Today’s readings are about spiritual leadership. They are directed at the priests, no doubt, but I believe there are some good lessons in here for everyone.
First, in our Gospel, you’ll notice that Jesus recognizes legitimate authority. He says, “The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example.” The “Chair of Moses” is the chair of power so to speak, it is the legitimate leader’s seat. In the Catholic Church, there are several levels, the first being the Pope’s chair in Rome for the whole Church, second being the bishop’s chair in the Cathedral for the local area Church, and the third being the Pastor’s chair in the individual church.
Here at Nativity we have two big chairs, if you saw the Installation Mass a couple weeks ago you’ll notice that the Cardinal and then the Archbishop sat on the throne chair behind the Altar. I never sit there because it’s got a terrible view, but also, it really was meant for a Bishop. When this Church was built, that chair was meant for the Auxiliary Bishop who was Pastor here, and it was thought that Nativity was going to become the Cathedral. By the way, the word Cathedral comes from the Latin word cathedra which simply means chair. The Cathedral is named that because it is where the Bishop’s chair is located. Anyway, even though they are poor leaders, Jesus does not diminish the power of the person sitting in the chair, He just simply wants His Apostles, who will be the first priests and Bishops, to be better than their Jewish counterparts when they take over the chair of Moses. And He still wants us to be obedient to their teaching, still today.
Second, when Jesus says don’t call anyone teacher, father, or master, He is using a hyperbole, basically just a striking statement to drive home a point. I’m sure some of you were thinking about dropping the “Father” and just calling me "Andy" after hearing that, but Jesus’ intention was not that we drop the use of those words, but rather that us leaders didn’t let those titles go to our heads. He is encouraging our humility.
We know this to be true because literally 11 times in the New Testament the word father is used. Luke 16:24, Romans 4:11, Romans 4:16, 1 Corinthians 4:15, 1 Corinthians 10:1, Galatians 1:14, Philippians 2:22, 1 Thessalonians 2:11, 1 Timothy 5:1, Philemon 1:10, 1 John 2:13 - Those are the references if you want to double check me, the last one from 1 John seems pretty clear he is addressing priests as fathers.
The point is humility. I’ll admit it, sometimes I do make mistakes, you can double check me. Feel free to tell me if I am wrong, it has been known to happen. Religious leaders are not perfect, we make mistakes. Our response to this bad leadership is actually shown by the psalm we heard. Psalm 131 reminds us that even when the leadership of God’s people goes astray, the individual believer can still find refuge directly in God, who is a loving parent. The image that was used there was a child resting peacefully in its mother’s lap.
That parent theme carried into the second reading, Paul said, “We were gentle among you, as a nursing mother cares for her children. With such affection for you, we were determined to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our very selves as well, so dearly beloved had you become to us.”
This is the goal of the spiritual leader, to be true parents to spiritual children, giving everything we have, not doing it for riches and fame, that sure isn’t what being a parent is about. It isn’t what being a spiritual leader is about either, so Jesus wants us to cultivate humility, being a servant, not performing works to be seen, but serving out of great love, especially our love for God. See, it is natural to want human recognition, to want to sit at the best places and receive respectful greetings, but that isn’t what the Christian life is about. And we have to remember that. We are only passing through on this earth, our true home is in Heaven, our true citizenship is in Heaven thanks to Jesus who suffered, died, and rose from the dead for the forgiveness of our sins.
Finally, I just want to go back to last weekend's readings and touch on that Shema verse again. As a reminder, the Shema is this first verse: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” And Moses went on to instruct what to do with this verse: “And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-6)
Now when Moses told them “And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.” They took this literally, and it is what Jesus was talking about in today’s gospel about the scribes and Pharisees saying they would “widen their phylacteries.” Many Jews still do wear phylacteries today, the phylactery is the leather strap that holds the little box (a two inch by two inch square box) with the one verse on their hand and on their head. I thought about buying a set to show you as a prop but it turns out they are super expensive, like the cheapest one I could find was still $200, most were over $1000, but they are passed on for generations so it kind of makes sense.
Anyway, if people wear these just for attention, or like Jesus says they widen those bands so it is more noticeable, that is the wrong attitude. The point is that the love of God would be on the forefront of our minds, and always at hand as a sign, and that through this love of Him we would know in our hearts that our primary identity is His beloved children, and that our true home is in Heaven.
We have to work at that, constantly reminding ourselves of our relationship and identity in Him. Our relationship with God as His children is what will guide the rest of our lives, if we let it.
When you call me “Father,” it is really just a good reminder of who God has called me to be for you, serving you as a loving parent in the image of God, and maybe I should respond by calling you “son” or “daughter” so that you remember who you are to God.
So just to summarize, we can overcome bad leadership by being secure in our relationship with God, and to help others know of their identity and their heavenly home, we must grow in humility, serving and not looking to be served as the world does. May the Lord bless you as you strive to carry this out in the world, always remembering you are a beloved child of our heavenly Father.