It will not be so among you

Matthew 20:20-28

          I still have great hope for this new Pope. He has a good heart. Whether the tail can wag the dog though is another question.

          When Jesus says It will not be so among you, he is making a declaratory statement of how he wishes the Apostles to live and thus, the Church.

           It is not commonly thought of, but at one time the church centers that we hear of in Christian scripture were all considered equal.  The churches in Antoich, Jerusalem, Constantinople, Rome, they were all equals. They came together as equals and discussed and made decisions as equals. It is not until the church in Rome decided to declare itself as head and that it had primacy over the other churches that problems really began. This is not a light matter. The idea of all of us on a level playing field versus a pyramid is a critical division among the churches. The pyramid concept seems clearly wrong based on this passage. 

           Whatever human frailties and misinformation the new Pope has, his heart is one of service, justice and peace. He will indeed have to be strong if he plans to reign in the unweildy structures of the Vatican. It will take no less than the spirit of the second vatican council, the spirit of the Spirit let say, to make any changes possible. There is hope that there may yet be a radical paradigm shift. It will be no less profound than acknowledging that the earth is not the center of the universe. All things are possible though with God.

            When this occurs, if this occurs, all sorts of changes can result from the free movement of the Spirit. I pray. In the meantime, we are called to the life of brotherhood, service and love. Everyone. All equal. All loved.

           

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favour of him. And he said to her, ‘What do you want?’ She said to him, ‘Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.’ But Jesus answered, ‘You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?’ They said to him, ‘We are able.’ He said to them, ‘You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.’

When the ten heard it, they were angry with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’