Homily Fifth Saturday of Lent (John 11:45-56) “Power can Corrupt.”
Homily Fifth Saturday of Lent (John 11:45-56) “Power can Corrupt.”
We have a certain picture in our mind of how religious leaders should act. We expect them to be concerned about the spiritual side of life. I had an interesting conversation with a pastor I worked for at one of my assignments. On one of my first days he said, “You take care of the spiritual side of our mission. I will taker care of the temporal affairs.” I appreciated not having to worry about raising money, making repairs or paying bills, but I wondered about his willingness to abdicate his spiritual responsibilities.
The high priests, in the time in which Jesus lived, were very much concerned with the temporal side of life. After Herod the Great died (the king we hear about in the infancy narrative in the Gospel of Matthew) his kingdom was divided into three parts. His three sons ruled these different entities. The son who ruled Jerusalem proved to be inept, so he was removed by the Romans. At that point, the high priest was made the ruler of Jerusalem as well as overseer of the temple. There were several high priests during this time period. Caiaphas proved to be the most adept administrator. He ruled for Jerusalem for 18 years and worked with the Roman governor (Pilate) for ten years.
Caiaphas was just as much a civil leader as a religious leader and his position gave him tremendous power. Also, it afforded him much wealth. Caiaphas knew how to play the system. He was an adroit politician. He had power, but all that power corrupted his outlook. Once someone has power, they will probably do anything to keep it.
Jesus was preaching change. Change is a threat to those who want to maintain the status quo. Caiaphas was afraid of losing his privilege. He was more than willing to sacrifice the carpenter from Nazareth to maintain public order.
Religious leaders in every age have had the choice of seeking worldly power or to seek to avoid being entangled in politics. A religious leader needs to be the conscience for society and to be a prophetic voice. Caiaphas valued worldly power. Jesus valued being a prophet.
- Have I seen religious leaders compromise their principles to gain influence? How does that make me feel?
- Who is an example of a religious leader who sacrificed power and wealth to stand with the oppressed? How do such leaders usually end up?
Dear Parishioners,
You will notice that we have brought back the missalettes to our daily and Sunday worship. The science is clear that COVID is not transmitted by touching something that an infected person has touched. Last spring no one was sure how the virus was passed from person to person, so we were very careful with sharing worship aids. Based on solid research we do not have to worry about reusing paper materials.
Sharing missalettes again is not a sign that we can go back to acting the way we did before COVID became a concern. The virus is passed to others by breathing the same air in a confined space. For that reason, we must continue to wear masks and keep our social distancing practices. We also must limit congregational singing.
The infection rate is going up again. Those of us who have been inoculated are safe from getting sick, but we can still pass on the sickness to those who have not had their shots. We must continue to be concerned about our neighbor’s health even if we feel we are safe.
May Our Lady and all the Angels and Saints watch over you today.
Fr. Mark