20200311
ASPIRING
TO LEADERSHIP
11 March, 2020, Wednesday, 2nd
Week of Lent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Jeremiah 18:18-20 ©
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My enemies are digging a pit for me
‘Come on,’ they
said, ‘let us concoct a plot against Jeremiah; the priest will not run short of
instruction without him, nor the sage of advice, nor the prophet of the word.
Come on, let us hit at him with his own tongue; let us listen carefully to
every word he says.’
Listen
to me, O Lord,
hear
what my adversaries are saying.
Should
evil be returned for good?
For
they are digging a pit for me.
Remember
how I stood in your presence
to
plead on their behalf,
to
turn your wrath away from them.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 30(31):5-6,14-16 ©
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Save
me in your love, O Lord.
Release
me from the snares they have hidden
for
you are my refuge, Lord.
Into
your hands I commend my spirit.
It
is you who will redeem me, Lord.
Save
me in your love, O Lord.
I
have heard the slander of the crowd,
fear
is all around me,
as
they plot together against me,
as
they plan to take my life.
Save
me in your love, O Lord.
But
as for me, I trust in you, Lord;
I
say: ‘You are my God.
My
life is in your hands, deliver me
from
the hands of those who hate me.’
Save
me in your love, O Lord.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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cf.Jn6:63,68
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Glory
to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Your
words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you
have the message of eternal life.
Glory
to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
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Or:
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Jn8:12
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Glory
to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
I am
the light of the world, says the Lord;
anyone
who follows me will have the light of life.
Glory
to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
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Gospel
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Matthew 20:17-28 ©
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They will condemn the Son of Man to death
Jesus was going
up to Jerusalem, and on the way he took the Twelve to one side and said to
them, ‘Now we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man is about to be
handed over to the chief priests and scribes. They will condemn him to death
and will hand him over to the pagans to be mocked and scourged and crucified;
and on the third day he will rise again.’
Then
the mother of Zebedee’s sons came with her sons to make a request of him, and
bowed low; and he said to her, ‘What is it you want?’ She said to him, ‘Promise
that these two sons of mine may sit one at your right hand and the other at
your left in your kingdom.’ ‘You do not know what you are asking’ Jesus
answered. ‘Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?’ They replied, ‘We
can.’ ‘Very well,’ he said ‘you shall drink my cup, but as for seats at my
right hand and my left, these are not mine to grant; they belong to those to
whom they have been allotted by my Father.’
When
the other ten heard this they were indignant with the two brothers. But Jesus
called them to him and said, ‘You know that among the pagans the rulers lord it
over them, and their great men make their authority felt. This is not to happen
among you. No; anyone who wants to be great among you must be your servant, and
anyone who wants to be first among you must be your slave, just as the Son of
Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for
many.’
ASPIRING TO
LEADERSHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ JER
18:18-20; PS 31:5-6, 14-16; MT
20:17-28]
In the gospel, we read
that the mother of James and John came with her sons to make a request of Him, “Promise that these two sons of mine may
one sit at your right hand and the other at your left in your kingdom.”
Although the request was made by their mother, the sons surely instigated her
as well, hoping that with their mother’s request, Jesus would be more obliging.
Regardless, the point was that both James and John aspired to leadership
positions. To desire to sit on the left and right of our Lord means to be
His second-in-command. When the rest of the ten heard about it, they were
jealous for they too desired the coveted positions. “When the other ten
heard this they were indignant with the two brothers.”
The question is, whether
it is wrong to seek positions of leadership. Does it smack of ambition and egoism to
think that we are the best person to lead a group, an organization, a church or
a country? Or should we just sit and wait until we are called to
assume positions of leadership? And if we are called, should we decline
or accept since those aspiring to leadership often do so with impure
motives. The crux of the matter is not a question of whether it is right
or wrong to aspire to positions of leadership. We need capable leaders in
every sector of society.
The most important
question is why people seek positions of power. The most obvious reason is the boosting of
one’s ego because we receive honour, privileges and are served by many
people. That was what the disciples of our Lord thought as well.
They wanted to be in positions of honour so that they would be respected and
served. Some, of course, like to control the lives of others even though
they cannot even control their own lives! Some like to tell people what
to do because they do not like others to tell them what to do! Some hope
that with power, they can enjoy the pleasures of life. Some just seek
attention so leadership is the way to get the attention of people. They
like to be famous, known and recognized by many as great people, intelligent,
successful, capable, eloquent and influential.
If these are the reasons
why we seek leadership, then we are seeking for the wrong reason. T. S. Eliot once said, “The
greatest treason is to do the right thing for the wrong reason.” Seeking
leadership, as in the other things as well, is good provided we do so for the
right motives. The purer the motive, the nobler is our aspiration.
Of course, often we do things with mixed motives. Some give to the Church
but they desire that everyone knows how generous they are. Some serve the
Church in music and singing but they want everyone to say that they are the
best choir. Some want to serve the Church but only if they are given
positions and recognition. Some help the poor but they want publicity so
that their organizations can earn the appreciation of the people and benefit
their business.
The only reason why we
should aspire to leadership is because we feel that we can make a difference in
the lives of our people.
It is a calling from God. God calls us by providing us a vision and a
desire to fulfill this vision, not for ourselves but for the people or
organization we are called to lead. This calling is motivated by a real
concern for the people we live with, and especially the call to lead them to
become better whether economically or spiritually. Of course, the call to
leadership presupposes that we have the required talents to carry out the
vision that the Lord has implanted in us. When the Lord calls, He also
qualifies. Of course, sometimes, potential leaders are not aware of their
capacity and ability until they are chosen to lead. Only then are their
latent talents and potentials unveiled. Regardless, God will not
call someone unless He is given a vision to do something and the ability to
accomplish it.
So we should seek
leadership positions only because we want to serve the common good of our
people or organization. Leadership
is not about ourselves and our needs. It is always for the greater
good of our people. If we are concerned about ourselves, our promotion,
our remuneration and our interests, we can never be great leaders. As
Jesus said, we are then merely a hired hand. “I am the good shepherd. The
good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not
the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the
sheep and runs away – and the wolf snatches them and scatters
them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care
for the sheep.” (Jn 10:11-13) Indeed, this was what He said to the
apostles who were envious of James and John. “You know that among the
pagans the rulers lord it over them, and their great men make their authority
felt. This is not to happen among you. No; anyone who wants to be great among
you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be
your slave, just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to
give his life as a ransom for many.”
Mercenaries and workers
work for remuneration.
They are not concerned about a vision or a mission. So long as they are
paid well, they are ready to put their efforts into what they do. But
they lack passion and conviction. They will switch loyalty to anyone who
can pay them more. Their commitment is to the rewards offered to them,
not to a vision. It is not about making the lives of others better but
their own. Otherwise, they are not motivated to give of themselves.
Such workers can never be great leaders because they do not have a vision or a
passion. In the face of trials and difficulties, they would give up
easily what they do. When confronted with opposition and rejection, they would
be the first to abandon their project and seek an easier and more comfortable
position.
But a leader lives for a
vision, an inner calling and conviction. He knows the sufferings ahead of
him, yet he remains undaunted. This was the case of Jesus in today’s gospel. On
the way to Jerusalem, the place of His passion and glory, “He took the Twelve
to one side and said to them, ‘Now we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of
Man is about to be handed over to the chief priests and scribes. They will
condemn him to death and will hand him over to the pagans to be mocked and
scourged and crucified; and on the third day he will rise again.'” Jesus
was very much aware of the passion ahead of Him. He came to consciousness
that in order for His mission to be fulfilled, He would have to face rejection,
condemnation and death. But Jesus was resolute in completing the mission
entrusted to Him. He did not fall back out of fear or to protect Himself.
This, too, was the case
of Jeremiah. He turned to the Lord when he was opposed by his people even
though he spoke and prophesied for their sake, to save them from
destruction. His
enemies said, “Come on, let us concoct a plan against Jeremiah; the priest will
not run short of instruction without him, nor the sage of advice, nor the
prophet of the word. Come on, let us hit at him with his own tongue; let us
listen carefully to every word he says.” Indeed, this is the price of
leadership. If we want to serve our people, it does not mean that
everyone will support us. Our enemies, those who are envious of us, those
who have selfish motives will seek to thwart our plans. A leader is
often misunderstood, criticized and even betrayed by his closest
collaborators. This is why, if the leader has no fortitude, then it is
difficult for him to accomplish his mission.
In such a situation, the
leader must always turn to the Lord for help. Like Jeremiah who cried out to God, “Listen to
me Lord, hear what my adversaries are saying. Should evil be returned for good?
For they are digging a pit for me. Remember how I stood in your presence to
plead on their behalf, to turn your wrath away from them.” By all means,
complain to the Lord, but only He can help us to defeat our enemies. Like
the psalmist we pray, “Release me from the snares they have hidden, for you are
my refuge, Lord. Into your hands I commend my spirit. I have heard the slander
of the crowd, fear is all around me, as they plot together against me, as they
plan to take my life. Save me in your love, O Lord.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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