Father Gary’s Sermon

Inspired from Matthew 13:31-33, 44-49

Proclaimed on July 24, 2005

Wes was a little boy of five years who went to visit his grandmother. While there he pulled out a box of his prized toys. He carried them to the living room, which was very large, as well as dark. There he pulled out his toys that consisted of trucks, buses, tractors, fire trucks, and many others. Sitting down on the floor he soon had them meticulously placed in a perfect circle.

The along came Susan. She was his three-year-old cousin. Before he could blink his eyes, she had entered the room and destroyed his perfect circle. Wes began bawling and squalling, while she was laughing and squealing. Soon grandmother came to his rescue. She picked him up and comforted him until he fell fast asleep.

The next day Susan made a suggestion to Wes. “Let’s take your toys outside.” At first reluctant, Wes then conceded. Soon they were doing new and riskier things together. With the toys they began to build little forts, ramps and tunnels. Along they way they used the appropriate toys to haul dirt. The others they just pushed around their creation, sometimes crashing them.

The moral of this little story is that faith sometimes means we have to leave our dark areas of living in order to risk what we love the most in the great outdoors. It is, perhaps, the same theme that runs through our Gospel lesson today. Here Jesus shares several little parables about the Kingdom of Heaven. Describing what it is like, he compared it to a mustard seed, as well as leaven, speaking of how the Kingdom comes from insignificant beginnings. He then associated it pearls or some other great treasure that was of such value that everything else could be sacrificed in order to acquire it. Finally, the Kingdom of Heaven was compared to a great catch of fish in which the net was filled to the brim with fish of every kind. However, when the net was pulled to shore the fish were divided into keepers and tossers. In essence, while everyone may be drawn to the Kingdom of Heaven, not all will be accepted.

What was Jesus attempted to say with these analogies? Could it be that he was referring to the Holy Spirit that is offered to us by God? I think so. Indeed, this Spirit seems to be a lot like little three-year-old Susan. Initially its appearance can be quite painful as it disrupts our lives in order to bring us into a new existence. However, it is also like Wes’s grandmother who offers him necessary comfort in the midst of the initial distress of Susan.

Like Susan did for Wes, this Spirit brings us all good things, but it usually begins with a single person. For the Church this was Jesus. Like Susan, Jesus draws us in. Indeed, Jesus appealed to folks of all strips, even non-believers. However, not all who were drawn to the Kingdom became a part of the Kingdom.

Following the Resurrection and Ascension of Christ, this same Spirit continues to be made available to us through a single person. Take for example the story of Telemachus. He was a Christian hermit. While in prayer one day the Spirit sent him to Rome. Now Rome at that time was a Christian city, but a nominal one of that. For instance, while many folks proclaimed their allegiance to Christ, they also attended the Coliseum to watch bloody gladiatorial events.

When Telemachus came into Rome, he found himself following a crowd to the Coliseum. Upon entering, he became part of a crowd of over 80,000 people. They all watched and cheered at the bloody slaughter. Telemachus, on the other hand, was horrified. So much so that he impulsively jumped into the arena and stood between two fighters. Immediately he was tossed aside so that the fights could continue. However, Telemachus would not give up. In his futile attempts to stop the bloodshed he found himself being stoned by the crowd. Soon his corpse lay dead in the midst of the arena. When the crowd became aware that they had just killed a holy man, they were stunned. In their despair a law was soon passed that put a permanent end to this bloody form of entertainment in Rome. It all started with a single person.

The list of changes such as this is without number. History is full of Susans. All good comes from somewhere and someone. It begins small, it proves to be of great worth, and it eventually encompasses everyone. We are all part of this flow. Like Wes, we all have our Susans. They may be a person distant from us. Them may even be part of our family. Indeed, they could even be something deep within our own beings. What they have in common is that they demand a response. To do so will generally be painful and often disruptive for us at the beginning. However, because it brings us into the Kingdom of Heaven, it will eventually reward us with a treasure beyond our wildest imaginations.