4th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B January 28, 2024
Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette
“The people were astonished at his teaching.” I’ll admit it, there’s a part of me that wants people to say this about my preaching, that wants people to look up to me because of it. But I know that’s my vanity talking and I’ve learned – often at the expense of people I love – just how harmful it can my vanity can be.
So, what do I do? Preach badly on purpose so I never get complements that might make me vain? Then I’d just be purposely inflicting bad preaching on other people make myself feel humble… that’s not humility but a more convoluted form of vanity. I don’t have the full answer. But I know a few things that help.
One is that I know I often fall short. Another is that people can be pretty fickle. A few compliments on a few sermons aren’t proof of any lasting loyalty. Another is that there is always someone better and I try to be grateful, not jealous when I encounter those people. Another is that there is a lot of diversity in the Church and that preaching which is “successful” or “astonishing” in one place might be totally ineffective in another… or even among different people in the same crowd.
What helps most of all, however, is to remember why I want to preach well. For Christ’s sake, not mine. The primary reason for preaching the Gospel well is for your repentance, not your approval. The problem with vanity is not that someone does something well or even that it gets a lot of positive attention – some of the vainest people do truly amazing things. No, the problem with vanity is the motivation. Vanity takes something – good or bad – and makes it about personal glory. Eventually, personal glory will contradict authentic goodness.
It should be obvious that when Jesus does something amazing, when he astounds people with his words or miracles, he is not doing it to make himself popular although he is God and therefore deserving of all glory. He is doing it because it is something that needs to be done for the good of others. This is the key distinction between this deadly sin of pride and “taking pride in your work.” The best meaning of that expression is a reminder to strive for excellence. For Jesus, the same love that produced astonishing sermons also produced enough anger that those same people eventually killed him. So should we be willing do the right thing and do it well, even when it costs us.
For me and for everyone called to proclaim the gospel – that’s all of you by the way – this means that we absolutely should strive to make our proclamation as great as possible whether that’s by preaching, writing, works of art, or most of all, in acts of charity. In all of these we ought to strive for excellence for the sake of Jesus Christ. We are to see even our ordinary work as done for Christ and therefore strive to do it well, even if it doesn’t always “astonish” those around us. And especially when people honor us for our excellence, it helps to remember the things I listed earlier about knowing our limits, knowing how capricious the world can be, and remembering the diversity of different gifts in the Church and the world.
To truly excel in all we do for the love of Jesus, however, we have to actually know and love Jesus. So, “harden not your hearts” if “today you hear his voice.” Jesus’ astonishing preaching today is found in the synagogue, their sabbath service. Like our Sunday Masses, these were privileged moments of encountering God’s word in hopes of being inspired to remain faithful and to do all things well for God’s glory.
And that brings me back to my preaching. Whether or not my homilies are astonishing to you, do not forget the real reason you’re required to come to Mass: the authority of Jesus Christ. Even when I fail to preach well, even when I fall into sin, it is his authority that matters most. If my preaching fails to explain the readings well, the scriptures still have a power all their own. Even if my preaching has no effect, the words of consecration always do. If any priest’s homily leaves you bored, that’s not a good reason to claim the Mass itself is boring. That claim says more about us than about the Mass.
In anything we do, sometimes our best efforts will turn out mediocre; the same is true with attentiveness to the Mass. Yet, human weakness is no excuse for not trying. The Word of God is being spoken here; if you do not hear it and are not moved by it, then it’s probably because you’ve hardened your heart. That’s why I said it last week and I’m saying it again: if you do not already love the Mass, what are you doing to change that? What better preparation can you make, what sins can you confess, what teachings can you learn, what demons can you cast out to unharden your hearts? Because, I promise you, if you really give God the chance, he will astonish you even if I never do.