July 24, 2011: 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
A fond memory from my childhood is going to my grandmother’s during the holidays and eating the corn-on-the-cob that she served at our meal. Koreans like to steam the corn and then eat it hot, right out of the steamer. But it's not easy for a little mouth and little hands to get a handle on a steamy, hot, large ear of corn. So even before my grandmother had her own serving, she would grab the hot corn and take the kernels of corn off the cob by hand for me. Of the many things I remember about my maternal grandmother, that memory comes to mind first. I think it is so memorable for this grandson because I know that she made many little sacrifices for me. At her burial, all of her children and grandchildren were gathered together, which was one of the last times that the entire family would gather together.
As I do funerals of mothers, I often hear family members say, "Our mother brought all of us together for Sundays and holidays. I don't know whether we'll be getting together like that again." It is not uncommon for families to stop large family gatherings once their mother passes away. Is this true of your family? When I was thinking about how my grandmother was able to bring all the family together for holidays, I realized that it was her willingness to sacrifice that allowed her to pull the event together. She probably spent several days before the gathering shopping and cooking in preparation for the actual event. Everyone looked forward to getting together and they all knew how much work was involved to make that happen but they would not have volunteered to do such hard work. Of course, by the end of the day, all were glad that someone made the sacrifice to make it happen.
So,
what is a true sacrifice? Mother Teresa said, "A sacrifice to be real
must cost, must hurt, must empty ourselves." We also know that sacrifice
involves risk. A mother does not know how many of her children will
show up for the big meal, but nevertheless, she goes ahead and risks and
sacrifices her time to prepare the meal. She discovers that it is worth
sacrificing herself even when only a few of her children show up.
Something happens to each of us when we decide to sacrifice. St. Therese
of Lisieux, the Little Flower, said, "True love grows by sacrifice and
the more thoroughly the soul rejects natural satisfaction the stronger
and more detached its tenderness becomes." St. Therese said that with each self-sacrifice, we grow in our ability to love. That's a great treasure worth sacrificing for.
In the Gospel Our Lord speaks of finding a treasure. Not a material treasure, but a treasure he calls ‘the kingdom of heaven.’ He said this treasure, this ‘pearl of great price’ is worth selling everything else to obtain it--in other words, it requires sacrifice to obtain this precious pearl. Just as my grandmother sacrificed herself to bring her whole family together, Our Lord sacrificed all to bring us to His Father’s kingdom. What exactly is the Father’s kingdom? A kingdom of true love, which is the fruit of sacrifice--sacrifice that costs, sacrifice that hurts, sacrifice that empty ourselves. The fruit of my grandmother’s sacrifice was her family being together and enjoying each other’s company. The fruit of Our Lord’s sacrifice on the Cross is all of God’s family--whether Italian, French, Korean, Cajun-- enjoying each other’s love.
What have we sacrificed or will sacrifice to discover the Father’s kingdom? Will we do so with joy? Perhaps we think that persevering is too high a price for this treasure. What we give to God--our patience, kindness, gentleness, and compassion--cannot compare to what Our Lord will give us in return.
My mom reminded me not too long ago that when my grandmother died, I cried for hours--so much so that the hearse driver told me to quiet down. I miss her love. I miss how much she cared for me. Likewise, when we understand the extent of the Father’s love, the enormity of Our Lord’s love, then we will desire to respond to the Father’s love. Then we will love totally, as the Father and Our Lord love.
