Armchair Preachers

Living the message we preach

 Matthew 12:14-21

The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place. Many people followed him, and he cured them all, but he warned them not to make him known. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through Isaiah the prophet: Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom I delight; I shall place my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not contend or cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory. And in his name the Gentiles will hope.

            You know, it’s very easy to preach on Pope Francis.  So I will!  One of the compelling things about Pope Francis is that his actions speak even louder than his words.  From day one, his message has been, “love the poor and vulnerable.”  When he first stepped foot inside the spacious papal apartments, he exclaimed, “300 people could live here!”  So, instead of living there himself, he resides in two rooms at the much simpler Domus Santa Marta.  The pope also decided to drive himself around Rome in a 29 year old Renault hatchback with 186,000 miles on it, instead of being chauffeured in the usual papal Mercedes ML.  Only Virginia Ricketts has an older car!  The pope is speaking to us, not only in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese, but also with body language, his actions.  And his message is loud and clear, compelling and convicting: show solidarity with the poor and vulnerable.

            In the gospel today we see Jesus also speaks with words and deeds, and his message is the same as Pope Francis’.  Matthew says, quoting Isaiah: “A bruised reed he will not break, a smoldering wick he will not quench.”  What a tender image of the Messiah!  He’s sensitive to the smallest needs of the most vulnerable person.  You’ll remember Jesus chose humble transportation too – a donkey for his triumphal entry into Jerusalem – which gets about the same gas mileage as a Renault.  You see, when actions underscore words, when the messenger and the message are that intimately united, people finally hear the Good News.

            I think the pope is telling us more than how to preach solidarity with the poor; he’s telling us how to preach, period!  He’s gently reminding us that we've lost credibility as preachers because we preach love and humility and service, but our actions preach a different message.  Nothing turns people off faster than hypocrisy.  You've heard of “armchair quarterbacks,” who just complain about how the real quarterbacks play but never get in the game themselves?  Well, nothing is worse than an “armchair preacher” whose message is a million miles away from his actions.  We don’t all have to trade in our cars for 29 year old Renault’s, but we do have to do a reality check: what message does my body language preach?  It is not enough to speak English and Spanish fluently.  Do we live a life witnessing personally to solidarity with the poor and vulnerable?  If we ever did, I dare say the whole world might just become Catholic.

            Praised be Jesus Christ!