Weekly HOMILY for October 18, 2009: You Be Jesus

29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle B
October 18, 2009
Our Lady of Grace

You Be Jesus
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato


“You be Jesus”

There is a story about a mother who was making pancakes for her two hungry sons.

Kevin was five and Ryan was three. As the first pancake was getting golden brown, the boys began arguing over who would get it.

Their mother quickly saw a teachable moment. She said to them, “Okay boys, if Jesus were here, what would he say?

“He would say, `Let my brother have the first pancake; I can wait.’”

With that, Kevin turned to his younger brother and said, “Okay Ryan, you be Jesus.”


Being a Servant: A Mindset

Kevin and Ryan show how difficult it can be to accept Jesus’ teaching in today’s Gospel.

Being a “servant” of others is very challenging. It seems to go against our natural instincts.

Because of that, we need to look carefully at this passage. As I look at this passage and at the Gospels in general, I note that Jesus does not spell out specific actions that make up service.

Instead, our being servant or our serving one another is more of a mindset. It is a perspective on life and an approach to living and to relationships.

In other words, Jesus is getting at some personal qualities that are important for us to have. I see four traits that make us persons of service.

Traits of Service

First, respecting. This means that we place the wellbeing and dignity of others on the same level as our own.

Respecting others means that we are concerned for their physical and emotional and spiritual good. It even means that the common good of everyone is dominant in our mindset.

Second, listening. This means that we take in what another person is saying with both ears and not just one ear.

Listening means that we try to discern the feelings underneath the words. It means that understanding the person and the values of the person is dominant in our mindset.

Third, communicating. This means that we share our insights and faith and contribute to a conversation.

Communicating means that we are careful not to dominate a conversation. It means that standing up for something without putting down someone is dominant in our mindset.

And fourth, helping. This means that we ignore those messages about not getting involved or not interrupting our own plans.

Helping means that we step forward to assist someone in need. It means that the question “What can I do to assist?” is dominant in our mindset.

So, respecting, listening, communicating, and helping – these are four traits that emerge in the person of Jesus. These also make us persons of service – servants to one another.

Priests

I want to add that I find these traits especially important for priests.

Our second reading today speaks of Jesus as “the great high priest who sympathizes with our weakness.” In other words, he is one with us in our humanity.

I believe that what is important in priesthood is not status and certainly not title. I believe that priests, unlike some times in the past, are not to be apart from or above.

Instead, what is important is that we be one with people, with the People of God. And what makes us priests distinct or different is the quality of our being with – the quality of our being part of instead of a-part from.

Holy Orders marks us with the responsibility to lead in the human journey with Jesus and back to the Father. It marks us with more of a responsibility than a right – a responsibility to be respecting, listening, communicating, and helping.

This gets expressed in our leading the Eucharist and the other sacraments. But that must be an expression of how we are trying to live in everyday life.

Not perfect or pretending to be so, not having all the answers to life or pretending that we do – but first being authentic in our following the way of Jesus, the High Priest who was the servant of all.

In our doing this, we are to be leaders for all of us in doing this.

This is the great responsibility and the wonderful fulfillment of being a priest.


Conclusion

And in a similar way, it is also the great responsibility and wonderful fulfillment of being a Christian or Catholic Christian.