HOMILY FOR THE 25TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR B
Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi
A life that has no ambition is hopeless. It is an important aspect of the nature of man to search continuously for something higher and to fight to become more fulfilled as the days go by. To have an ambition is to aspire after success or advancement. And no one can deny that it is good to aim after success and progress. Where the scandal comes lies in the spirit and in the method one desires to go about such ambition. If it comes from a pretentious spirit or an inordinate method, then it can be termed ambitiousness. Thus, having ambition which is something expected of every reasonable human being becomes scandalous when the intention and the manner of such aspiration go with utter selfishness. At this point, it becomes ambitiousness. This is what St. James condemns in the Second Reading (James 3:16-4:3): where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice. At the point where ambition is born from jealousy and selfishness, it becomes very destructive and hampers the love and progress of the community.
The instruction of Jesus to his disciples in the Gospel (Mark 9:30-37) was also geared towards guiding them against such selfish desire that destroys the community of faith -ambitiousness. Having taught them about the way of the cross of the messiah, the disciples started arguing over who should hold the highest position in the kingdom. Their interest was for the honour in an earthly kingdom. Jesus had to re-educate their thinking. Having the need to be recognized and regarded with honour is human, but so many times, people allow their hearts to be ruled by selfishness, wanting more and more to the point of hoarding that which does not belong to them and causing the destruction of others. Christ teaches the disciples on the dangers of ambition and what constitutes true greatness.
1) Selfish ambition causes disputes: The disciples kept on arguing among themselves along the way which did not even stop when they entered the house. Their arguments made them to lose focus and comportment. And this argument came after Jesus’ second prediction of his death. They were not paying attention to Jesus, but to their selfish desires of occupying positions of authority. And this desire led them to quarrel and divide. When we pursue the world so much, we are most likely to forget the way of the Christ -cross. And when we forget the cross, we grow heartless and wicked; for at that moment, we shall no longer feel the cross other people carry. Such a lifestyle becomes a play of the sayings of the wicked in the First Reading (Wisdom 2:12, 17-20). Any ambition that brings divide among people is wrong.
2) Selfish ambition breeds shame: The arguments of the disciples depicted people who were thinking in terms of earthly power, fame, wealth, position and name. It is clear that they misunderstood the concept of the messiah as Jesus taught. Ambitiousness can becloud the mind not to see things that should have been easily seen. And immediately Jesus asked them what they were arguing about, they kept quiet and said nothing in response. This is because their subject matter was shameful to say. They were ashamed and knew they had done wrong. Their selfish ambition had led them to shame. Any ambition that leads one to shame is wrong. What shall be our answer when we shall be asked by God what is it that we were arguing as we walked through life?
3) Every ambition needs guidance: When there is proper instruction to the ambition in us to succeed, then we see what great virtue ambition is. And sitting down, Jesus called the disciples who had slipped into great error and corrected them. Their ambition requires instruction and guidance in the right direction. At the face of our great aspirations and plans, there is the need to find someone who can direct you properly in the right path to go about it. Guided ambitions yield powerful results.
4) Ambition is a virtue: That ambition is a virtue which is directed towards the right goal. It is not wrong to desire greatness, as we did not find Jesus rebuking the followers for having ambitions. What he did was to direct those ambitions, intentions and efforts in the right way. Such right way is service. If anyone wishes to be great, then the person must serve in humility and actively work for the sake of others (cf. Phil 2:3-4). Our ambition must be for the sake of serving others with our gifts and not receiving honour from men. If you desire greatness, search for it in service. Every higher level demands higher responsibility. We need not want authority without the responsibility attached. That responsibility is carried out in humble service.
Finally, we must know that the ambition for service proves our discipleship. The practical example Jesus gave his disciples has something to teach us. He took a child in his arms and made them to understand that the very qualities that are necessary to receive a child should be seen in the character of the Christian or the person searching for positions of authority. These qualities are: readiness to render help to others; for a child is dependent on others, effort to understand and condone the actions of the child; for a child can really be childish, trusting that the child will learn and grow; for the child can repeat mistakes, patience in teaching the child; for the child can be sometimes slow to learn, forgiving the child who does not set out to wrong anyone.
The child here can represent the subsidiaries, the governed, and most importantly, the Church faithful. These are the qualities required of those aspiring to become leaders both in the Church and in the society. If these qualities are not found, we may end up inflicting on others great pains. The ambitions we have and the way we achieve them (and even when we think we have achieved them) ought not to cause the misery of others. It is to serve, love and encourage the people we lead. It is not to victimize nor to show off power. Yes, the greatest of them all must be their servant. The higher we go, the better should we serve. The more we serve, the more should we grow humble in service (Humilitatem ministerium). May we become worthy servants of our great master, Jesus. Amen. Happy new week; God bless you.
No comments:
Post a Comment