SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

The Choice and the Opportunity Cost

First Reading ( 1 Kings 3:7-12 ) : Solomon asked God for wisdom
Second Reading ( Rom 8:28-30 ) : God predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son,
Gospel ( Mt 13:44-52 ) : Parables of the treasure, the pearl and the net
Chinese Classics
The source of the trouble was the rats – A cat that could catch rats as well as chickens. (1)

Jesus said, ‘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.’ (Mt 13:44-46)

Life is a choice, or in other words, life is made up of a string of large and small choices. If we discover something better, we will give up other things for a better choice.

In the first Book of Kings there is a story of Solomon asking God for wisdom. He prayed, ‘O Lord my God, Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?’ God said to him, ‘Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind (Ref 1 Kings 3:5,7-12)

Wisdom helps us to ask: what is the most important thing in our lives. Wisdom teaches us to make a choice out of thousands of possibilities and to remember that in making one choice we must give up others and we choose to give it up.

Yu Li Zi wrote a story about trouble with the rats. In the country of Zhao, there was a man whose house was infested with rats. He went into the mountains Zhong Shan and got hold of a cat. This cat was good at catching rats but it also liked to catch chickens. After a few months, all the rats were caught. but all the chickens had been killed also. The man's son was not happy about this and asked his father why he did not get rid of the cat. His father said, “Son, there is something you have overlooked. The rats were our biggest problem. It was because they would steal our food, damage our clothes, gnaw through our walls and destroy our vessels. If that happened we would suffer from cold and hunger. Wouldn't that be worse than not having chickens to eat? What does it matter if we do not have chickens to eat? Suffering from cold and hunger is where the problem lies. Why then should we get rid of the cat ?”

The cat could catch rats but it also killed the chickens. In order to get rid of the rats, we have to bear with not having chickens to eat.

Life is like that. If we want to participate in Mass on Sunday, we cannot go swimming that day; if I choose to marry this person, I must give up all other persons.

This is choice. It implies letting go of something. We not only choose something, we must decide to give up other things at the same time, and must do this whole-heartedly for the sake of a better choice.

Let us think about a simple question: you are a man. You have a mother and a wife. You are a filial son and also a good husband. But one day your mother and wife have an argument, what do you do? If you are on the side of your mother, your wife will be angry, if you side with your wife, your mother will be displeased. What would you do?

The man who does not know how to choose or does not want to do so will wait anxiously. He will wait to see which one is more angry. If it is his wife, he will support her, if it is his mother, he will listen to her.

Actually this is not a genuine choice. A choice is an active attitude. The correct way of handling the above situation is: if this time it is not the wife's fault, I should support her. But I need to be aware that my mother may be angry with me. So I must be willing to bear the consequences at the same time. If this time my mother is right I should support her. But this may cause a lengthy rift between my wife and myself. She might even protest by discontinuing to cook, refusing to do any housework etc. When you make a choice, you also choose to bear the consequences of your choice.

Unfortunately, many people regret it when unexpected consequences of their choice results. They will say, “If I'd known about this earlier I would not have made that choice.”

A real choice includes also choosing the consequences. Since I have chosen to be a Catholic, I choose to fulfill my religious duty in Church on Sundays. I give up going fishing with my friends on Sundays. We go fishing on Saturdays instead. If I have chosen to marry this person, I give up all other candidates. If I have chosen to be a doctor, I must give up being an engineer.

Once I am married, there should be no regrets about any other candidate. That is choice.

Now we must make a choice – to choose God. We choose to live a more fruitful life. We choose to live in accordance with the demands of our faith. We should obey the Ten Commandments and carry out our religious duties.

Some Catholics always feel ashamed in the presence of non-Catholics, especially when they tease. “You are a Catholic, yet you gamble!,” “Why don't you say grace before meal?” At that time some even regret having become a Catholic.

Actually when choosing to become a Catholic, we should take these things into considerations: if I become a Catholic, I will discontinue gambling or at least I will not become obsessed by it. When I decide to be a Catholic, I need to realize that my co-workers will definitely look for a higher standard of morality in me. I should include all these issues in my choice.

“The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure or a fine pearl”. It is worth our while to sell everything to find that treasure or buy that pearl.

O loving Heavenly Father, for Your sake we are willing to give up everything we have. Only when we are with You, can we have true and eternal happiness. Help us to persevere until the end, never regretting that we have chosen You.

(1)患在鼠：一隻會捕鼠也會捕雞的貓。