Texts: Isaiah 58: 1-12; Matthew 5: 13-20

Once upon a time there was a king who had two daughters. No…. this is not about Lear; he had three daughters. And this king wanted to test his daughters, much like Lear wanted to test his. So he asked his daughters what the sweetest substance was in the world. The older daughter immediately said, “Sugar, of course. Without sugar, how could we have our wonderful desserts?” The king was pleased and turned to the younger one, secretly hoping that she could surpass her sister who was not a very nice person, always beating the servants and shouting at everyone.

The younger girl looked at her father straight in the eye and said, “Salt.” The older began to chide her, “How could you take our father’s question so lightly? Why do you not respect him?” And she went on and on. The father, taken in by this sudden show of filial piety, became very angry with the younger one and threw her out of the castle. She protested her answer but the father was adamant. So she went to a neighboring kingdom and began to work for a living.

Well, sometime later, while the younger princess was living and working in a kitchen as a scullery maid in the castle of the neighboring kingdom, people were always amazed at her sweetness, intelligence, and willingness to help others. She even caught the eye of the prince who often came into the kitchen to talk with her. Something was obviously different about her but the prince could not put his finger on it. But even as he came to love her and she secretly loved him, he knew he had to do his duty and go off to marry the person his father had chosen for him.

The day of the wedding feast was set in the younger princess’ home country and the princess wanted to see him so much that she secretly came back to her own castle as a cook. No one recognized her although some of the servants wondered where they had seen her before. She was put in charge of the feast. When it came time to eat, the old king took one bite of his dinner and practically spit it out because it was terrible. All the guests in the palace were stunned at how sour the food tasted. The old king demanded to know what had caused this terrible dinner. The servants told the king that the cook said there was no salt to be found in the kitchen. All of a sudden the king remembered what his younger daughter had said to him and bemoaned the fact that he had acted so hastily.

Of course, when the cook was summoned, it turned out to be the king’s long lost daughter. The older sister became so angry that she stomped out of the room and the prince saw the woman he secretly loved and who loved him. Beyond the happily ever after ending, there is a deeper truth to this story and it goes beyond salt. The deeper truth is that being honest in our opinions and about what we know to be true is far more important than placating others.

In this morning’s reading, when Jesus tells the crowd that they are the light of the world and the salt of the earth, he was telling them something really important, which also applies to us today. We should not be mealy mouthed about the truth of the Gospel, the good news that we bring to the world. We should be open and direct about what we profess to believe. As Christians, we should not be hesitant to speak the truth about those concerns that we have as a community and as a society. Of course, we know that and each of us in our own way connects to those concerns and issues that speak most directly to us. We all care about a number of issues that face our society, such as housing, crime, education, poverty, immigration, discrimination, to name just a few. But this text also tells us that not only should we be a light to the world but that we must do so with the sharpness and sweetness of salt. For salt is both sharp and sweet.

In addition to speaking to the world, we need to be open with each other in this community. Sometimes people are hesitant to tell others what they really think about an issue because they fear it will cause dissension. Expressing our differences, even in a heated manner, what we usually call arguments, are healthy in our personal relationships with each other. Burying differences of opinion does not help any community; in fact, it hurts the process of building community. Some of us are more willing to be direct and open about our opinions; others sit quietly by. A living, vibrant community raises questions, has heated discussions, and still is able to do so in love. The right seasoning is important and that seasoning is love.

Let us pray: Holy One who has given us minds to think and tongues to speak, help us to use our minds and mouths to proclaim your word, to share our thoughts and feelings with each other, and to build a community that always speaks and acts in love. Amen.