The Kingdom of Heaven

For most of July, the Gospel readings assigned by the Episcopal Eucharistic Lectionary focused on the Kingdom of Heaven. The Gospel for last Sunday, July 24th is a case in point:

He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches." He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened." "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age."

Mt. 13:31-49 (NRSV)

If we've become accustomed to the notion of a parable as a sort of short story (e.g., The Good Samaritan ), then these parables may seem disappointing. They may suggest a short story, but are actually more a series of similes. The preacher last Sunday compared this particular set of parables to a sort of Baedeker's for Heaven – a guide to its geography, economics, and customs.

I think it's interesting to consider who the main character represents in each parable. I suppose the average reader is predisposed to identify with the main actor in any story. That is, when we hear about a widow cooking bread, we are likely to picture our own face above that mixing bowl; or, the face of a woman close to us. When we hear about the treasure hidden in a field, we are likely to imagine our own hands digging in the field.

Read in this fashion, the stories seem to reflect the experience of joy. Recall that Jesus began his ministry by saying the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand. When he said this, he wasn't describing some pie in the sky emporium; he literally meant the Kingdom was as close as his (or his audience's) hands. So, when one experiences joy, one has had a taste of the Kingdom of Heaven.

John Sanford, in his book The Kingdom Within, suggests that each parable be considered individually. Thus, in one parable the widow may represent a believer; in another parable, the merchant may represent God. In the latter instance, we may read the merchant's extreme reaction (selling everything he owns for the pearl) as a demonstration of God's extravagant love.

Coincidentally, I read a Zen story that morning which put these parables in yet another perspective:

For forty years, a fisherman in China used a straight needle to fish with. Whenever someone asked him why he didn't use a bent hook, the fisherman always replied, "You can catch an ordinary fish with a bent hook, but I will catch a great fish with my straight hook."

Finally, word of this reached the Emperor, who decided to visit this foolish fisherman himself. After the Emperor saw the man fishing with a straight needle, he asked, "What are you fishing for?"

The fisherman said: "I am fishing for you, Emperor!"

Hearing the parable of the pearl with this story in mind led me to think that the pearl was the key element of the story – the unexpected item which catches our eye and causes us to see things in a new way.

Since this story involves fishing, it could almost be one of Jesus' parables. We might think of God as the fisherman who uses the unusual and unique to catch our attention. So too, we might see the pearl as the thing that catches our attention. In either case, the goal could be to "Wake up!", or to "Cleanse the doors of perception." In other words, to become aware of the Kingdom of Heaven which surrounds us and engulfs us.

Imagine getting so much out of a story that can be told in one sentence. Perhaps part of its power is its lack of detail – we, as listeners, become more involved because we unconsciously add those details.

Perhaps the effect of these stories is in itself another simile for the Kingdom of Heaven.