Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands,
one on one side and one on the other,
so that his hands remained steady till sunset.
I will always remember my installation as Rector of Holy Family Cathedral, my first parish that I pastored in 1988. The bishop who presided at the Mass of Installation was the second Bishop of Orange, Norman McFarland, who was affectionately known as ‘stormin Norman.’ Bishop McFarland was a no nonsense bishop known for his savvy in financial matters and a mouth like a sailor! (God forgive me!) He used to say about me, “Art, you never knew a budget you didn’t exceed!,” and I would say in response, “Bishop, I bet you still have the first dollar you ever earned!” Amid our candor with one another, there was respect for a man who stayed in his diocese and labored day and night in service of God’s people, “come hell or highwater!”
The homily Bishop McFarland gave at my installation quoted the passage from Exodus that we hear in the first reading for today’s Eucharist and quoted above. His homily warned me against being a ‘lone ranger’ pastor thinking that I could do everything by myself. Rather, I needed a host of faithful and supportive priests, deacons and laypeople in order to be a good and effective shepherd for God’s people. I needed them to be “one on one side and one on the other” holding me up in prayer as I ministered to God’s Holy People.
Sisters and brothers, this image of being Church together is a foundational theme of the Second Vatican Council as it moved us from a highly ‘clericalized’ Church to seeing all the People of God responsible for proclaiming the Good News. The Council radically moved us from seeing laity as merely ‘praying, obeying and paying’ to becoming involved with the ordained with the ministerial and evangelizing work of Christ. “Clericalism” a concept that Pope Francis spoke against often is defining the Church solely by the Hierarchy, priests, bishops and deacons. This, my friends, presents only a partial image of who we are as a Church. Pope Francis described clericalism as a sickness that distorts the Church, separates it from the faithful, and creates a sense of superiority among clergy. He stated that clericalism "forgets that the visibility and the sacramentality of the Church belong to all the people of God and not just to an illuminated and elected few". Some of his most powerful quotes against it include warnings that "when I meet a clericalist, I suddenly become anti-clerical," and that clericalism is one of the "worst evils" that leads to hypocrisy. Strong words indeed!
I’m reminded of all these memories in light of a letter sent out this past week by Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese of the Military. The archbishop oversees all the chaplains serving in our military. In an extraordinary decision that the Army told all Catholic chaplains that they are to rescind all contracts with lay Religious Directors of Religious Education, coordinators of pastoral life on bases, and liturgical musicians effectively saying that chaplains will now be ‘lone rangers’ as they shepherd those military members and their families entrusted to their care. An impossible task!
No one person can do the work of the Church. It takes an ensemble of ministries to shape and reflect the vibrancy of the Body of Christ as we reach out to share the Good News of the Savior with others. This is not a task for lone rangers but for the family of God missioned by Baptism to be Christ for the world.
As we are refreshed by the living Word this day, let us renew our commitment to be Church for one another and for the world. Let us remember in prayer our priestly brothers who serve as chaplains in the military and especially in the Army as they face this new challenge with creativity and strength. In the words of Timothy today, may they “be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient!”
For the entire letter from Archbishop Broglio, it can be accessed here: https://www.milarch.org/archbishop-broglio-issues-statement-on-u-s-army-cancellation-of-all-religious-support-contracts-for-army-chapels/