The hidden treasure, the pearl of beauty and precious value are the kingdom of God,
Christ and his life-changing good news. The pearl/treasure is Christ centered life; it is
awakening the power of love within and let it flow. Jesus said: the kingdom of God is
within you; the pearl would then be what makes the inner self beautiful. The dynamic
power of the pearl [Christ], if you have it, makes you a priceless presence in the world.
And with Paul, we will be able to say, ‘I have suffered the loss of all things and count
them nothing, that I may gain Christ’ [Phil 3:8]. The joy of finding the treasure and the
pearl is the joy of our faith in Christ, the great discovery of finding ourselves in him; this
joy needs to be sustained by remaining in his friendship. Like the merchant, invest all
life’s dreams and hopes to possess Christ, the priceless pearl. What is the price that
needs to be paid to possess the pearl, for a richer experience of love and union with
Christ? Chip away rough edges of life, shadows of angry, resentful self that follow us
and blind our vision of life; we let the light of the gospel illumine the mind and open for
us the way of Christ to follow.
The old farmer was dying and sent for his two sons. He told them: for years our
orchard has given the best of fruits. Look at my hands, worn out by using the spade.
But you two have never done a day’s work in your lives. I will tell you what I have done.
I have hidden a treasure in my orchard for you to find; it is midway between the trees. It
is yours for the trouble of digging, that is all. Soon he died and the two sons set out to
dig the treasure that had been promised them. They dug and dug, day after day, week
after week. They dug up all the stones and picked out all the weeds. Winter passed
and spring came and the trees were now loaded with fruits but the brothers had not yet
found the hidden treasure. A merchant came to buy the crops and was amazed: this is
the finest crop I have ever seen. He gave twenty bags of money for it; that was more
money the boys had ever seen. They struck a deal and the merchant said: I will be glad
to buy your crop, the coming years too; you must have worked hard to grow this crop.
The two boys looked at the money and their rough hands and smiled as one said to the
other: you know, I think this is the treasure we have been digging for a full year!
The desire for the treasure made the boys to let go their idle, boring and selfish life,
even to forget their hard labor. They discovered the treasure in them to bear fruits, to
make life meaningful. We know Christ the pearl/treasure is with us but have we truly
discovered him? Do we let his gospel bear fruits of the kingdom in us, love, justice,
peace and joy to take control of us? Solomon prayed for wisdom and understanding.
We are given these gifts of the Spirit in our baptism and confirmation, to know the mind
of Christ and form in us Christ like self. Poet John Donahue: ‘I would love to live like a
river that flows, carried by the surprise of its own unfolding’. Christ the pearl is like a
river in us; journeying with him would be to encounter surprises on the way, unfolding
of the power of his love in us! Possessing Christ the pearl makes us rich presence of
grace in the world. The fishing imagery is about bringing the good out of chaos. The
imperfect, the sinner is within us around us; Christ in us burns the weeds in us and
helps to throw away the bad fish. The fiery furnace is an imagery taken from a landfill
outside Jerusalem, image of waisted life. Desire Christ the pearl; may he illumine us,
help us grow in wisdom and understanding to bear fruits of love and service.
Possessing Christ the pearl makes our families and relationships priceless!