RSS Feed"Jesus said to his disciples: 'Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom.... For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.'" (Lk 12: 32,34)
Last Monday I began the long flight back to Rome after a refreshing 10 day vacation visiting my parents and some friends in Arizona - I know, usually the term "refreshing" doesn't spring to mind when you think of summer in the desert, but it was for me! Anyhow, on one of the segments of my return flight to Rome I ended up having a great discussion about faith, heaven, the Bible, celibacy, and the Catholic Church. At one point the man next to me posed the question, "according to the Catholic Church, how do we get to heaven?" I always like that question. It offers an opportunity to clear up misconceptions about what we believe as Catholics. I responded that it all begins with faith, which is man's response to the initiative and revelation of God, and that our faith must be accompanied by concrete acts of charity - loving God and others - and obedience to His will. I mention this experience because it connects two important points that we see present in all of the readings for this Sunday: faith and awaiting the coming of the Kingdom of God (Heaven).Let's start with faith. In the first reading from the Book of Wisdom we see faith connected to a type of knowledge and conviction which are not acquired through human observation and reasoning. Faith enabled the ancient Israelites to perceive what was to come, and that foresight kept them faithful to God in the present moment. The second reading is similar, though it comes from the New Testament, where the sacred author praises those who placed their faith in God and made concrete choices based on that faith. These weren't little decisions that were made! In the case of Abraham we are speaking about moving to another country and enduring hardships, believing God would grant him a son, and then be willing to offer up his only son, Isaac, by sacrificing him to God on the altar Abraham had made with his own hands. And finally, in the Gospel we hear about the servant who remains faithful to all that his master asked of him even when it seemed the master would not be returning on time. In all of these cases that which was promised by God was not immediately attainable or evident. Faith required and enabled these people to wait with conviction, to keep their hearts focused on what was promised and be faithful to God in the present moment - even when it seemed easier to relax the level of vigilance, or give up hoping all together.
Now let's see how faith and Heaven are connected in today's liturgy. In the Gospel, Jesus makes it very clear where our hearts and thoughts should be directed towards - Heaven, the everlasting Kingdom of God. He tells us, "where your treasure is, there also will your heart be." He also says, "your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom." These two statements are key to understanding the parable which follows: being faithful to what God requires of us in this life demands that our hearts be set on Heaven. If our energy and focus in this life is spent only on the things of this world then there will be no room in our heart for God, nor the heavenly kingdom He wants to give us. If our hearts are too full of the things of this world - on material possessions, wealth, gaining more and more power and prestige - then there will be no room nor desire to receive the things of God. And if we think we can keep putting things off and God will just give the Kingdom of God to us anyways, without any effort and desire on our part, today's Gospel will be a big wake-up call - because according to Jesus, that is not the case. The question is not whether God wants us to go to Heaven or not, it is about whether we will be capable of receiving that gift. That is determined here and now, on earth.
So what is the secret? As the readings for today show us, we need to redirect our gaze toward God, and towards the life to come. That is what gives us the strength to be faithful to God in the midst of a world that wishes to eliminate Him, and the conviction that He will be faithful to His promises. Pope Benedict mentioned something similar about 2 months ago - Christians have stopped looking to the future, to what God has promised, to the life of the resurrection, and have begun living only for this world, as if God did not exist. If we want to discover where our heart lies, then we can simply look at how we spend our days and where our mental energy is spent. If our thoughts and much of our time is spent striving for goals which have to do with money, power, and fame, then we need to do something about it. How often do we ponder God's promises and turn our thoughts to the life to come? All of us are free to choose our "treasure", but we must remember that nothing endures for eternity except God and the Kingdom He prepares for those who choose it. May this day of rest with the Lord and your families be blessed and be a time where you can leave work behind to ponder the meaning of it all. God bless you.
(Photo of the "Transfiguration" courtesy of Br. Lawrence Lew, O.P.)
