Tuesday of Week 15 in Ordinary Time (Year II)
Isaiah 7:1-9 | Psalm 47:2-8 | Matthew 11:20-24
But if you do not stand by me,
you will not stand at all. (Isaiah 7:9)
I received news yesterday that my parish priest would be posted out in the near future. My reaction is very simple:
May God grant you the strength of Samson, the wisdom of Solomon, and the love of Christ. Godspeed with all my love and prayers.
Most everyone has his or her favourite priest, be he a righteous firebrand, an eloquent preacher, or simply a pleasant person who doesn’t poke too deeply into others’ prayer lives. Indeed, I daresay some priests have entourages, though not of their own making.
Conversely, most everyone can name a “priest from hell”, the standard bearer who declaims cut-down-to-there dresses at mass, the boring sermonist, the nosey parker who keeps running a finger over the dusty family Bible during house visits.
Well, my parish priest and I have a pretty easygoing relationship both personally and ministerially, and while I don’t know whether that will continue with a new padre, that doesn’t matter one bit.
Because I stand by God, He has provided.
I believe He will always bring into my life the people and situations I need. If it be a parish priest whose preferred style of mass celebration differs from what I’ve experienced before, that’s just an opportunity to learn to find common ground for the good of the weekly congregation.
Because I stand by God, He has protected.
I believe He has embedded a Spirit-driven conscience in me, one that will warn me when sin is near, and especially when I’m the source. (Whether I choose to listen is of course my own problem in the end.)
Because I stand by God, He has promised.
I believe that, no matter our disagreements, I will one day be reunited under the vaults of heaven with all my parish priests and fellow ministers past, present and future. Given that certainty, I’ll just do the best I can with the people around me, with all our collective faults and failings, to bring the light of Christ to everyone we can.
When the night has come
And the land is dark
And the moon is the only light we’ll see
No I won’t be afraid, no I won’t be afraid
Just as long as I stand, stand by Him
So bros and sisters, stand by Him, oh stand by Him
Oh stand by Him, stand by Him
If the sky that we look upon
Should tumble and fall
Or the mountains should crumble to the sea
I won’t die, I won’t die, no I won’t die in fear
Just as long as I stand, stand by Him
So bros and sisters, stand by Him, oh stand by Him
Oh stand now, stand by Him, stand by Him
Amen.