Word to the Wise
Saturday, October 6, 2018 - Saturday in the 26th Week in Ordinary Time
[Job 42:1-3, 5-6, 12-17 and Luke 10:17-24]Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven. [Luke]
Jesus is conducting a "debriefing" session for the seventy-two additional disciples whom he sent out as "advance men" to villages he was planning to visit. [Luke 10:1]. They were to cure the sick and proclaim, "The kingdom of God is at hand for you." [10:8]. He warned them that even if they are rejected, they must still proclaim that message. [10:10-11] In today's passage they have returned in great "rejoicing, and said, 'Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name.'" Jesus affirms the effectiveness of their mission, but reminds them that the power they have been exercising is not for their benefit. Their reward will be in heaven.
It can be a very "heady" experience to begin in ministry and observe the trust that comes with the role of serving others in a formal way. One can easily fall into the illusion that the power that comes with the role is a personal possession to be meted out at the discretion of the minister. Although Pope Francis has denounced this tendency among bishops, priests and deacons, it exists in almost any kind of ministry, whether it be usher, choir director, Lay Eucharistic Minister, etc. Power has to be handled humbly or else it will corrupt the holder.
The knowledge that one's efforts to proclaim the kingdom in word or deed can be very gratifying but that affirmation will not always be communicated for every word or deed in ministry. If the minister is looking for affirmation all the time, there will be disappointment instead. What is important is to proclaim the kingdom. The Lord will see to the affirmation. AMEN