The Danger of Unmonitored Attitudes
by Fr. David M. Knight
June 21, 2024
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
Lectionary 369
2 Kgs 11:1-4, 9-18, 20/Mt 6:19-23
All who by Baptism are “priests in the Priest,” must also be “victims in the Victim,” because Christian ministry is “dying to self” through surrender to Jesus who gave life by dying and wishes to express himself in and through our human words and actions. But in 2Kings 11:1-20:
The priest Jehoiada commanded the... army, “Bring [Athaliah] out... and kill with the sword anyone who follows her”.... So, she was put to death.
Violence is incompatible with the priesthood to which all Christians are consecrated by Baptism. But nonviolent “revolution” isn’t. Jehoida led the people in revolt against a queen who usurped and abused power. Catholics today must oppose all abuse of power, whether in business, government or Church authorities. But peacefully.
There is unrest throughout the Church today because many Catholics, including bishops as well as priests and laity, believe the pope is abusing the power given him by Vatican I in a way contrary to the spirit of Vatican II and against authentic Catholic theology and tradition. These reflections do not pretend to resolve that question. They only remind us that, as Christians consecrated priests, prophets and stewards of Christ’s kingship by Baptism, we all need to confront the issue peacefully, with open minds, taking responsibility for concerned leadership according to each one’s gifts and opportunities. No one can remain indifferent to an issue so vital to the life and ministry of the Church.
In Matthew 6:19-23 Jesus goes to the roots of corruption in every area of human life: personal and private, business and corporate, government and Church. He warns us against the sins seldom confronted, brought to Confession, or healed. These are the unmonitored attitudes and values: the infected wells from which we draw waters of death without even noticing. The sin is one of omission: the failure to look into our hearts and see what our driving desires are; the desires that set the direction of our lives, determine how we invest our time and energies, and what kind of things will make it to the “short list” of choices we may act upon. Jesus calls for an “eye exam.”
Initiative: Examine your unquestioned desires. Call them into question.
Reflections brought to you by the Immersed in Christ Ministry
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