“Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind.”
(Mt. 13, 44-52)
Rev. Alexander Diaz
The language of today’s gospel is very close to our present world: to sell and buy, riches and fortunes... But it certainly offers a message that goes beyond the purely material.
Let us first look at the symbols used in this gospel.
Today, if you have something valuable you put it in a safe in a bank or at home; in Jesus’ time when someone had something of great material value he buried it in the ground. The Rabbis of the time used to say that there was no safer place to save money: the ground.
In the church of the Middle Ages the Virgin Mary was artistically depicted as an uncultivated field, where the biggest treasure was saved (Jesus) and that she however had not been touched by anyone, in clear reference to her virginity.
Where do we hide the gifts that God has given us? In fear, in shame...? What do we do with the treasure of faith? Do we hide it so no one will steal it from us?
In the ancient tradition the birth of a pearl was attributed to the burst of a thunderbolt from the sky into an open oyster. In the ancient world, a pearl was the most wonderful possession for which one would go to any length.
In the New Testament, the pearl is an image of the divine, that which is not of this world. Jesus says: do not give what is holy to dogs or throw your pearls before swine (Mt. 7, 6). Jesus refers to the pearl as a symbol of the Kingdom of God.
In the medieval church the Virgin Mary is artistically depicted as a shell in which the most valuable treasure is kept: Jesus.
What do you consider most valuable in your life? Why? What is the pearl of your life, both material and spiritual?
The net
Since the end of the 2nd century baptism was represented by the image of fishing with hook and net; the fisherman is a symbol of the one who baptizes, the fish of the baptized. The net full of little fishes is a symbol of the church. The sea is an image of the world.
Do you feel like you are church? What is the church to you, in your daily life?
In these three parables we see a clear difference with respect to those of prior weeks. Up to this time, Christ had compared God’s Kingdom with little things, but now He compares It with two valuable things: the treasure buried in the field and the pearl that was found.
In both examples something valuable is shown to us, while in both there is also a clear difference:
· the man in the first parable finds the treasure by accident
· the man in the second example looks for fine pearls
Something similar happens to human beings with respect to God. Sometimes we find before our lives that immense treasure that is faith, almost with no effort, we just have to look... many other times in our lives we see how people search for a purpose in life, they search for that treasure that will make them feel alive and complete. Between searching and finding is where all human beings are...
1. The man in the field refers to Christ, who gave all He had, including His life, to save us.
2. The hidden treasure is the service to Christ. The treasure is not in a closed
garden, but in the open field of life.
Many times I ask myself if Christians can see the faith and our belonging to the church as that immense treasure, that magnificent gift that we can take as a presence of God.
After the explanation given by Jesus of the principal parables of this chapter, he asked the disciples if they had understood these things, to which they answered in the affirmative. Today we too can understand many many things from the Lord thoroughly studying Him, in your lives, in your prayer, in your experience of a constant encounter with Him resurrected.
The Gospel ends telling us that we have to reconcile the old and the new, what the Old Testament proclaimed to the New Testament. What there is in us from the faith we received as children to the adult faith that we try to live. In that updated encounter is where our faith and life are found and like each other.
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