THE BASIS FOR EXERCISING AUTHORITY WITH CONFIDENCE

20150804 THE BASIS FOR EXERCISING AUTHORITY WITH CONFIDENCE

Readings at Mass

First reading

Numbers 12:1-13 ©

Miriam, and Aaron too, spoke against Moses in connexion with the Cushite woman he had taken. (For he had married a Cushite woman.) They said, ‘Has the Lord spoken to Moses only? Has he not spoken to us too?’

  The Lord heard this. Now Moses was the most humble of men, the humblest man on earth. Suddenly, the Lord said to Moses and Aaron and Miriam, ‘Come, all three of you, to the Tent of Meeting.’ They went, all three of them, and the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the Tent. He called Aaron and Miriam and they both came forward. The Lord said, ‘Listen now to my words: If any man among you is a prophet I make myself known to him in a vision, I speak to him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses: he is at home in my house; I speak with him face to face, plainly and not in riddles, and he sees the form of the Lord. How then have you dared to speak against my servant Moses?’

  The anger of the Lord blazed out against them. He departed, and as soon as the cloud withdrew from the Tent, there was Miriam a leper, white as snow! Aaron turned to look at her; she had become a leper.

  Aaron said to Moses: ‘Help me, my lord! Do not punish us for a sin committed in folly of which we are guilty. I entreat you, do not let her be like a monster, coming from its mother’s womb with flesh half corrupted.’

  Moses cried to the Lord, ‘O God,’ he said ‘please heal her, I beg you!’

Psalm

Psalm 50:3-7,12-13 ©

Have mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.

Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness.

  In your compassion blot out my offence.

O wash me more and more from my guilt

  and cleanse me from my sin.

Have mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.

My offences truly I know them;

  my sin is always before me

Against you, you alone, have I sinned;

  what is evil in your sight I have done.

Have mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.

That you may be justified when you give sentence

  and be without reproach when you judge,

O see, in guilt I was born,

  a sinner was I conceived.

Have mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.

A pure heart create for me, O God,

  put a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me away from your presence,

  nor deprive me of your holy spirit.

Have mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.

Gospel Acclamation

Jn8:12

Alleluia, alleluia!

I am the light of the world, says the Lord;

anyone who follows me will have the light of life.

Alleluia!

Or

Jn1:49

Alleluia, alleluia!

Rabbi, you are the Son of God,

you are the King of Israel.

Alleluia!

Gospel

Matthew 14:22-36 ©

When Jesus received the news of John the Baptist’s death, he made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side while he would send the crowds away. After sending the crowds away he went up into the hills by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, while the boat, by now far out on the lake, was battling with a heavy sea, for there was a head-wind. In the fourth watch of the night he went towards them, walking on the lake, and when the disciples saw him walking on the lake they were terrified. ‘It is a ghost’ they said, and cried out in fear. But at once Jesus called out to them, saying, ‘Courage! It is I! Do not be afraid.’ It was Peter who answered. ‘Lord,’ he said ‘if it is you, tell me to come to you across the water.’ ‘Come’ said Jesus. Then Peter got out of the boat and started walking towards Jesus across the water, but as soon as he felt the force of the wind, he took fright and began to sink. ‘Lord! Save me!’ he cried. Jesus put out his hand at once and held him. ‘Man of little faith,’ he said ‘why did you doubt?’ And as they got into the boat the wind dropped. The men in the boat bowed down before him and said, ‘Truly, you are the Son of God.’

  Having made the crossing, they came to land at Gennesaret. When the local people recognised him they spread the news through the whole neighbourhood and took all that were sick to him, begging him just to let them touch the fringe of his cloak. And all those who touched it were completely cured.

THE BASIS FOR EXERCISING AUTHORITY WITH CONFIDENCE

SCRIPTURE READINGS: NUM 12:1-13; MT 14:22-36

We know very well that leaders are not perfect.  The decisions that we make will not always please those people that we serve.  Of course, there are times when we will make sincere mistakes.  Even in such situations, we tend to receive harsh criticisms.   This was true of Moses as well.  In spite of his greatness, it seems that Moses made a decision that was displeasing and unacceptable to some members of his community, represented by Aaron and Miriam.  Scholars are not very clear as to why Aaron and Miriam spoke against him.  Perhaps, it was because he divorced his first wife or took a woman from among the Cushites not accepted by the community.

Voicing our unhappiness with the decisions of our superiors in itself is not wrong.  However, when our criticisms are no longer constructive but become personal attacks on their personal integrity and even at their office and authority, then such reactions can no longer be justified.  This could imply that we are no longer objective, and our dissent could spring from jealousy, personal interests or lack of knowledge.  This precisely was the real mistake committed by Miriam and Aaron. They became vicious in their opposition against Moses and said things against him in a disparaging manner, “Has the Lord spoken to Moses only? Has he not spoken to us too?”  Passing this remark was tantamount to challenging the appointment of Moses by God as the leader of the community and even doubting the wisdom and sovereignty of God’s choice.

So the Lord called three of them to the Tent of Meeting.  But it was not meant to be a meeting to discuss the problem.  Rather, it was a meeting to reprimand and punish Miriam and Aaron. God said, “How then have you dared to speak against my servant Moses? The anger of the Lord blazed out against them.  He departed, and as soon as the cloud withdrew from the Tent, there was Miriam a leper, white as snow!”  Ironically, instead of isolating Moses from the rest of the people, the Lord punished Miriam with leprosy.  In rejecting His appointed leader, they had also rejected the authority of God in the final analysis.

What then should we do in the face of opposition to our authority?  Like St Peter who lost his self-confidence in the authority the Lord had given him to walk on the sea, in the face of the storms in our lives, quite often we, too, are shaken in the office we hold because of difficult and unpleasant criticisms.  How can we remain firm and confident, upholding the office the Lord has given to us?

Firstly, we can learn something from Moses.  We must remain calm and humble.  The first reading told us “Moses was the most humble of men, the humblest man on earth.”  To be humble does not mean that we are spineless.  Meekness is to be calm and yet firm in our dealings with people who oppose us.  It also presupposes that we are ready to admit our mistakes, to reconsider our decisions, that we could be judgmental or fail to see the whole problem.  What is significant about Moses was his silence before their charges and accusation.  He did not take things into his own hands.  He must have prayed over it but he did not react with anger and resentment.  He left it to the Lord! 

Secondly, we must pray. That was what Jesus did.  The gospel told us “after sending the crowds away he went up into the hills by himself to pray.” Jesus must have felt the need to discern and to take direction from His Father in the prospect that the people wanted to make Him king.  We, too, must pray before we make any decision.  When the work becomes difficult; when, like the disciples, we are “battling with a heavy sea” and “a head-wind”, all the more we must cling on to Jesus.  Prayer helps us to recover our identity as His appointed servants, purify our motives for service and, most of all, through the criticisms, discern His will as to whether it comes from the Lord or from the selfishness of the human heart.

Thirdly, we must realize that all legitimate authority comes from God.  The authority that we exercise is on His behalf and not for ourselves.  That was what God told Aaron and Miriam.  He said, “If any man among you is a prophet, I make myself known to him in a vision, I speak to him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses: he is at home in my house; I speak with him face to face,    plainly and not in riddles, and he sees the form of the Lord. How then have you dared to speak against my servant Moses?”  Indeed, the sin of Aaron was a misplaced disloyalty, questioning the unique position of Moses.  He was chosen by God, not by men!  This is what differentiates our appointment from the secular world.  They are chosen by popularity, credentials, qualifications, and by their fellowmen.  As such, they can be deposed from their office if they are found to be disagreeable or when they fall out of favour.  The Sacrament of Holy Orders particularly, is by divine election; not by human choice.  No one can demand to hold an office except when the community discerns it as coming from God’s choice.

Once we have these dispositions, we can then consider how we should respond to our detractors.  When we are confident that it is the Lord who bestows the authority on us, we can afford to be more forgiving and compassionate with those who do not understand our position.  We must forgive those who, in their folly, have misjudged us.  The magnanimity of Moses is seen in the prayer he interceded on behalf of Aaron and Miriam who turned against him.  “Moses cried to the Lord, ‘O God,’ he said ‘please heal her, I beg you!’”  One of the most important qualities of a leader is to forgive those who hurt him and be humble sufficiently to ask for forgiveness as well.

Secondly, as leaders, we must be people who encourage those who have failed us, especially those who have been judgmental towards us.  Jesus was sympathetic with Peter and the disciples.  When the disciples were terrified and cried out in fear, “at once Jesus called out to them, saying, ‘Courage! It is I!  Do not be afraid.’” When Peter lost faith “as soon as he felt the force of the wind…and began to sink” he cried, “Lord!  Save me!” Jesus “put out his hand at once and held him. ‘Man of little faith,’ he said ‘why did you doubt?’  And as they got into the boat the wind dropped.”  Jesus knew that they needed time to come to realization that He is truly the Son of God.  Let us be patient with our detractors and slanderers.  When God enlightens them and makes them aware of their selfishness or ignorance, they will repent and change their attitude towards us.

Finally, we must pray for those who oppose us. Just as Moses pleaded for Aaron and for Miriam, we too must leave judgment to the Lord.  Moses prayed for the one who challenged him and asked God to bless his oppressors. We can be sure that God will honor His servant in the face of challenges and troubles. By praying for our enemies, we will become less resentful, more compassionate and understanding.  If not, we might nurse grudges and hurts in our encounters with them, leading to vindictiveness and hatred.  This will make us lose all objectivity and eventually lose the moral authority to lead on behalf of God. Yes, we must pray for calmness and a detached objectivity to the decisions that we make for those under our care.

In this way, we can become fearless and compassionate leaders, serving without vested interest, conscious only that we are exercising authority on behalf of God for the good of the community.  God who appoints us for the office will ensure that He gives us the necessary graces to accomplish His task, so long as we are receptive and docile to His grace.  Like St Paul we should also pray, “I thank my God every time I remember you.  In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Phil 1:3-6)

Written by The Most Rev William Goh

Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore

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