Year A 2017
Isaiah 8:23-9:3; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13,17; Matthew 4:12-23
Introduction
If I got a nickel every time I was asked:
“Do you like Pope Francis?” I would have enough money to build a small chapel
in my village. Going farther back, if I
had kept all the nickels received every time I was asked, “Do you like Pope
Benedict or Pope John Paul II?” I would have had enough money to build a
cathedral, with some left over for a cruise around the world.
But what has liking this pope or that pope
got to do with my faith?
Scripture and Theology
It
seems that this desire to pick heroes or favourites is not a recent
development. Even St. Paul had to fight
this tendency among the Christians of Corinth, one of the Churches that he had
founded. A few years after leaving them
he heard through a third party, that there were rivalries among them, divisions
based on which apostle they liked best.
Some said: "I belong to Paul,"
others "I belong to Apollos,"
others still claimed allegiance to Peter, saying: "I belong to Cephas."
That was their way of saying “I liked Pope John Paul II,” “I liked Pope
Benedict,” “I like Pope Francis.”
St. Paul
tells the Corinthians and us that this attitude is not Christian. Only Christ, not his ministers, can lay a claim
on our allegiance, our total allegiance.
·
That is why St. Paul asks rhetorically: “Is Christ divided?” – Of course not! Christ is one!
·
Even to those who worship him he says: “Was Paul crucified for you?” – Of course not! It was Christ that was crucified for them and
him alone deserves worship.
·
And to his really diehard fans, he asks: “Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” – Of course not! They were baptized in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
With
these questions Paul asks the Corinthians to put their focus on Jesus and not
on his messengers, Peter, Apollos or even Paul himself.
·
The apostles are simply vessels, channels, vehicles through which Jesus
is preached and his Body and Blood shared among God’s people.
·
The apostles are like the bottle of wine, not the wine itself; guests
usually appreciate not the elegance of the bottle, but the quality wine that it
bears.
·
The apostles are like the wrapping of a Christmas or birthday gift. However beautiful the wrapping is, at the end
of the day, I want the gift. I have
never known gift-wrap, however expensive to turn a pair of socks into a pair of
expensive earrings!
In
today’s gospel we see Jesus choosing four of the Twelve apostles: Peter and his
brother Andrew, James and his brother John.
These were ordinary fishermen, and perhaps not even very good ones,
since on at least one occasion, they needed the help of Jesus, a carpenter, to help
them catch fish.
But
Jesus calls these humble men to be his apostles, his messengers. He tells them: “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." He entrusts them with the mission of bringing
men and woman to the knowledge of God, not knowledge of themselves. These apostles preach Christ, they don't themselves. That is why St. Paul admonishes the Corinthians
for putting their trust in apostles, rather than in Jesus Christ who sends
them.
Christian Life
Like the Corinthians there is a great need
for us today, to hear this same message, since we too often fall into the
temptation of latching upon the messenger rather than the message, rather than
on the one who sent the messenger. It is
bad enough we do this in politics where we take leave of truth and principles,
in favour of worshipping this politician or that other politician who happens
to belong to our political tribe. It is much
worse when this hero worship is directed towards God’s ministers rather than to
God.
Unlike politicians who might have a
particular platform or manifesto, God’s ministers have the manifesto written
down for them already by God.
·
When Cephas, Apollos and Paul
taught the Corinthians, they were all singing from the same song sheet, the
gospel of Jesus Christ!
·
When Pope John Paul II, Pope
Benedict XVI and Pope Francis became popes, the syllabus that they were to
teach had already been prepared for them, by the Lord Jesus Christ!
·
When Father Hoang and Father
Minh, Father Deo and Deacon Glen preach a homily, they are working off texts
already chosen for them in the Scriptures and the Tradition.
For sure, we can on the side have our favourite
priest, bishop or pope because of the differences in their personalities or
idiosyncrasies. One will be shy, another
gregarious; one might sing an angel and another can't carry a tune in a bucket
to save his life; one might be an academic and another a pastor. Any one of these qualities might draw us to a
particular minister of God.
But we must look beyond these external
qualities or the lack of them, and focus on the saving message of Jesus Christ
that they bear. You see Jesus could use
for his ministry, both the learned and eloquent Paul the Pharisee, as well as
the lowly and awkward Peter the fisherman.
Perhaps Paul's great learning came in handy with all the writing that he
did. But Peter's passion and patience
were just as important for the mission of Christ. Jesus continues to do the same, using the
various gifts and personalities of his ministers today, to bring people to
God.
Besides their personal gifts and talents,
different ministers might also do things a little differently, because they are
responding to different situations.
·
When Pope John Paul II became
pope in 1978, the world was at the height of the cold war, with nuclear
amargeddon on the horizon. And so for
his teaching, he focussed on providing hope in Jesus Christ, with his signature
phrase: "Do not be afraid."
·
Pope Benedict succeeded him and
carried on his work, but with a slight shift in focus. The world had become so relativistic, that
nothing was true and objective anymore.
And so using his gifts as a scholar and theologian, he taught us that
our faith in Jesus Christ and his gospel, should guide everything we do; for
the truth shall set us free.
·
By the time Pope Francis came
to the scene, with hope and faith firmly established, he turned his focus to
the virtue of love. With his experience
as a pastor, he brought his earthiness, simplicity and wisdom to remind us of
the gospel call to love our neighbour, especially the lowliest and those on the
peripheries, to use one of his favourite phrases.
Conclusion
As a
country, unfortunately we are already divided when it comes to politics and a
few other things. Why should we
introduce even more division into the body of Christ, because we are looking in
our ministers for heroes to worship rather than channels of the gospel? Why should we ignore the work of the Holy
Spirit, because it does not come to us via our preferred channel?
Only a
bad gardener would disparage roses because they don't look like daisies, or
sneer at daisies because they don't smell like lilies. A good gardener would appreciate all the
flowers in his garden. Let us receive
the gospel of Jesus Christ, however it comes to us. Let us recognize the work of the Holy Spirit
in whoever brings the gospel to us.
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