Last weekend Canadians celebrated Thanksgiving – featured
of course on this weekend is one or more turkey dinners. That’s the time when
the recipe books come out with those special ones that mother used to make. But
try as you might, they never quite taste like hers did. That’s because there is
more than just following a recipe that makes a meal great – it’s all those
special touches that mother instinctively knew to add – things not mentioned in
the recipe.
What mother had was not just the recipe, she had the wisdom
of a cook acquired over many years. I think that this makes for a useful metaphor
for what is wrong with this generation we now live in. Science and technology have
given us an abundance of recipes for how the natural world works. We have this
wonderful scientific and technological information – but do we know how to use
it?
Today’s first reading is from the Book of Wisdom, part
of the O.T. writings that were written after Israel had returned from some
sixty years of exile and slavery in Babylon. They realized that to merit God’s
protection would take more than just following the Law like a recipe book. What
they had been missing was the holy wisdom found hidden in the Law.
St. Paul is talking about the need to delve deeper into
God’s word in order to learn the wisdom of holiness.
“Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
There is more to holiness of life than claiming to know
that there is a God. (The Devil knows that better than anyone). Holiness is a
matter of the heart – it is three things: 1. Knowing <> 2. Loving <>
3. Fulfilling the will of God. In todays gospel, the rich young man is intrigued
by Jesus teaching about eternal life. He asks Jesus for the recipe, what more
he needed to do to secure this eternal life. He is shocked and dismayed by
Jesus’ answer. Jesus tells him that he has the recipe, all the things he reads
in the law and the prophets. What is missing is his heart. His heart is devoted
to his own self-interests, his life is all about loving “me”, not God.
Perhaps we could say that our generation is all about “skip
the dishes” – forget the recipe, worry about religion if you want, I’m all about
me and the good life. The question asked of us today; “where is my heart, what is my treasure”, and “is
this wise”?
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