Friends of Sion presents
Sunday readings
17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Good morning to all of Sion friends. We are in the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
The first reading of the book of Kings tells us about the dream of Solomon in Gibeon.
Solomon just received the royal anointing.
And his first act is to go to Gibeon, where the pagans offer sacrifices.
And he also offers a lot of sacrifices and promotes a great feast.
It is in this context that the Lord interrogates him.
We may be impressed with Solomon's response to the Lord's question (What do you want?).
The humbleness of his request contrast with the great feast that he is preparing.
In fact, he does not ask for wealth, but a "lev shomea".
That is: a heart that listens and understands.
And with the depth of the word "shema", this means that he agrees and intends to act according to the will of God.
God then responds to his request, and also gives him a wise heart (lev hakham)
and yet He gives what Solomon did not request: wealth and success.
The second act of Solomon is to build the Temple and build a palace for himself.
But things deteriorate. He will marry a number of pagan women,
in biblical terms, this also means that he marries their idols.
Therefore, he has no longer the unified heart.
In Hebrew the phrase is "lev shalem". He no longer has a "full heart", "unified heart" ... "as his father David" (so it's written).
After that, we find the schism, dividing the kingdoms.
Within a few days, Jews will remember the destruction of the first and second temples.
And some commentators attribute the fall of this Temple of Jerusalem,
which was a national and religious catastrophe for the Jewish people and that marked a turning point in its history,
they attribute this destruction to this Solomon's fault.
In fact, afterwards there were good and bad kings, but the wicked ones have prevailed over the good.
And that made the kingdoms to precipitate (first in Samaria, after Judah) to the catastrophe,
with the Assyrian invasion and then the Babylonian invasion.
In response to this, we have this beautiful Psalm (119) Psalm about the Torah,
precisely this Torah that is the way towards God, to live according to his will.
It is a combination of selected verses.
And the Torah is more precious than gold and silver,
it is the happiness of man, his consolation.
It expresses the love, tenderness and goodness of God.
And it allows us to live according to His will, according to His precepts.
It is a marvel, and it is for everyone, because even the most simple are able to understand it,
for it is light for everyone.
Here is what the Torah means to the Jewish people and for all.
If we live according to it, we have true happiness, which is worth more than gold and silver.
The Gospel presents us two parables: the kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field.
And also like a pearl of great price, we sell all we have to acquire it.
What is said about the Kingdom of Heaven can also apply to the Torah.
As we have seen, the Torah is this treasure, this precious stone,
and it is worth giving everything to acquire it.
Then we have the parable of the net with good and bad fish
which reminds us of the parable of the weeds,
in this Kingdom of God there are good and bad ones. It's not up to us to do the screening.
Just as the Jewish tradition says about the weeds:
the good and the bad cohabiting can possibly do good to others,
it is not good to immediately destroy the wicked,
it is best to let the good grow so that it will prevail over evil.
Anyway, God alone is the judge and, as said in the letter to the Romans:
"Everything works for good to those who love God."
Even the evil that contributes to the good of those who love God.
Of course, we must have an open heart to love God and express the desire to convert.
"God works in all things for the good of those who love him, who are called according to his purpose.
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son,
in order that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. "
Therefore, it is God who makes us righteous.
These two parabolas end with the conclusion.
In fact, Chapter 13 is the heart of the Gospel of Matthew, which is called the "Gospel of the Kingdom."
We can say that in this conclusion, Matthew describes himself. I will read:
"...every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old."
Again, we can say that this treasure is the Word of God, which is inexhaustible, which is always a source of novelty,
In Jewish tradition (Mishnah) it is written: "Turn the Torah in all directions. There you will find everything you seek.".
It is also written that every disciple must teach according to what he received from his master,
but he should always add new things.
Here is the eternal newness of the Torah which corresponds to the eternal newness of God.
The Kingdom of God, when it comes to the Torah, we can never say "I've seen already," "I've heard already" There is always something new.
An attentive heart (lev shomea) know how to perceive in the Word of God and all that happens,
something new: a pearl, a new treasure.
Good Sunday to everyone!
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Subtitles: Br. Joel Moreira, NDS.
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