In this homily, I’d like to focus on the first reading of the Wisdom of Solomon; the Gift he asks for is Understanding. I want to talk about the importance of understanding for all of us.
My good friend and I would have Chinese food for dinner one night. I always get General Tso, and I asked what he wanted, and he said he wanted Chicken with Pea Pods. I called the restaurant, and while talking to her, I said, “I’d like General Tso and Chicken with Pea Pods.” She repeats the order to me she goes, “OK. General Tso and Chicken, no peas.” I said, “No, no, no. I want peas. Chicken with Pea Pods,” she said, “OK, no peas on your chicken.” I said, “Yes, Snow Peas with it.” She finally says, “Yes, no peas.” Finally, I said, “Fine, give me the peas with no peas; I don’t care.” I went to pick up the order, and as I brought it back, I looked at the receipt, and it says, “Beef with Snow Peas.” So, the whole time she was saying Snow Peas, I heard no peas. Sometimes we misunderstand each other.
My parents are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, and one of their favorite TV shows is “Everybody Loves Raymond”. One of my favorite scenes in that show is when Ray’s parents give them marital advice. So, Frank and Marie are giving the rest of the family marital advice. If you know Frank and Marie, they don’t exactly have the portrait of a beautiful marriage, but they give them advice.
Marie says, “With marriage, you must make room for everything. With marriage, there are times of joy, there are times of anger, there are times of frustration, and there are times of happiness. You have to make room for all of this.” Then one of the daughters says, “Why should there be anger in a good marriage?” Marie says, “Oh, you make room for it. There is time for it all.” At the end of it, she says, “Your father and I, we have survived all these years, and we understand each other.”
We understand each other. I think so much of life is because of misunderstanding when we experience frustration, difficulty, and anger.
Solomon is just getting ready for his wedding, by the way. He’s preparing for his wedding, then goes to sleep, and God comes to him in a dream, and God says, “Ask me for whatever you want.” He could have asked for a beautiful castle for his wife, a beautiful kingdom. He could have asked for power. He could have asked for money, and he says, “I would like the gift of an understanding heart.” When he says that to God, God is so moved that He says, “I will give you a heart with more understanding than anyone has ever had in the whole history of humanity.” He is given this Gift of Understanding.
I think it is important, too, as I have looked at my parents for all these years, and I talked to my siblings and my nieces and nephews, that we’ve come to understand each other more.
I tell my nieces, nephews, and any little kid that comes to Confession, and they say, “I am fighting with my brother or sister.” I say, “Try not to do too much damage because you will love each other when you get older.” It is that way with my family. I love them now.
My parents, for over 50 years, have been with each other in good times and in bad, in sickness and health all the days of my life. I see that there is an understanding with you. The many times I never got or understood, you understand each other. That is the gift that God gives to us.
As we celebrate this Eucharist, I invite you to ask God for that gift of understanding.
We hear in the Gospel this parable that Jesus is telling about this man who seeks this treasure, and in this is a pearl of great price. He’s walking along the fields, stumbling upon this treasure and discovering it. Instead of just taking it right away, he goes home and sells everything he has, and he buys that piece of land because he knows the treasure is there.
The treasure of great price, as you will see today, is the Eucharist, and as we receive Jesus into us, one of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit is Understanding. I ask that we all pray for that.
Think about situations in your life that you may be frustrated with right now. Think about people in your lives; maybe it’s your family, maybe it’s your in-laws, maybe it’s your siblings, whatever it is. If there’s anger or frustration, it’s probably because there’s some misunderstanding.
Solomon asks for this gift. Ask for the pearl of great price. He’s given this great Gift of Understanding. May we, too, have this understanding. Ask for that when you receive the Eucharist. When you sit back down in the pews or kneel, allow that understanding to be in your heart. Then we can truly be the people God has created us to be.
