are ever restless until they find that special and elusive thing. Many spend lives searching and never finding, asking and never receiving and knocking and never gaining entry. Perhaps they looked for the wrong things in the wrong places at the wrong times?

The merchant was ready to sell up and move on having discovered the precious pearl. Note that he was prepared and actually did sell ‘all’. ‘All’.  There are times in life when we might be ready to sell ‘all’. This would be radical Christian discipleship and discipleship not confined to the religiously consecrated or those who find themselves in extraordinary situations such as millions of Christians, today, in Egypt, Syria, Iraq and other places.

‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind [v.47] 

 The sea is a place of mystery. It looks so beautiful and not infrequently calm like the sea just beside where I live. But, beneath the surface lie surprises and unknown crevices and treasures. Further out into the ocean where no human being or camera has gone unknown species and other secrets lie hidden. Life can resemble an ocean where we have no idea, at first, what lies beneath the surface of people, relationships and events. We cast the nets, so to speak, in trust and expectation. However, what emerges is mixed, unpredictable, surprising and challenging. Over-fishing is widespread in places off the Irish coast as the sea gulls know when they descend on the towns and harbours in search of fish and the odd ice cream cone or chip in the hands of the unwitting! We may cast and cast again but find little by way of reward because we fish in the wrong places for the wrong things. We need to refocus our search. Or, perhaps we need to take a rest in the harbour until the storm passes by or stocks are restored?

‘when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad.  So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  [v.48-50] 

Any catch will be a mixed one especially when it is a question of a large dragnet or
sagēnē as it was written in the Greek.  Before anyone might wish to get choosy or discriminatory too quickly about who or who is not worthy to enter into full communion with us, let him/her (well, let’s face it is usually a he) learn from the parable of the fishing net and the kingdom of heaven. Jesus – even in Matthew’s Gospel – is more keen to talk about the kingdom (or God’s reign among us) than about the church (or ekklésia meaning a gathering) important as the gathering of disciples is to the work of God’s reign in this very changing and changeable world. We ought to leave judgment to God. In any case who is any one of us to judge another?  We are, all of us, under judgment at the seat of mercy and justice. There are things of which we would not be proud, as disciples of Christ, were we to be open about everything in our past or even our present.  And, nobody is so certain of their being saved until God calls us when He wills and as He wills.

“‘Have you understood all this?’ They answered, ‘Yes.’ And he said to them, ‘Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.’” [v.51-52] 

We think we understand. But, do we? Life is a school in which we learn wisdom, patience and love. The job is never finished. And in the living out of our discipleship we learn from those around us because the Holy Spirit is everywhere (and not just those in official garbs or with initials after their names). We are constantly receiving again the messages of old as we deepen our understanding and commitment to the living Christ. It can be painful to contrast what we thought was sure and solid with the realities of living. God confronts us again and again in the voices and faces of those who upset our neat and tidy order of things and along with that our incomplete or even misleading notions of God who serves to reinforce our prejudices and securities. We have much work to do and thank God we have the light of today in which to do it. We only have now. That is our precious pearl. And we should be very grateful for it.