Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 'B'

Sunday July 23, 2006

Expecting Too Much or Too Little?

It is our belief as Catholics that the Bible is the inspired Word of God and was written for all times, for all seasons and for every age. Moreover, although the biblical authors wrote with a particular purpose in mind called a ‘literary bias’ and even with specific intentional applications, it is possible and even probable that God had other purposes and applications beyond those of the inspired authors.

Correction: Certain biblical authors in both the Old and New Testaments were indeed aware that new meanings and applications could be assigned to ancient texts and in fact did retell original stories with a different spin or twist in order to instruct or teach a lesson to people of a different time, place and circumstances.

We do the same thing with our family stories. It’s not that we twist the truth. We simply tweak the details so that their underlying meaning and the important lessons of life are not lost.

This is called ‘redaction’ or ‘retelling’ the story “with a ‘sacred’ spin,” as it were. In the same way that contemporary writers are influenced by the circumstances in which they live, so too biblical authors were affected by what was going on around them and so they reached back into ancient literature citing past incidents of what they believed to be God’s intervention as examples of how God continually interacts with individuals, communities and even governments and religious institutions.

However, lest I get carried away and turn this homily into a course in Biblical hermeneutics, I think I have made the point that in the words of Gabriel Marcel or whoever stated it first, preachers need to prepare their homilies with the Bible in one hand and the daily newspaper in the other.

That having been stated, the texts this weekend are both challenging and consoling. In the light of continuing reports about the misconduct of religious leaders — bishops and priests among the most prominent, we need to be reminded that God has not abandoned ship or lost interest in the Church.

However God is not into damage control or cover-ups. On the contrary, God continues to have the highest expectations for the ‘shepherds’ who are charged with the responsibility to lead his people. No, God does not expect perfection. St. Paul pointed out two weeks ago in his second letter to the Corinthians, “I am content with my weaknesses in order that he power of Christ may dwell with me; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” But God is not patient with mediocrity.

Jeremiah used very strong words in his ‘attack’ on the shepherds of Israel: “Woe to the shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of my pastures, says the Lord…. I will punish your evil deeds. I myself will gather the remnant of my flock… I will appoint true shepherds for them who will lead them…” And then he revisits the story of David’s unusual call — David, the young shepherd called out of time and order to be the shepherd-king of the united Kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the prototype of Jesus, servant and shepherd not just of Israel but of all humanity.

In his letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul elaborates on Christ’s role as the shepherd of shepherds, presenting him as the model for all times and every age. “For he is our peace, he who made us one and broke down the dividing wall of hatred… that he might create in himself one new person, establishing peace reconciling us with God…” In other words, it is Jesus who ultimately shepherds us and to the extent that our earthly shepherds identify with him and speak his words, they are to be honored and respected but challenged when they do not.

Notice in the Gospel how Jesus invites the apostles to a quiet place to review their ministry to hear about how they were doing. Jesus held them accountable for their stewardship. Notice too how the apostles reported what “they” had done giving the impression that their mission and ministry was rooted in their own authority rather than in the person of Christ. They failed to recognize that they were sent “in persona Christi,” i.e., in the name of Christ who empowered them to preach and teach and celebrate the sacred mysteries entrusted to them.

“A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens begins with the words, “It was the worst of times, it was the best of times…” That might be said about our own times not only as a nation and but also as a church. Our bishops have become more like CEOs and their staff like corporate executives than pastors, building walls around themselves to shield them transparency. Public relations officers and attorneys have become their script-writers protecting them from accountability to the faithful. It has been stated that the Archdiocese of Los Angeles spends an average of $800,000 monthly on attorney’s fees to protest sensitive files from exposure to justice in cases of child sexual abuse.

Some Catholics may prefer to walk away from the Church and some indeed have done so. Others may prefer to bury their head in the sand and succumb to denial or disengagement, remaining aloof from the challenges that face us.

Mature Catholics who are serious about our faith tradition will invest individually and collectively in both the reform of our Church and in its renewal. Reform and change are necessary but are not enough; we need to be renewed internally in the Spirit of Christ the Shepherd who is our true pastor — pastor of the universal Church, the pastor of this diocese and the pastor of this parish.

There are many options open to us for our involvement, some of them formal, most of them informal.

Among the more formal initiatives is VOTF or Voice of the Faithful. Comprised of lay Catholics ‘in the pew’ but mainstream Catholics who are active in a variety of Church ministries, VOTF seeks a listening ear from our bishops but they are just as emphatic about the need to support shepherds of integrity. It is their role to challenge not hassle.

There are other movements and initiatives with the same purpose that seek not to divide but to bring together believers from both sides of the aisle to reflect how we can remain faithful to our Christian call within the Catholic tradition.

As individuals, we need to keep ourselves informed. We also need to watch our script. It is not just what we say or do that matters but how we say and do it. You come into this assembly week after week and some of you, day after day not to be harassed or hassled but to be challenged by the Word of God and to be empowered to go out and live your vocation in the world. This is the essential mission of the Church.

We all need to be affirmed and encouraged to speak to our leaders about the “hopes and joys, the anxieties and sorrows of the people of our age.” [Church in the Modern World, Vatican II, 1966] The Spirit lives within the whole Church not just in our shepherds but we need our shepherds to articulate our hopes and dreams and to empathize with our pain and struggles that we may indeed come to know and live the compassion of Christ the shepherd.

Ultimately Christ is our true shepherd “for through him we have access in one Spirit to the God” who has called us together to show forth his goodness and love to a world estranged from itself.

May his peace reign in your hearts today and always.

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