GOD’S WORD FOR THE DAY (based on Catholic Liturgical Readings)
DATE: 29TH JUNE 2017
SOLEMNITY OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL, APOSTLES
FIRST READING: Acts 12:1-11
PSALM: Psalm 34:2-9
SECOND READING: 2Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18
GOSPEL: Matthew 16:13-19
THEME: MODEL OF LEADERSHIP
It said that “he who thinketh he leadeth and hath no one following him is only taking a walk” (Anonymous). There is always an element of ‘following’ in leadership. The followers may follow the ideas or ideals of the leader. Consequently, a leader is a person who wields massive impact. A selfless leader, with the passage of time, will gather around him/herself selfless followers and a self-seeking leader will consciously or unconsciously raise up self-seeking followers.
One thing that strongly characterised the early Christian community was the understanding of leadership as service. The leaders suffered for the good of the flock. They were the first to lay down their lives in the face of any trial. They had less privileges and yet worked tirelessly. They had the “smell of the sheep”. Saints Peter and Paul, whose feast we celebrate today offer us a model of leadership in the Body of Christ.
Paul uses the imagery of libation to describe his service to the Christian community: “As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2Tim 4:6-8). For him, leadership was a call to sacrifice – an act of laying down one’s life. He gave his all for the cause of the Gospel and died as a martyr.
Peter also offered his life as sacrifice. The First Reading gives us an account of his imprisonment and his subsequent deliverance. Church history and tradition hold that he too sealed his sacrifice with the heroic act of martyrdom.
In some Christian communities today, the power dimension of leadership has become so strong that it has almost supplanted the suffering-servant dimension of it. The pomp and pride that characterise political leadership have eaten deep into the fibre of some of our Christian communities to the extent that in some places church leaders have become “small gods” needing libation instead of pouring themselves out as libation.
Peter, the rock on which the Church was built, and Paul, the indefatigable tireless missionary, both offered their lives in sacrifice. As we celebrate their solemnity, may we emulate their good examples and offer our lives selflessly as a sweet smelling sacrifice to God.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, you gave your all without counting the cost. May I also give my all without counting the cost. Amen
Andrews Obeng, svd
DIVINE WORD MISSIONARIES
BIBLICAL PASTORAL MINISTRY
(Ghana Province)
“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the Word and the Spirit of grace. And may the heart of Jesus live in the hearts of all people” (St. Arnold Janssen).