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Daily Scripture

+ 5th Week in Ordinary Time

It still has meaning.

1 Kings 8:1-7, 9-13 Psalm 132:6-7, 8-10 Mark 6:53-56

The priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place beneath the wings of the cherubim in the sanctuary, the holy of holies of the temple. There was nothing in the ark but the two stone tablets which Moses had put there at Horeb, when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel. [1 Kings 8:6, 8]
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In recent years there has been much discussion in liturgical circles about the proper location of the tabernacle in the worship space. The directives implementing the Constitution on the Liturgy by the Second Vatican Council prescribed that the tabernacle be located in prominent location in the church or chapel, preferably in a chapel dedicated to the reservation of the Blessed Sacrament and appropriate for veneration. In any case, it was not to be located on the altar table used for the celebration of the Eucharist. As a result in many churches renovations, the tabernacle was moved to the ‘side altar’ previously used for the veneration of the Blessed Virgin or St. Joseph and in some churches, it was placed on the old altar previously used for Mass. In situations the old altar was replaced with a permanent pedestal on which the tabernacle was placed.

In liturgical matters, nothing is simple. Those of a more conservative disposition insisted that the location of the Tabernacle on the side altar reduced the status of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist thereby diminishing its meaning in the devotional life of the faithful. Others of a more liberal persuasion opined that in fact, the location in a separate chapel within the church assigned to the sacrament greater prominence thereby increasing the devotional aspect. Moreover, in as much as an emphasis of the ‘action’ of the Mass as the repetition of the “Lord’s Supper” was promoted by the Council, it seemed to liturgists that the location of the tabernacle in the main sanctuary behind the free standing Eucharist table would compete with the ‘action’ of the Mass as a sacred meal.

The most recent prescriptions in the United States provide that the tabernacle be located in the main sanctuary on suitably ornate pedestal. It is ironic that in the major basilicas including the basilica of St. Peter in Rome, the tabernacle is located on a side altar that is not very prominent.

Whatever the location, it should not be a bone of contention worthy of a liturgical battle. The public and private devotion to the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist is rooted in the long tradition of the Church and should not be disparaged. In the same way in which the tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments was symbolic of God’s presence in the temple, so too, the reservation of the Eucharist Bread has been one of the longest-standing practices of the devotional life of Catholics. It is intended to extend the meaning and the effects of the Eucharistic celebration into the life of the faithful who continue to spend time in prayerful meditation on the mysteries of the life of Jesus not the least of which is his faithfulness unto death on the cross for the salvation of the world. The two aspects of Eucharist need not be in competition. The ‘Mass’ continues to be considered a “sacrificial” meal. But we need to be clear that its connection with the passion and death of Christ even as the lamb of God is not to suggest that his death was mandated to satisfy and angry God. That in my opinion is not an appropriate application of Old Testament sacrifices. No, Jesus sacrificial death was the completion of his entire sacrificial life of unqualified and indiscriminate love in the same way as the sacrificial love of partners in marriage offer their sacrificial love to one another or in the manner that Mother Teresa offered her live in sacrificial service to victims of poverty in the streets of Calctta. It is in this sense that devotion to the Eucharist in the tabernacle takes its extended meaning.

During the celebration of the Eucharist, we become what we eat. Through our devotion to the Eucharist reserved in the tabernacle, we are reminded that the Eucharistic presence in our mind, heart and soul extends into all the good works of our lives with the hope that we too will always think and act with the same sacrificial love as did Jesus in his earthly life.

Fourth Sunday of Easter 'C'

Sunday April 25, 2010

Where are the shepherds?

Everyone loves the image of the shepherd. Ask your neighbors, “What is your favorite psalm?” I expect that nine out of ten will respond, “The Shepherd Psalm, Psalm 22 or 23, depending on what version of the Bible you read.” It’s an image but one that has endeared itself to the hearts of believers and endured for over two millennia.

And yet, if an authentic shepherd were to come into this assembly from the biblical sheep fields, we would politely distance ourselves one by one from the pungent odor that can overpower even the most fragrant scent of perfume, cologne or room deodorant.

And what if the shepherd decided to bring the sheep from the pasture into our gathering space to protect them from a wandering wolf or fox? If the odor of the shepherd was rank, your sense of smell is in for a real challenge. The fragrance of the sheep would clear the pews if not the neighborhood for sure!

Shepherds of biblical vintage were dirty, smelly and uneducated but they enjoyed a unique relationship with their sheep and a keen instinct for their needs. They knew their sheep and their sheep knew them. And yes, they would leave the herd in search of the lost sheep, even risking their lives for them. But you know all that.

I reckon that the author of the Book of Revelation had something in mind when in the seventh chapter of his apocalyptic book he described Jesus as the lamb that gave his life for the life of the world—for people of every nation, race and rank; people who will never hunger or thirst anymore because the Lamb will be the shepherd leading them to springs of life-giving water and God will wipe every tear from their eyes. In essence Jesus was the shepherd who became the sacrificial lamb – a sacrifice of love manifested in his faithfulness to goodness and Godness.

This is a beautiful metaphor for the universal love of God so beautifully epitomized in the humanity of the Christ. This is the image of the Christ that animated Peter and Paul and Barnabas and Mary and Priscilla and Phoebe and so many others in that early post-resurrection community in Jerusalem. They were filled with the joy of the Spirit and became apostles of light to the gentiles as well as to the Jews to the ends of the then known earth.

Of course we in the twenty-first century need to move beyond the allegories and metaphors to the reality of the true shepherd that in many ways our church institution has abandoned. In recent years in the wake of scandal our bishops have abdicated their shepherding role to attorneys who have constructed barricades of words and legal defenses to keep the sheep away and the wounded at bay.

In an age of rapid cultural decline that has even had a negative impact on Church life, our bishops and we pastors need to become shepherds after the heart of Christ rather than CEOs and middle managers of a large corporate franchise.

I mean no disrespect to CEOs many of whom are shepherds in their own right. Alluding to reforms taking place in a major corporation a friend in the corporate world had this to say: “Do you know what some of the goals were in the total reorganization of the company? Honesty, integrity, and ethical behavior were at the top of the list!” Indeed, in many ways, the corporate world is raising the standard beyond that of church leadership.

One of our primary responsibilities as pastors within the community of faith is to know our people and recognize their call. Already baptized into the priesthood of Christ, they are people whose talents and charisms make them suitable ‘partners’ in mission of the Church.

This is nothing more or less than enabling all the baptized to live their priestly vocation in the world. Through their liturgy of service – at home, at work and yes, even at recreation, men and women of every rank are carrying on the work of the church. In fact, women are carrying much of workload in the Church! Why not as ordained ministers?

Questions have been raised in various quarters about whether or not the priesthood is incompatible with other vocations such as marriage or put another way, whether the demands of marriage preclude the possibility that a married man or woman might not also be able to live out the vocation of a priest. It’s a very good question that deserves a frank and open discussion within the Church at every level. I believe the Holy Spirit is challenging us to think out of the box!

I believe that the Holy Spirit is indeed asking us to consider the possibility that married men and women are being called to ancient biblical ministries including the presbyterate not just to solve a vocation crisis but more so to challenge the closed clerical system that continues to dominate and in some respects, decimate Church life. The clerical system is broken. Indeed, there is a cancer in the clerical system that is affecting the inner life of the Church and every level of church life and it is not going to disappear until all the baptized get serious about our own priestly role as shepherds.

The people of Assumption Parish are blessed with a good shepherd pastor and there are many others but not every parish is so blessed.

The story is told about the gifted pastor who could recite with great eloquence, Psalm 22, ‘The Shepherd’s Psalm.’ On a particular occasion, a parishioner asked him to recite the psalm after his homily. He declined the invitation and then looked out into the congregation and pointed to an elderly woman seated in the last pew. He said, “There is the one who should recite the psalm. Indeed, I know the psalm but she knows the shepherd!”

And what a difference it makes.

We need to reinforce what is of God in the Church institution and what is not of God. We need to divest ourselves of whatever distorts what Christ implanted in the hearts of the apostles and disciples at Pentecost.

We are the Church, a people of God who recognize the true shepherd who speaks the loudest in our hearts. We must heed his voice and follow his lead into safe pastures. Only then can we be sure that our Church not only survive but flourish in the days ahead.