Year's End

We’re coming to the end of the liturgical year and as a result we are coming to the end of our reading of the Gospel of Matthew. Next week will be the last Sunday of the year and if there is any phrase from our year with Matthew that has impacted powerfully upon us, my hope would be that it was the phrase “the kingdom of heaven is like...”. Of the last nineteen Sunday gospels, twelve have had as their main topic the theme of the kingdom of heaven. I think that we can say without much contradiction that this concept was a very important part of Jesus’ message and teaching. Often when we hear the phrase “the kingdom of heaven”, we are a bit uncertain as to its meaning and its implication, but we really shouldn’t be, and I think that if any gospel passage defines its meaning and relevance for us, then today’s is a good one.

When Jesus said to Peter “I give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven” we may have thought “well then please show us the lock and the entrance door too” But having read today’s gospel we now know where both the lock and the door are. Each of us has been given the talent to tap into the kingdom since that talent is the kingdom. In other words, the kingdom is part and parcel of who and what we are, and the key to releasing and unlocking that talent and by analogy the fruits of the kingdom, lie in each one of us recognising for ourselves the revelation that brought Peter to make his confession. “You are the Christ the Son of the living God” is how Peter put it and Jesus blessed him for it. The question is can we recognise that same vision in our- selves and in each other?

To do so we need to re-examine our values and look again at what is important and meaningful in our lives. There is no doubt that our world is changing and changing rapidly. We only have to look around to see the massive problems which we are facing. The continuing war in Ukraine, the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the economic hardships and the impact of climate change leave us all wondering where it will all lead to. Are we travelling towards the kingdom, or have we all essentially been acting like that servant who just buried his talent? Have we ignored our talent and left it well alone, such that the virtues of the kingdom which it represented simply withered away? If we have then woe betide us because we need to recover it sooner rather than later.