Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 26, 2020
Jesus said to his disciples, “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.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”
There are some things that are just worth saving up for, sacrificing for, and waiting for.
When I was very young, I worked and saved and scrimped together enough money to buy a car. I can still remember how good it felt to drive it out of my grandmother’s driveway (yeah, it was my grandmother’s car; I was sixteen, okay?). When I was a bit older, I saved up to buy an engagement ring so that I could propose to the woman I love. I still remember those sacrifices sometimes when I see that ring on her hand. After that, together we worked hard to save enough money to put a down payment on our first house. And the list of saving, sacrificing, planning, and living just continues to unfold from there. Things seem to get more and more intangible and uncertain as we plan for things in the more distant future like our daughters’ education, care for our aging parents, and long term financial security in our retirement years. But the one thing that all these plans have in common is that we think about what we value most and then we move in the direction of our values.
I think this parable is inviting us to think about our faith and the kingdom of God in a similar way. Our spiritual lives require planning, commitment, patience, and sacrifices. We need to invest ourselves in our spiritual futures just as we do in our financial lives. For me, the underlying image of this parable is very powerful. It can be very easy for me to think of my place in the kingdom of God as something that will be decided as a matter of judgement, once and for all, in the distant future. But the reality is that everything I do, every day, is leading me to the kingdom of God (I hope and pray, by the grace of God). This gospel helps me realize that this pearl of great price, this hidden treasure, is something that I need to be planning for, sacrificing for, and living for already, now, every day of my life.
Prayer
Dear Lord, when time drags on and prayers go unanswered; when our hard work seems so futile; when we wonder what difference we’re making, remind us of the mustard seed. Though it appears so insignificant, so incapable of bringing forth life, we know it finds its purpose and serves magnificently. Bless us with great possibilities and increase our faith in your presence in all we do. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Sts. Anne and Joachim were the parents of Mary and are patron saints of grandparents.
We do not know much about Joachim and Anne—even their names have been handed on to us by tradition. The stories that have come down to us tell that they were likely well-off, and had been childless for most of their marriage. An angel appeared to them both to announce a birth in their old age, and Anne promised to dedicate the child to the service of God. Mary was their only child, and they presented her at the Temple when she was 3 years old, prefiguring the presentation of Jesus.
Though we know little about these people, the Church holds the parents of Mary in great esteem because they were the ones who taught her the faithfulness that she demonstrated in accepting God’s invitation to bear Jesus to the world.
Anne and Joachim are depicted in the Basilica in several places, including many wall murals that depict the life of Mary. They are shown here in this stained glass window from the Basilica, and their relics rest in the reliquary chapel there—including a piece from their house where they raised Mary.
Sts. Anne and Joachim, patron saints of grandparents—pray for us!