20150122 THE IDEAL PRIEST OF GOD
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Hebrews 7:25-8:6
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The power of Jesus to
save is utterly certain, since he is living for ever to intercede for all who
come to God through him.
To suit
us, the ideal high priest would have to be holy, innocent and uncontaminated,
beyond the influence of sinners, and raised up above the heavens; one who would
not need to offer sacrifices every day, as the other high priests do for their
own sins and then for those of the people, because he has done this once and
for all by offering himself. The Law appoints high priests who are men subject
to weakness; but the promise on oath, which came after the Law, appointed the
Son who is made perfect for ever.
The great
point of all that we have said is that we have a high priest of exactly this
kind. He has his place at the right of the throne of divine Majesty in the
heavens, and he is the minister of the sanctuary and of the true Tent of
Meeting which the Lord, and not any man, set up. It is the duty of every high
priest to offer gifts and sacrifices, and so this one too must have something
to offer. In fact, if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since
there are others who make the offerings laid down by the Law and these only
maintain the service of a model or a reflection of the heavenly realities. For
Moses, when he had the Tent to build, was warned by God who said: See that
you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.
We have
seen that he has been given a ministry of a far higher order, and to the same
degree it is a better covenant of which he is the mediator, founded on better
promises.
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Psalm
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Psalm 39:7-10,17
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Here I am, Lord! I
come to do your will.
You do not ask for
sacrifice and offerings,
but an
open ear.
You do not ask for
holocaust and victim.
Instead,
here am I.
Here I am, Lord! I
come to do your will.
In the scroll of the
book it stands written
that I
should do your will.
My God, I delight in
your law
in the
depth of my heart.
Here I am, Lord! I
come to do your will.
Your justice I have
proclaimed
in the
great assembly.
My lips I have not
sealed;
you know
it, O Lord.
Here I am, Lord! I
come to do your will.
O let there be
rejoicing and gladness
for all
who seek you.
Let them ever say:
‘The Lord is great’,
who love
your saving help.
Here I am, Lord! I
come to do your will.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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cf.Jn6:63,68
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your words are
spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message
of eternal life.
Alleluia!
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Or
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cf.2Tim1:10
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Our Saviour Jesus
Christ abolished death
and he has proclaimed
life through the Good News.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 3:7-12 ©
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Jesus
withdrew with his disciples to the lakeside, and great crowds from Galilee
followed him. From Judaea, Jerusalem, Idumaea, Transjordania and the region of
Tyre and Sidon, great numbers who had heard of all he was doing came to him.
And he asked his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd,
to keep him from being crushed. For he had cured so many that all who were
afflicted in any way were crowding forward to touch him. And the unclean
spirits, whenever they saw him, would fall down before him and shout, ‘You are
the Son of God!’ But he warned them strongly not to make him known.
THE
IDEAL PRIEST OF GOD
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: HEB 7:25-8:6; MK 3:7-12
The
scripture readings today give us a few pointers on what an ideal common or
ministerial priest of God should be if we want to be of real saving grace
to others who come to us in search of God.
Firstly, the scripture
makes it clear that a priest is one who is a bridge to God. He brings people to God. A
priest is a mediator. This is an important point to remember. For
very often, there is a tendency for us to bring people to us rather than to
God. This is especially so if we are very charismatic in our
ministry. The reality is that just like the people during the time of
Jesus, people are easily attracted to us when they find us able to offer them
what they are looking for, be it wisdom, knowledge or healing.
Indeed, this was the same
situation of Jesus. The gospel tells us that He withdrew with His disciples
to the lakeside because great crowds were following Him. They had heard
all that He was doing and so they turned to Him, hoping that He would also cure
them of their sicknesses. He was careful that people did not come to
Him just to seek healing for their illnesses. What is even more
important was that through His miracles, they would come to know that God loves
them and that He was the personal presence of the Father in His compassion and
mercy. He wanted them to realize that His healing miracles were the works
of God, operational through Him. He silenced the unclean spirits who
tried to expose His identity, for that would prevent people from coming to
discover Him by themselves. This explains why when the unclean spirits saw Him
and “fall down before him and shout, ‘You are the Son of God!’”, He warned them
strongly not to make Him known. This was to prevent Him from being
perceived as a miracle worker or having people submit to Him out of fear, not
out of love. He came as a lowly servant of God, not in a triumphant
manner, so that they would come to appreciate God’s solidarity with them,
stooping down so low, speaking much about His self-emptying love. Jesus would
not allow them to make Him into a hero. As His unworthy priests, we too
must be conscious that we are representatives of God and we hope that by our
good works, people will come to discover the power of God at work through us as
His instruments.
Secondly, a priest of
God must be holy, innocent and uncontaminated. That is to say, as
priests, we are called to transcend the negative influence of others. In our
desperation for popularity and acceptance, we might allow ourselves to be won
over by those who flatter us with their compliments. And even if they are
genuinely giving us positive feedback, we can get carried away by such
affirmation and think too highly of ourselves, failing to realize that we are
still vulnerable to the temptations of the Evil One, especially when we allow
our position in Church or in society to lead us to think of material
benefits. There are times too, instead of looking at the hearts of people
whom we serve; we can be easily influenced by their kindness, their talents,
their wealth and status or by their praises, causing us to practice
favouritism. Sometimes, we can even work hard and show ourselves to be
righteous, upright and pious to earn the acceptance and reputation of others.
Here again, we find Jesus
as a man who is centered, clear-sighted and level-headed. Jesus knew
Himself and His mission and would not be swayed by public opinion. He did
not perform good works or accepted recognition for His good works unless it
helped in the proclamation of the Kingdom. The easiest thing for Jesus to
do to win adherents and followers would have been to allow the unclean spirits
to reveal His identity. But Jesus knew that such confessions would bring
about quick appeal without a real understanding or inner conviction of who He
was. He did not come to impress people like some miracle workers or magicians
do. He was not interested in putting up a spectacular show for people to
sensationalize or to win fans. Nay, all He wanted to do was to let them
know that He cared for them and that He came to save them from their brokenness
and misery, for that is how God loves them. Truly, Jesus is that ideal high
priest who is “holy, innocent and uncontaminated, beyond the influence of
sinners.”
Thirdly, an ideal priest
of God is one who does the will of God and not His own. Moses was a worthy
priest because he obeyed God. “For Moses, when he had the Tent to build,
was warned by God who said: See that you make everything according to the
pattern shown you on the mountain.” The responsorial psalm says, “Here
am I, Lord; I come to do your will. Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me. Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you
sought not; then said I, “Behold I come.” In the written scroll it is
prescribed for me, To do your will, O my God, is my delight, and your law is
within my heart!” These words apply to Jesus absolutely, for He came not
to offer sacrifices but to do His Father’s will. He did not have other
agenda on earth except that of His Father. He came for the love of His
Father and for us all.
Fourthly, the true
priest is not one who offers sacrifices that are extraneous to him, but when he
chooses to become both the victim and the priest. Jesus is a high priest of a
better covenant because He Himself is the sacrifice to God. He has been “raised
up above the heavens; one who would not need to offer sacrifices every day, as
the other high priest do for their own sins and then for those of the people,
because he has done this once and for all by offering himself.” Jesus is
a true reflection of ultimate surrender to God. Being a priest is to take
the place of the wounded and the sinners. It requires that we take upon
the sufferings, pain and sins of our fellowmen so that we could in their place
intercede on their behalf with fervour and devotion. It is not enough to
make sacrifices or offer the sacrifices of the mass and our prayers for others;
we must make personal sacrifices for them by being identified with them.
Finally, a priest must
be a minister of the sanctuary. In other words, if a priest were to
remain untouched and uncontaminated by those whom He ministers to, He has to
transcend them by being in touch with God. As priests, the more we
surrender ourselves, the more we will be able to find ourselves and be priests
who work more and more for the glory of God and less for ourselves. Let
us remember that the foundation of priestly service is prayer and worship
because it helps us to identify with the heart of God and the sufferings of
humanity. Without a real union with God, we cannot represent Him in the world
and we cannot represent men to God.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV
WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP
OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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