LEADERSHIP FROM THE CROSS

20161120 LEADERSHIP FROM THE CROSS

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: White.

First reading

2 Samuel 5:1-3 ©

All the tribes of Israel then came to David at Hebron. ‘Look’ they said ‘we are your own flesh and blood. In days past when Saul was our king, it was you who led Israel in all their exploits; and the Lord said to you, “You are the man who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you shall be the leader of Israel.”’ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a pact with them at Hebron in the presence of the Lord, and they anointed David king of Israel.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 121(122):1-5 ©

I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’

I rejoiced when I heard them say:

  ‘Let us go to God’s house.’

And now our feet are standing

  within your gates, O Jerusalem.

I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’

Jerusalem is built as a city

  strongly compact.

It is there that the tribes go up,

  the tribes of the Lord.

I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’

For Israel’s law it is,

  there to praise the Lord’s name.

There were set the thrones of judgement

  of the house of David.

I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’

Second reading

Colossians 1:12-20 ©

We give thanks to the Father who has made it possible for you to join the saints and with them to inherit the light.

  Because that is what he has done: he has taken us out of the power of darkness and created a place for us in the kingdom of the Son that he loves, and in him, we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our sins.

He is the image of the unseen God

and the first-born of all creation,

for in him were created

all things in heaven and on earth:

everything visible and everything invisible,

Thrones, Dominations, Sovereignties, Powers –

all things were created through him and for him.

Before anything was created, he existed,

and he holds all things in unity.

Now the Church is his body,

he is its head.

As he is the Beginning,

he was first to be born from the dead,

so that he should be first in every way;

because God wanted all perfection

to be found in him

and all things to be reconciled through him and for him,

everything in heaven and everything on earth,

when he made peace

by his death on the cross.

Gospel Acclamation

Mk11:10

Alleluia, alleluia!

Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord!

Blessings on the coming kingdom of our father David!

Alleluia!

Gospel

Luke 23:35-43 ©

The people stayed there before the cross watching Jesus. As for the leaders, they jeered at him. ‘He saved others,’ they said ‘let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.’ The soldiers mocked him too, and when they approached to offer vinegar they said, ‘If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.’ Above him there was an inscription: ‘This is the King of the Jews.’

  One of the criminals hanging there abused him. ‘Are you not the Christ?’ he said. ‘Save yourself and us as well.’ But the other spoke up and rebuked him. ‘Have you no fear of God at all?’ he said. ‘You got the same sentence as he did, but in our case we deserved it: we are paying for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong. Jesus,’ he said ‘remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ ‘Indeed, I promise you,’ he replied ‘today you will be with me in paradise.’

LEADERSHIP FROM THE CROSS

SCRIPTURE READINGS: [  2 Sam 5:1-3; Ps 121:1-5; Col 1:11-20; Lk 23:35-43   ]

Many of us aspire to be leaders.  We compete with others for leadership, whether it is in politics, religion or in the corporate world.   But how many of us really understand the implications and responsibilities of leadership?  We all tend to think of the honours, privileges and glory but fail to reckon the cost and sacrifices a leader has to make.  Having attained the power of leadership, what is more important is to be a good leader.   Who, then, is a true leader?

In the olden days, the King was not just a ceremonial figure but he had to exercise real leadership, not just in governance but he was the one who led the army in important military expeditions.  He was a ruler but also a military warrior.  Consequently, he proved his worth by walking the talk, leading the people and showing the way.  The king was one who showed himself to be the protector of his people.  He guided the people and showed them the way to success and progress.  He ensured that his people had enough to eat and that they all lived in harmony.  For this reason, the kings in those days were highly respected and given absolute authority, not simply because they were kings but because of their personal authority.

Drawing from this analogy, a leader today must lead in all ways.  He must be a leader who not just shows the way but walks the way.  This is the greatest authority of a leader.  His authority cannot simply come from his election or office, but to gain the respect of others he is required to lead through personal example.  Indeed, his personal authority is more important than his juridical authority.  This was the case of the ancient kings and lords.  If they served the people well and led by example, as in the case of King David, the country progressed.  Those kings who failed to live moral lives and lives of integrity eventually not just weakened the state but also lost their moral authority to rule over the people.

In the second reading, St Paul shows us how Jesus was a leader in life and in death. Indeed, “He was first to be born from the dead, so that he should be first in every way; because God wanted all perfection to be found in him.” Christ, having perfected Himself in his humanity through His self-sacrificing love and service, is the model leader for how we should live our lives.

A leader’s primary task is to be a source of unity for all his people.  St Paul wrote, “Before anything was created, he existed, and he holds all things in unity. Now the Church is his body, he is its head … and all things to be reconciled through him and for him, everything in heaven and everything on earth.”  A leader must seek to bring the different factions and diverse groups of peoples with different cultures, languages, preferences, needs, aspirations and views together.  He advocates sensitivity, mutual respect, collaboration and, most of all, ensures that justice is served to all without exception, the weak and the strong, the rich and the poor impartially.

A leader is a minister or a servant, whether in political or religious terms.  He makes himself small, since a leader is a servant of his people.  All leadership is servant leadership.  As servants, we put ourselves last and always put the welfare and the well-being of our people before our own.  Leadership is not about ourselves, but always about our people.  Only when we understand this fundamental principle, can we aspire to leadership. We become leaders not to fulfill our egoistic needs or to have a better life, to get honour or recognition and position or to control people.  We seek leadership only because we think we can make a difference in the lives of others.  

To perform this task of true leadership calls for leadership from the cross.  It is significant that in today’s gospel, those watching the Lord on the cross said to him, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” Repeatedly, they challenged Jesus, “Save yourself!”  This is rather ironical and paradoxical.  In the eyes of the world, a leader saves himself first.  He is always protected from his enemies.  He has security guards surrounding him all the time to ensure that his potential assassins do not harm him.  Thus, they said to Jesus, “Save yourself!”

If Christ is our king, He must therefore reign from the Cross.  His cross was His throne.  This is what St John says, “And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” (Jn 3:14f)  It is also very significant and appropriate, though ironical, that the enemies who hung the crime on the top of the cross proclaimed Him as the King of the Jews.  Indeed, Christ showed Himself to be the true leader because He gave up His life for us. Such is the meaning of leadership.  To be a leader is to give up one’s life for the greater good of others.  Like the Good Shepherd who gave up His life for His sheep, a good leader is one who gives up his life, his convenience, his freedom, his privacy, his time, his pleasures and his personal needs; he dies to himself.  In dying, he lives because he would then have fulfilled his role as a leader.

To reign from the cross is to be with Jesus and Mary at the cross and on the cross.  We are not to ask Jesus to come down from the cross but instead to stay with Him on the cross.  It is a life of crucifixion because being in leadership is not just about service.  As leaders we will often be misunderstood and wrongly accused of many things.  Many will not agree with us and say all kinds of things that are untrue or, worse still, communicate half-truths to the people and cause them to be divided and lose respect for us.

To reign from the cross means that in spite of unjust and innocent sufferings, like Jesus on the cross, a leader must be forgiving and pray for his enemies without taking revenge.  He needs to show generosity and magnanimity in forgiving those who hurt him and seek to destroy him. With Jesus on the cross, we pray for our enemies and say, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk 23:24)  This is what leadership from the cross is all about, a compassionate, forgiving and selfless leadership.  It is about being crucified with the Lord in the act of service.

To reign from the cross then means that we must be ready to allow Christ to reign in our lives.  All Christian leaders must allow Christ to be their leader before they can lead others.  Whilst all the others rejected Christ as their king, it is ironical that the Good Thief acknowledged Jesus as the King.  He said, “’Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ ‘Indeed, I promise you,’ he replied, ‘today you will be with me in paradise.” This man was asking Jesus to bring Him into the kingdom when He dies.  But Jesus told him that at this moment he was already with Him in paradise.  In other words, when we are with Jesus and He is reigning in our hearts, at any point of time, we are already in the kingdom of Christ.  We do not need to wait for the end of time.  To live in Jesus is to live in His kingdom.

To reign from the cross, means that we allow God to rule in us.  Instead of using our human strength and logic, we rely on God’s wisdom.   Whilst David came to power because of his military might, the Lord reigned in weakness on the cross.  It was the power of weakness against all logic of the world. We trust that humility, selfless service, compassion and forgiveness will be more powerful than might, power, domination and strength.  Christian leadership relies on the paschal faith, entrusting ourselves to Him on the cross, especially in times of helplessness.  We do not ask the Lord to take away our cross just as we do not ask Jesus to come down from the cross.  But through obedience to the cross unto death, we will share in the triumph of the resurrection.

Finally, to reign from the cross, means to take confidence in Jesus who promised to be with us and pray for us.  We must not think that we can save Jesus and the Church by our own strength.  That was what St Peter thought. He tried to save Jesus from death after His prophecy of His imminent passion.  Like him, we cannot tolerate the weakness and helplessness of a leader.  The conversion of Peter was complete when he gave up trying to “save” Jesus and instead allowed Himself to be saved by Him.  So let us take heart in our Lord’s promise to be with us when He told St Peter, “But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” (Lk 22:32)  In truth, only in our weakness as leaders, do we know that we cannot do it with our strength but only in the power of the Spirit.  The Lord assured St Paul as He assured St Peter, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” (1 Cor 12:9a)  Hence, St Paul wrote, “So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” (2 Cor 12:9b)  Again, he wrote, “So then, we are weak, as he was, but we shall live with him, through the power of God, for your benefit.”  (2 Cor 13:4)

Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved