Last week we celebrated the 30th anniversary of our parish of Christ the Good Shepherd. Depending on which mass you attended, you heard either Fr. John or Deacon Pat Hancock reminds us of our history over these past three decades. Today, I have a question for you that is about these thirty years. However, it’s one maybe only the old-timers among us can answer completely. My question is this: Over the past thirty years, how many “married clergy” have been associated with Christ the Good Shepherd? First of all, does this question surprise you? How many of you are aware we even have a “married clergy?” Men who have been ordained, who have received the sacrament of Holy Orders and were married at the time of their ordinations.
OK. Most of you realize this is a trick question, because almost all of you recognize Permanent Deacons are members of the “clergy” and all of us who were ordained through Christ the Good Shepherd have been married. So, the question really is: over the last thirty years how many men from CGS have been ordained as Permanent Deacons?
Maybe it would help if I recalled their names for you. First of all, there is Steve LaBonte who was the first deacon Fr. Ed had with him when he founded our parish thirty years ago. He was joined by Glenn Cuiper who is now at St Ignatius. A few years later, five of us were ordained at the same time. The four who were ordained with me some twenty-four years ago include Al O’Brien and John Charnisky, who now serve in Kingwood and in The Woodlands. Two of the five have returned to the Father: Bob DeGrave and Barry Beckman. We five were joined, later, by two more: Les Cooper and John Rooney. They were followed by C.J. Mangano and most recently, of course, by Alberto Patetta and Pat Hancock. So, if you’ve been counting, this makes twelve men who have been ordained as Permanent Deacons. And finally, there is Bill Hartman, our current candidate, so we hope, in a few years, to have a so-called “baker’s dozen” of married clergy who have been associated with our parish. However, we all pray the number doesn’t stop there.
Of course the reason why I’m recalling the names of these twelve ordained men is because of the action taken by another Twelve men and their community some two-thousand years ago. In today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles we heard how complaints were made by certain widows in the first Christian community and how the community chose seven men to serve them. And so, we had the first deacons, the first seven men presented to the Apostles “who prayed and laid hands on them” in blessing.
Because of this Reading, it seemed appropriate to me I should recall, as part of our own ongoing history, the names of those who have been chosen to serve this community through the Diaconate, a word which means “service.” Today’s Gospel Reading speaks of “service,” although we may not recognize this at first. There are so many other important matters contained in what Jesus said to his Disciples during his last dialogue with them the night before he died. Jesus told them to have faith in God, to have faith not only in the Father but also in the one sent by the Father. Jesus urged them to have faith in Him, the visible image of the Father.
We have been reminded of this need for faith in God, faith in Father, Son and Holy Spirit, during this past week as we have listened to the words of Benedict XVI during his visit to the United States. Once more, our attention has been recalled to the words spoken by Jesus, himself: “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.” And then, Jesus promised those who heard him that he would prepare a place for them in his Father’s house and would return to take them there. He also promised them, in the meantime, he would send the Holy Spirit to be with them.
The Holy Spirit to help them to follow him, the one who is “the Way and the truth and the life.” The Holy Spirit would help them to serve the Father and to serve him who is in the Father. And what does this service demand?
This service demands two actions of those who would be called Christians. This service demands that all of us proclaim, first, that Christ, himself, is the Living Word of God, the Only Son of the Father and, second, he who sees the Son, sees the Father. In addition to this proclamation, this service demands that all of us do the works which have been done and are still being done by the Son.
In today’s Gospel reading we heard Jesus say: “Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves. Amen, Amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father.” Jesus told his Disciples, as he tells us in today’s world:
● We are to see God, the Father.
● We are to see his Son in Jesus the Christ.
● We are to follow his Son in order to find the Father.
● We are to align ourselves with Christ.
● We are to become the Body of Christ.
Saint Peter, in his letter which we heard today, calls Christ the cornerstone of the faith. And what is the function of a cornerstone? A cornerstone is the stone with perfect edges, with perfectly straight edges. It is on the foundation of this perfect stone all other stones of the structure are to be aligned so the entire structure does not collapse.
In a similar manner, each one of us must align ourselves to the cornerstone which is Christ. And how do we accomplish this alignment? It is through the power of the Holy Spirit sent to each of us. Through our Baptism we are empowered to become the living stones, the living cells, the living tissues of the Body of Christ. Through Confirmation we reaffirm our being called to do the works of the Holy Spirit. Through Holy Orders or through Matrimony we join others, in community, to become an integrated part of the structure of his Church, of his temple, of his body.
Through Anointing within the community, we are to regain our spiritual health in times of physical duress. Through Reconciliation we are encouraged to reaffirm our connectedness with one another when we have been weakened by the stresses of the world around us. And finally, and most important, through Eucharist we are strengthened to become active members of the Church, of the Body of Christ.
In the words of Saint Peter: “[We] are a chosen [people], a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that [we] may announce the praises of him who called [us] out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Yes, whether we are ordained or are part of the laity, the people of God, all of us are all called to serve. To serve by proclaiming that Jesus is the Son of the Father. To serve one another by doing the works of the Lord.
5th Sunday of Easter; April 20, 2008
Acts 6:1-7; 1 Peter 2:4-9; John 14:1-12