​O God, protector of those who hope in You, without Whom nothing has firm foundation, nothing is holy, bestow in abundance Your mercy upon us and grant that, with You are our Ruler and Guide, we may use the good things that pass in such a way as to hold fast even now to those that ever endure...
Collect for the 17th Sunday

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First Reading: 1 Kings 3:5, 7-12
Responsorial: Psalm 119:57, 72, 76-77,
127-128, 129-130
Second Reading: Romans 8:28-30
Gospel Passage: Matthew 13:44-52

Listening Hearts
by Bishop Richard Henning

Prayerful Jewish men and women recite a prayer each day taken from the Book of Deuteronomy: "Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord Alone" (Deut 6:4). This prayer, known as the “Shema” from the first Hebrew word in the verse, sums up the absolute faithfulness of the pious Jew towards the one true God and God’s Law. The fundamental command of Shema is to hear or listen to the Lord- a command of receptivity to the Lord and the Law of the Lord.
 
In the passage taken today from the Book of Kings, Solomon echoes this ancient prayer in his profound request for wisdom from the Lord. Solomon has only just achieved his royal status and has gone to a shrine to offer prayers. While asleep, the Lord appears in a dream to Solomon and offers to fulfill a request. Surprisingly, the new, inexperienced, and young king has the presence of mind to look beyond immediate needs and short term solutions. Solomon requests a listening, discerning, understanding heart. The lectionary translates the phrase as “an understanding heart,” but the language in question is the same as that of the ancient Shema prayer. Solomon wisely requests a heart that will listen. On one level, Solomon’s request will serve him well as the King must judge disputes between peoples and make complex decisions. But it is no accident that Solomon’s request also suggests something about his relationship to the Lord. On the most profound level, he asks for receptivity to the Lord and the Word of the Lord. Psalm 119 demonstrates this same receptivity to the commands of the Lord as it sings the praises of God’s Law and promises faithful adherence to the Law.
 
Receptivity and discernment also factor into the Gospel passage from Matthew. This passage forms part of chapter thirteen of the Gospel where Jesus speaks a number of parables. Several weeks ago we heard the first of the parables- the sower and the seed. It sets the stage for the rest of the parables by introducing the theme of the mixed response to Jesus and his proclamation of the kingdom. The first two parables today employ readily accessible imagery to teach about correct responses to Jesus. The first parable speaks of a treasure in a field. In time of warfare and distress, people would often hide their valuable belongings from marauding armies by burying them. Here the image of finding such treasure stresses single minded devotion to the Kingdom and the willingness to make any sacrifice in the search for the kingdom. The second image, that of the pearl, focuses on the incomparable value of the gifts that Jesus offers.
 
The third parable points to the urgency of the need for a response to the kingdom. This parable of the catch of fish echoes last week’s passage of the weeds and the wheat. Both introduce the element of judgment to the message. Time is short and a reckoning will come. It may also answer an important question for the community of Matthew’s Gospel: how are they to relate to those who reject Jesus’ message? This parable implies that they are to remain alongside those who respond differently to Jesus- the Lord will do the sorting at the Day of Judgment.
 
In the second reading, there is urgency in Paul’s appeal to believers at Rome. The Letter to the Romans is the most comprehensive of Paul’s letters in its development of theological themes. Although the emphasis here is on God’s action in calling men and women to the Christian life, this does not reduce the importance of their response to the call. They are to imitate Christ in their living and so become His image.
           
These readings summon and challenge us to respond with faith to God’s gracious action and to Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom. Faced with the importance, value and urgency of the kingdom, the wise disciple might hope for the same kind of wisdom demonstrated by the young Solomon in his request for a listening heart. The disciple of Jesus, too, needs the receptivity to the seed scattered by the sower and the capacity to discern the presence of the kingdom wherever it may lie hidden. May God grant us all listening hearts for the service of the kingdom.