20180113
CHOOSING SPIRITUAL LEADERS
13 JANUARY, 2018, Saturday, 1st Week, Ordinary Time
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
|
First reading
|
|
1 Samuel 9:1-4,17-19,10:1 ©
|
Among the men of Benjamin there was a man named Kish son of Abiel,
son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah; a Benjaminite and a man of rank.
He had a son named Saul, a handsome man in the prime of life. Of all the
Israelites there was no one more handsome than he; he stood head and shoulders
taller than the rest of the people. Now some of the she-donkeys of Saul’s
father Kish had strayed, so Kish said to Saul, ‘My son, take one of the
servants with you and be off; go and look for the she-donkeys.’ They passed
through the highlands of Ephraim and passed through the land of Shalishah, but
did not find them; they passed through the land of Shaalim, they were not
there; they passed through the land of Benjamin, but did not find them.
When Samuel
saw Saul, the Lord told him, ‘That is the man of whom I told you; he shall rule
my people.’ Saul accosted Samuel in the gateway and said, ‘Tell me, please,
where the seer’s house is?’ Samuel replied to Saul, ‘I am the seer. Go up ahead
of me to the high place. You are to eat with me today. In the morning I shall
take leave of you and tell you all that is in your heart.
Samuel took
a phial of oil and poured it on Saul’s head; then he kissed him, saying, ‘Has
not the Lord anointed you prince over his people Israel? You are the man who
must rule the Lord’s people, and who must save them from the power of the
enemies surrounding them.’
|
Responsorial Psalm
|
|
Psalm 20(21):2-7 ©
|
O Lord, your strength gives joy to the king.
O Lord, your strength gives joy to the king;
how your saving help makes him glad!
You have granted him his heart’s desire;
you have not refused the prayer of his lips.
O Lord, your strength gives joy to the king.
You came to meet him with the blessings of success,
you have set on his head a crown of pure gold.
He asked you for life and this you have given,
days that will last from age to age.
O Lord, your strength gives joy to the king.
Your saving help has given him glory.
You have laid upon him majesty and splendour,
you have granted your blessings to him forever.
You have made him rejoice with the joy of your presence.
O Lord, your strength gives joy to the king.
|
Gospel Acclamation
|
Ps118:36,29
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Bend my heart to your will, O Lord,
and teach me your law.
Alleluia!
|
Or
|
Lk4:17
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
The Lord has sent me to bring the good news to the poor,
to proclaim liberty to captives.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
Mark 2:13-17 ©
|
Jesus went out to the shore of the lake; and all the people came
to him, and he taught them. As he was walking on he saw Levi the son of
Alphaeus, sitting by the customs house, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he
got up and followed him.
When Jesus was
at dinner in his house, a number of tax collectors and sinners were also
sitting at the table with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many of them
among his followers. When the scribes of the Pharisee party saw him eating with
sinners and tax collectors, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with
tax collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard this he said to them, ‘It is not
the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. I did not come to call the
virtuous, but sinners.’
CHOOSING SPIRITUAL LEADERS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 SM 9:1-4,17-19, 10:1; MK 2:13-17
]
How successful
or how great a nation or an organization is, is very much dependent on the
quality of its leaders. On one hand, with a sophisticated and educated
people, it would seem that choosing leaders should not be a problem. Yet,
regardless how intelligent, brilliant and eloquent someone can be, he might not
be the best person to be a leader. Indeed, we tend to look on the
external qualities when choosing leaders. This was the case in the
selection of Saul as the first King of Israel. We are told that he was
not only handsome but “he stood head and shoulders taller than the rest of the
people.” He must have been a capable young man and admired by many. He
therefore seemed the most appropriate candidate for leadership.
However, history
shows that although Saul had every talent and skill needed to manage the
country and be a good leader; he lacked the right motivation and the
interior qualities of leadership. He was proud and independent of
others and most of all, of God. Instead of consulting God and listening
to His commands and walking in His laws, he took matters into his own hands,
relying only on his ingenuity and skills rather than the wisdom and guidance of
God. As a consequence, he brought paganism into the country and his
strength was on horses and military might. He was insecure as a king and
because of his jealousy and fear, would even destroy and eliminate those whom
he felt were a threat to his kingship. He was particularly weary and
paranoid with David who seemed more popular and capable than him, in spite of
his absolute loyalty to him. He was vindictive and insincere even towards
those who supported him. As a consequence, he brought disaster upon
himself and his country.
This does not
mean that the choice of Saul as king was wrong. The crux of the
failure lay in Saul himself. He did not make use of the talents that
God gave him for the good of the people and for the service of God.
Instead, he used his talents, position and abilities for himself, his vested
interests. If he had made use of his resources wisely, he would certainly
have been a great king. This explains why God chose Saul to be the king
of Israel. It was not because God chose the wrong person but because he
failed to exercise the gifts God gave him wisely and selflessly.
Indeed, it would
be a mistake to think that God always chooses the uneducated, those
without talents and skills to fulfill His work on earth. Grace does
not destroy nature but perfects nature. So we cannot imagine, as some do,
that God will work miracles in those who are not endowed with talents,
especially intellectual and leadership skills, so that they could be
outstanding leaders. It is a naïve belief of some Catholics to think that
if they send those who cannot study or who are failures in life to join the
priesthood, God will take care of the rest. It would be disastrous for
the people of God to have people without the necessary pre-requisites in
intellectual and emotional capacity to become religious leaders. On the
contrary, God would choose those who already have been blessed with leadership
qualities to be His leaders.
However, the
real challenge of choosing leaders is not simply spotting those who obviously
qualify because of their leadership qualities, but those unlikely ones whose
talents are hidden or unknown to them and to us. This is where a good
leader is able to read beyond the externals and recognize the potential that
lies behind such a person, even though, apparently, he or she seems to be a most
unlikely candidate for discipleship, much less for leadership. This is
precisely the case in the selection of Levi or Matthew.
Jesus shows
His foresight and keen observation of people in His choice of St Matthew as His disciple and
leader. Matthew was the most unlikely of all choices because he was a
traitor of the Jews by virtue of his work as a tax collector for the Roman
Empire. He was an outcast, a cheat and most despised by his fellow
Jews. Yet, of all peoples, Jesus chose him to be His disciple and later,
as His apostle. In the eyes of man, it was a wrong choice. In the
eyes of the righteous Jewish leaders, Jesus must be blind. They grumbled
when He visited Matthew’s house to eat and drink with him and his
friends. The scribes of the Pharisee party said to Jesus’ disciples, “Why
does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” What does Jesus want to
tell us and teach us with regard to choosing people to be on our team and even
making them into future leaders?
Firstly, Jesus
saw not the current Matthew, but what he could become in the future.
Jesus does not look at our past but always the future. That is why He
told the self-righteous Jewish leaders, “It is not the healthy who need the
doctor, but the sick. I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners.” Jesus
demonstrated confidence in him. Jesus was able to recognize the goodness
in Matthew. He could see the hidden qualities in him whilst not being
blind to his human frailties. He knew that Matthew was sick and needed a
divine physician, yet that did not rule out the goodness in him. Jesus
could see the saint in the sinner, the disciple in the lost, the leader in the
one who used his skills selfishly. It takes one with a keen eye to
see the real and hidden potential of someone who is condemned and despised by
the world.
Secondly, He
won over him by loving and being connected with him. St Matthew must have
felt Jesus’ genuine interest and concern over his welfare and happiness.
Perhaps, it was for this reason that Matthew was willing to give up his
lucrative business as a tax collector. Jesus could not offer him much in
terms of wealth and power and status. On the contrary, he knew that he
would have had to live simply and even be persecuted by following Jesus.
He too would have had to sacrifice his comfort and security for Him. But
he recognized that love and union with God and true friendship with Him was
worth all the security of the world.
To know whom
we should appoint as leaders, we must first get to know them as fellow collaborators,
then as friends. We need to see how they live, what they think, how they
relate with their family members, their friends, so that we know their true
character. Leadership is more than just having the required skills but we
need one who has character, which is revealed in a life of integrity,
compassion, responsibility, fidelity and honesty. Leaders without good
character will only serve themselves and bring harm to the people whom they are
supposedly to serve. Unfortunately, most of the time, we are only
concerned about their resume, qualifications and performance, without taking
into account their personal lifestyle and character. In fact,
character is what will determine whether a person with talents will be
committed to the service of the people. One can be talented, but driven
by ambition to fulfill his or her craze for glory, honour and power. Such
a person appointed to a position of authority can eventually become a dictator.
Thirdly, we
need to help those with hidden talents and potentials to come to realize their
endowed gifts. Very often, people do not believe in themselves
because their talents are not acknowledged. Jesus is an exemplar of a
good leader and mentor who patiently groomed His apostles, helping them to
recognize their weaknesses and at the same time, their inner strengths and
skills. Through constant interaction with our people, eating, drinking
and working with them, we, too, will be able to cultivate a true understanding
of their character and bring out their hidden potentials. Without recognizing
the goodness in people, we will never find any leaders, as no one is without
imperfections and weaknesses. There is no such thing as a perfect leader,
as no one is born perfect!
Most of all, the
leader we should choose is one who is connected with God and love God above all
things. Unless a leader fears God and relies on Him, he will only
seek the wisdom of the world in dealing with problems. If he does not
serve God, he will not be capable of serving man, but only himself. That
is why it is important that we choose a leader who is prayerful, humble and
respectful of God so that he would never rely on his own strength but in God
alone.
All of us are
called in some ways. We might think we are not worthy of leadership because we
are not so capable or we might think we make great leaders because we are so
gifted in many ways. What is important for us is not what we choose to do
for God but rather, we must in all humility and sincerity search and discern
for ourselves what God really wishes for us to do. When God calls us, He
qualifies each one of us. He knows what we can do and what we can
accomplish if we surrender our lives to Him. So, when we are called for
leadership, not because of our desire but because of God’s desire, we can be
sure that God will see us through, and supply what is lacking in us.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment