One of the best parts of my week is when I get to go over and talk to our students, either in the day school or PSR. No matter how rough my day has been, or how much I may have on my mind, their curiosity and innocence reminds me why I love being a priest. This past Friday, I went over to speak with the third-graders. They had a number of questions for me to answer, one of which was, “how does a person become a deacon, a priest, a bishop, and even the pope”? After explaining the process of formation, education, and evaluation, one of the students exclaimed that he would like to be pope. I had to laugh, because I remember thinking very same thing when I was little. On one hand, it seems like the best job in the world. You get to fly around the world, people go nuts whenever you visit, you get the lots of Italian food, and you even get to ride in the Pope-Mobile. Over the last 100 years, our church has been blessed with incredible men, many of them Saints, who have served as our Popes. Their example has reminded us that with great power comes an even greater responsibility to serve others with humility and generosity.
This is the lesson Jesus must teach his followers in today's Gospel. Jesus has been on a roll lately working miracles, attracting huge crowds, and many people are trying to make him king. James and John can sense the authority Jesus has and they want some of it for themselves. James and John have just asked Jesus for places of honor, one at his right and one at his left. But they want it for the wrong reasons. They want this power so they can be in charge and enjoy the worldly benefits of prestige and rank. Jesus patiently reminds them that his followers must use any power and authority they receive as tools to serve others. This is, naturally, the opposite of what the world believes.
Leadership, of course, is essential. Power is necessary. Power makes decisions and gets things done. But, to quote Lord Acton, “all power eventually corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely”, unless it is grounded in the teachings of Jesus Christ. And leaders, remember, include us, not just the high and mighty CEOs, but us: parents, principles, managers, teachers, board members, policemen, scoutmasters, pastors, doctors —- anyone who has charge of or leads the lives of others. In the Christian life all such leaders, including you and me, are servants who are there “not to be served but to serve and to give their lives as a ransom for many.” That radical teaching - and it is outrageously radical if you think about it - is a deep spirituality to live by, a necessary and humble interior balance a Christian must embrace. The more power I have, the more respect I must show, the more service I must render, the more aware of others I must be.
You and I are called to be servant-leaders of whatever power or authority has been given to us. What are some practical ways we can know if we are imitating Christ’s example? First, servant leaders pay attention to the rank-and-file people around them. No person, no matter what their education or occupation, is dismissed or looked down on. How about us? How do we treat the people who work the cash register, prepare our meal, or pick up the trash? Are we kind, polite, and aware of them as people? Do we remember their name or ask how they are doing? Secondly, servant leaders learn to think communally, not selfishly. What goes into our decision-making? Is it only about profit, sales, career, getting ahead, or looking better than others? Are there considerations as to the long-range impact on the family, the community, or the environment? Finally, servant leaders strive for that humility which enables them to ask if they're part of the problem. They are not afraid to be accountable to others and accept constructive criticism, knowing that they are far from perfect. Without feedback, any one of us can become a tyrant.
Back to James and John who want the privilege, power, and position without the cross; they want his leadership without serving others. It must've been totally embarrassing when, at the end of the day, there were two lowly thieves, one at Jesus’ right and one at His left as he prepared to enter his heavenly kingdom. Not quite what they first imagined, but it made Jesus’ point.
We might wonder: did James and John and the others eventually get the message? Did they get to drink from the same chalice Jesus drank? I think so. About 12 years after Jesus's death, James was the first apostle to suffer martyrdom. Tradition adds that Andrew was tied to a cross, Bartholomew was skinned alive, Peter was crucified upside down in Rome, the other James was thrown from the Temple roof, Thomas was run through with a lance in the East Indies, Jude was pierced with arrows, Philip was hanged; only John escaped a grisly death. Interestingly enough, he was the only apostle present during the crucifixion.
We probably won’t have to go so far as martyrdom, but we do have to recognize that the gospel message clearly is that power and position are on the other side of servant leadership: followers of Jesus do not sit. They stand in solidarity with the world's most famous foot-washer and they serve everyone regardless of social status.
