+Bishop Michael F. Olson
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| Congratulations to Mr. Nghia Nguyen whom I formally received as a candidate for priesthood for the Ft. Worth Diocese. |
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| This year's candidacy class at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston. I enjoyed celebrating Mass there with them all. |
Homily for the Reception of Candidacy at Saint Mary’s Seminary
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Isaiah 22:19-23
Romans 11:33-36
Matthew 16:13-20
The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth possesses in its collection a painting by Nicolas Poussin. The painting depicts the very scene described in our Gospel reading from this Sunday; Christ entrusts the keys of the Kingdom to Peter. Interestingly enough, it is entitled The Sacrament of Ordination and is one of a series of seven paintings depicting the sacraments by Poussin. The artist presents this scene from the Gospel as representing Peter’s ordination by Christ. Honestly, upon initially viewing this beautiful work of art, I must state that I was puzzled over the choice of this passage of Scripture to present the Sacrament of Holy Orders. If I were able to draw or paint beyond stick figures, I would have selected the Call of the Apostles, or perhaps the Last Supper, or the Washing of Feet to represent Holy Orders. Not the entrusting of the keys of the Kingdom to Peter.
Yet, in a very profound way, this is what the Sacrament of Holy Orders brings about -- the bringing of order out of chaos. Just as God created the ordered Universe and all within it out of the primordial chaos of nothingness, and sin brought about disorder through abuse of all that is good, thus Christ restores order (beyond that of the original order of creation) sacramentally through the ministry of His priests in the pastoral care of His people -- as priests govern, teach, and sanctify.
The Rite for the reception of Candidacy is very simple. It seems to be so much of an understatement; it’s almost stark. There are two short and direct questions and an equally short declarative statement of reception made by the Bishop in the name of the Church. There is no Book of the Gospels; there is no Chrism; there is no imposition of hands. Yet, perhaps this simplicity is precisely the point.
The Rite is truly marked by the simplicity of faith; it is the faith required to hear the call and to say “yes.” It is the simplicity of faith that St. Paul reminds us comes from listening. The Rite is steeped in simplicity because our human condition encounters so many temptations to complicate the nature of our call, even to the point that a man can forget that he is here because he answered a call at Christ’s initiative, not because a man has undertaken a lifestyle choice of his own desires. Faith begins with listening to and for God, Who is incomprehensible.
In our second reading today, taken from Paul’s Epistle to the Romans, Paul abandons himself to the mystery of God, whose judgments are inscrutable and whose ways are unsearchable. While Paul is speaking particularly about the question of Israel’s destiny, his point is that only the truly wise and prepared are humble enough to acknowledge that they really do not know -- the “how,” the “why” and the “when” of God’s call to them. Paul faithfully trusts the One whom no one can comprehend. Thus, should our aspirants to candidacy (and each of us as well) believe that God is upright and will never reject us (His People, His Church) even when we cannot grasp the details of the entire picture. Perseverance is required and specifically sought from our aspirants in the Rite we celebrate in today’s Liturgy.
The first question seeks from the aspirant a declaration of resolute perseverance in preparation for ordination for ministry of the Church. The question specifically makes explicit the presupposition that the aspirant’s declaration is in response to Christ’s call to him. This presupposition is essential. It requires that a man has heard a call and has adequately discerned through faith and prayer that it is indeed the Lord who is calling him.
The second question seeks from the aspirant a declaration of resolute preparation for faithful and generous service to Christ and to His Church. The preparation does not simply involve external compliance to authority as delineated by a series of infantilizing imperatives. The preparation is of mind and spirit and involves intimately conversion of heart in loving one’s neighbor in the freedom of a disciple who knows himself, accepts himself, and gives of himself as one who is loved and redeemed by Christ. The response on the part of the aspirant does not declare that he is ready to complete a requisite course of study; it does not declare that he is always willing to please the whims of capricious power masked as authority. The response calls for a humble manifestation of faith in God, that all of this is mysteriously God’s work. Without the manifestation of authentic faith, the gift can be lost through a cloudy sense of entitlement.
In our first reading from Isaiah, we see that this is precisely what occurs to Shebna. He stops listening. He loses faith. He forgets that he has been entrusted with the keys of the Master’s Household; he stops letting the Master’s people into the Master’s House, which is the Master’s reason for so entrusting him with the keys. And at the time of crisis when the people most need to be brought into the security of the Master’s House, he refuses to do what he has been called to do, and instead builds for himself a majestic and expensive tomb. Perhaps this is a foreshadowing of the Scribes and Pharisees condemned as “whitened sepulchers” by Jesus later in Matthew’s Gospel, or even other more contemporary examples that might come to mind. The result is that the Lord thrusts Shebna from his office and instead entrusts the authority of office to Eliakim because Shebna has come to mistake the office as his entitlement.
In the Rite, it is the office of the Bishop to receive the declarations of candidacy. The statement of reception is short and to the point. It must not manifest entitlement to the declarations that are made freely. The reception is joyful; it is hopeful because through it the Church acknowledges gratefully the good work that God has both begun in these men, and that only He can bring to fulfillment. More so in this manner it is intended to manifest the fruit of listening -- of faith. The statement of reception is not made at the Church’s initiative; it is most certainly not made at the receiving bishop’s initiative no matter how insightful he might be; it is not made at the Seminary’s initiative no matter how trustworthy the program of formation might be. The statement of reception is the fruit of listening. It is made in the name of Christ with the same confident and humble declaration of faith in the mysterious workings of God as made by the aspirants, and not as the bitter fruit of self-serving arrogant judgment. The authentic authority entrusted to Peter to serve the Messiah’s House (that is, the Church) is the task of admitting the People of God into the Kingdom. This is carried on today through the sacramental ministry of priests. This provides order to God’s People and saves them from the chaos of the evil one.
Finally, it is important to note that in today’s Gospel passage from Matthew, Peter is addressed as “Simon bar Jonah.” The name “Simon” is derivative of the Hebrew word “shema” which means “to listen.” And “Jonah” is referent to the Old Testament prophet who precisely did not do that -- he refused to listen. The point is that the Church, and those who are entrusted with authoritative offices in service to Her, are called to listen first, and so to recognize that the authority is indeed entrusted to them and belongs more profoundly to Christ. It also means that conversion is a gradual endeavor that marks God's Kingdom. Patient perseverance must characterize our formation and pastoral ministry. The gift of rightly ordered authority by Christ to His Church underscores the need for rightly ordered servants who can only become so through the honest simplicity of faith. There is no lasting hope or legitimate charity without first entering through the door of faith. This simplicity of faith begins with listening. It then responds to the heard Word with perseverant service to those most in need. And those who are most in need are those to whom the Master sends us to save from the chaos of sin and selfishness and to admit them with His keys into His Kingdom and Household, the Church. Listen, have faith, be attentive.
