Word to the Wise
Wednesday, May 30, 2012 - Wednesday in the 8th Week in Ordinary Time
[1 Pet 1:18-25 and Mark 10:32-45]You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority felt. but it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.
One of the most famous quotes in political science is Lord Acton's "dictum," "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts absolutely." His words simply echo what Jesus says in today's gospel! (Acton, by the way, was referring to Pope Pius IX!) After warning the Twelve that he was going to suffer, die and rise again, the first thing that happens is that two of the apostles try to "get there first" in what they imagined to be a religio-political kingdom of the sort that existed in Palestine at the time. Jesus doesn't simply correct those two - James and John - but calls the whole group together for a bit of reality talk! Power, for the Christian community, must mean service, not ruling. It will also mean suffering, and not just glory.
My own experience as a pastor and religious superior on the local and regional levels has demonstrated to me the truth of Jesus' teaching (and Lord Acton's dictum) over and over again. There are always some children of Zebedee who imagine power as some kind of pie that can be carved into pieces and handed out to select recipients. Power can corrupt not only the office holder but those around him/her. The current sleazy scandal in the Vatican involving, of all people, the Pope's butler, is a clear demonstration of this! Whether it be in church or secular realms, wise "public servants" know that "washing the feet" and enduring attacks on one's motives and integrity come with the territory. Jesus warns James and John that they will indeed suffer as he will suffer. Jesus spoke 2000 years ago and Lord Acton in 1887, and we are still having to learn the same lessons again and again! AMEN