1 Kings 3:5, 7-12; Romans 8:28-30; Matthew 13:44-52
There is only one Vocation for All: Doing the Will of God is Our Sole Mission on Earth
Is God still useful and relevant in the 21st Century? Is scientific advancement compatible with faith and wisdom? The other day, President Putin of Russia openly admitted that European leaders are ashamed to admit the Christian roots of their respective countries. If that is the case, it goes without saying that those leaders will not accept Christian wisdom and principles. In the academia, it is no longer acceptable in most quarters to profess any religious affiliations or views, it makes one primitive and out of sync with the new age of science and liberal democracy. Among the clergy, any signs of religious symbols and dressing are obsolete, some countries band them all together. Yes, it is called secularism, the expulsion of God from public square and the relegation of wisdom to private domain.
Who can blame North Korea and Iran for seeking the god of the 21st Century – Nuclear Power? Why accuse President Trump of protectionism and xenophobia when his responsibility is only to Americans who elected him into office? What is wrong about Syria using chemical weapons on its citizens while France carts away and empowers itself with the wealth of Africa? In sum, why should anyone be good, loving and caring, since the interests of people in the 21st Century is comfort, selfish freedom, irreligiosity, murder and destruction of human lives and property? The present global collapse of love and unity, the installation of homophobia and xenophobia smack off wisdomlessness at its elementary levels – the forgetfulness that no one can live alone, without the help and presence of the other, irrespective of the looks, language and gender of the other.
Solomon asks for wisdom from God, in our first reading; in his place, what would you have asked for, had you the same opportunity? Today’s readings invite us to ponder on the role of wisdom in human life. To help us, the name of the king who asked for wisdom is a pointer to the necessity of wisdom. For one reason, Israelite monarchy was no democracy (the government of the people, by the people and for the people, as the jargon goes), but delegated theocracy – God makes a choice of a ruler for his people Israel. As for Solomon, his name “Solomon” denotes a “peace maker.” “Peace – shalom” is wholeness: economic prosperity, concord, happiness, good health, absence of war, etc. But why should Solomon seek for wisdom from God?
After David won several battles in God’s name, he failed in one fundamental battle – the battle for peace. After all the successes of David, God himself still called him a man of blood, and God refused to allow David to build him a house because of his bloodstained hands (1 Chronicles 22:8)! And God decided on a “peace maker” to build him a house, a temple – Solomon! The bloodshed between the Israelis and Palestinians today on the Temple Mount and whatever relic remains of that Temple recalls the need for a Solomon, a peace maker, today. The question is: are you a peace maker at home, at work and even religiously? Worse case scenario, do you even have peace in your heart?
Solomon realized his mission on earth as that of making peace, despite the enemies his Father David left behind. He accepted his kingship as a job entrusted to him by God and not human beings. Consequently, when the opportunity presented itself, Solomon asked for “Wisdom” from God, not the destruction of his enemies. This wisdom is the equivalent of the constitutions and bylaws that govern states, where there is a resemblance of the rule of law. For Solomon, there was only one lawgiver – God. For Solomon, every vocation and profession is inspired by God. For Solomon, every charge and responsibility must be accomplished in accordance with God’s standards and not humans’. To be a king is to have been appointed by God, and to have been appointed by God is to listen to God. Imagine that Solomon was busy enjoying the power of his kingship and oppression of his people, he wouldn’t have heard God calling, not to talk of asking God for “wisdom” to govern his people.
Interestingly, Solomon did not receive degrees and trainings for leadership – God gave him a HEART: “I give you a heart so wise and understanding that there has never been anyone like you up to now, and after you there will come no one to equal you” (1 Kings 3:12). “Interestingly” because we now live in our heads and develop technologies for self-destructions and alienation, and we have evacuated our hearts of all goodness and love and gentleness and justice. We have mastered the science of death – euthanasia, reproductive incapabilities like lesbianism and homosexuality, monstrosities like cloning and eugenics, atomic and chemical bombs, but we have failed to learn the logic of common existence and we spread mutual extermination in our academic theories!
The message of today is the need to seek for God, metaphorically called “wisdom” in the first reading of today. To seek God is to admit the role of God in every leadership and fellowship models of governance; it is the admission that human beings do not and should not call the shots, God must, if we want peace and love to reign on earth. The point is for every human being to become an architect of peace in whatever capacity they find themselves. It is not only the job of Solomon that requires wisdom but every human job and profession. This point of wisdom and its importance for building a peaceful human society flows into the gospel message of today.
One point unites all the parables of the gospel reading today: “the kingdom of heaven.” From Solomon’s desire for wisdom to build a peaceful kingdom of Israel, the gospel invites us all to build the kingdom of heaven on earth. This reality simply points to God’s ardent desire for a better world built for his children – a world of justice and peace; a world rid of wars, discriminations, exploitation, greed and hatred. For the building of this new world, God needs every hand to be on deck. Perhaps the best piece of foolishness which needs wisdom to take its place in the world today is human segregation and the inability to realize that we are many for a reason – to conjugate our efforts to build a better world; that we are different because the contribution of everyone is essential to the building of the Kingdom of God, otherwise, God would’t have created us differently and entrusted us with different talents. For God, multiplicities and differences are the ingredients of unity; it is only when human beings have learned the blessings of diversity that peace shall be theirs, God’s peace or wholeness – when everyone belongs in there, with no one left out!
The lesson for constructing and building a peaceful world is to take instructions from God on how to execute our God-given vocations; it is to learn to ask the creator for his support and direction on how to be wise and be peace makers like Solomon. Indeed, our world needs solomons, people with God-given hearts for love and peace; promoters of joy and crusaders of unity. In this regard, every vocation and profession is a call to the service of God through God’s wisdom. For any job to qualify as a vocation, it must take its cue and directives from God’s mission for each one of us. As a matter of fact, no job and profession is an accident, except when we reject our callings as the prophet Jonah attempted to do without success, because our desire for money, power and influence can make us fix ourselves where we do not belong. Every person has a mission given to him or her by God.
Our second reading continues the intuition of our first reading: when God entrusts us with a job, he sustains us in the job and provides the wherewithal to accomplish the jobs or vocations he entrusted to us. St. Paul is emphatic when he says, “We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). The “call” of God (“vocare” in Latin) is the vocation God has given to each one of us either to be parents, guardians, teachers, educators, politicians, etc. To the degree to which we execute our duties in accordance with God’s purposes, to that degree do we become peace makers and builders of the kingdom of heaven. According to St. Paul, the fundamental desire of God for each one of us is to model us after the image of Christ Jesus his Son: “For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.” The “kingdom of Heaven” of which the gospel speaks, is the manifestation of the sons and daughters of God, the builders of peace. Just as Christ died for peace, so should we work for peace, even at the cost of our lives. Finally, St. Paul talks of a glorification which awaits the sons and daughters of God: “And those he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:30).
Today, there is no need to wait for a dream, a vision or a prophecy, our world is sunk deep in violence, inequality, injustices and Godlessness. It suffices to watch the television to have surplus examples; the fact that we neither know nor talk to our nearest neighbors, we are irritated by the presence of a person who looks different than us, speaks a different language and eats differently are all pointers to the reality of our Godless civilization, heartless technological advancements, and our anthropologically bankrupt cultures. We definitely need a new world, a kingdom of heaven, where everyone is loved and respected; a society in which God has a pride of place and not a “soulless” society that divides, segregates and kills its own. We need a new age where people are proud to be Christians and live like Christians.
The first step towards building the kingdom of heaven is the ability to love God’s Commandments. Our responsorial Psalm today is “Lord, I love your commandments!” How true is that for you and me? The first sign of a malaise in authentic Christian living, and the abdication in being architects and builders of the Kingdom of heaven is a dislike for the Commandments of God. The moment we fight to decide how this world should be govern without recourse to God’s Commandments, from that time do we and those who support us enthrone foolishness and abandon God’s wisdom. Each time people protest Christian principles and you and I keep mute, without counter protest, at that time we encourage and join those who dethrone the wisdom of God. When you and I are ashamed to be called Christians, fail to live out the gospel of Christ,
Assignment for the Week:
Join or organize a Christian charity or Christian pride parade this week; do something that shows the presence of Christ this week. You can were a Christian shirt or face cap or scarf or parade a Christian banner.