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Ordinary 25 – B
Wis2:12, 17-20, Js 3:16-4:3, Mk 9:30-37
September 24, 2006
Fr. Carl McCarthy
If someone asked me what my friends and I talk about the most, I would
probably say, “preaching.” We talk about preaching a lot -- what we have
preached on and what we are going to preach the coming Sunday.
I really wished that I had
talked to my friends this week about what they are preaching this Sunday,
so I could have garnered some ideas because this Sunday I came up blank.
In preparing a Sunday homily, I begin
reading the scriptures on Sunday evening a week in advance. I repeat this
exercise daily. I underline and jot down ideas, think about stories and
sayings that might enhance the meaning behind the Scriptures. I don’t
preach on anything that doesn’t first preach to me. But, again, this
Sunday, I am unsure about what to preach. Nothing inspiring came to me.
I had a few ideas. I thought
at first I might preach on the first part of the Gospel, where Jesus tells
his disciples for the second time that he’s going to die. Like the first
prediction about his death, the disciples again did not understand what he
meant, and they feared questioning him further. But we all understand
what the death and resurrection of Jesus means, and certainly we don’t
fear questioning Jesus. We talk to Jesus about all of our concerns. We do
this through prayer. We don’t fear Jesus and what Jesus might tell us. So,
I couldn’t preach on that…
Then I looked at the
scripture further and thought, “I’ll preach on what the disciples were
arguing about as they walked with Jesus from Galilee to Capernaum.” They
were arguing about who among them was the greatest. I can just hear them
saying, “if Jesus, our leader, is going to die, and he will no longer be
with us, then one of us will take his place.” They were looking for fame
and power and prestige. One of them wanted to be “top dog.” But none of
us here would argue about who will be “top dog.” None of us want fame or
power. We are all stewards. We are on an equal plane. We freely give what
we have. We have one Savior, one Messiah, and that is Jesus. What more do
we need! So, I couldn’t preach on that either…
Then looking at the Gospel
further, it hit me; I’ll preach on what Jesus said to the Twelve after
talking with them about their desire for fame. He said, “If anyone wishes
to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” To make his
point, he placed a child in front of them saying, “you must become like
this child.” He wasn’t using the child as a model of sweetness or
innocence. A child at that time had no rights; a child was among the
lowest in society. This does not mean children were mistreated or unloved.
Jesus is telling the disciples that, rather then seeking fame and power,
they should seek to become the lowest and the servant of all. But we all
know that, through our baptism, we are disciples. And, as disciples, we
are servants, who reach out to those on the margins in our society: the
unwed mother, the addict, the migrant worker, those who live in our
homeless shelters. The divorced, the widowed, the grieving, and the
diseased. Since we all understand that we are servants, I couldn’t preach
on that either…
In the
end, nothing really struck me as a subject upon which I need to preach.
So, I don’t think I will preach this Sunday. I think I will just go and
sit for a moment.
sdrose@bellsouth.net
10-4-2006
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