Tough Transitions

Practicing a peaceful transition of power

01/11/2021

Mark 1:14-20 After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the Gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Then they left their nets and followed him. He walked along a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a boat mending their nets. Then he called them. So they left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him.

There is an unwritten rule imbedded in the universe that says sooner or later we must say good-bye and leave our legacy to others. That is, there must be a transition of power, and that transition is always tough. I anticipate with great fear and trembling the day I am transferred to another parish and another priest takes my place here at Immaculate Conception. I hope I am fortunate enough to go “feet first” out of these church doors like good old Msgr. Galvin got to in 1996. But even in death I will hate to leave this parish and her people. I love all of you, and most of you love me.

I saw this transition of power in the movie “The Rundown” between Arnold Schwarzeneggar and Dwayne Johnson, two muscle-bound actors who barely fit on the big screen. In one brief scene the Rock (Dwayne Johnson) is walking into a bar and Schwarzeneggar is walking out. It is a short cameo of maybe 5 seconds, and Arnold winks at the Rock and says, “Good luck.” Clearly he was handing over the reins of being the BMOC (big man on cinema) to the Rock. Schwarzeneggar saw that he was entering the twilight of his career and decided to leave his legacy to someone else. It was a peaceful transition of power in that movie, but Arnold is still making blockbuster movies. Transitions of power are always tough.

Perhaps the only instance of peacefully leaving a legacy to another happened in the gospel today, between John the Baptist and Jesus. We read in the gospel of Mark: “After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the Gospel of God.” But this transition was more than merely passing the baton from one prophet to another. It was the transition from the Old Testament to the New Testament. Indeed, it was the transitions from the “old creation” into the “new creation.” St. Paul said in 2 Cor. 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.”

But that transition from John to Jesus was not entirely peaceful. John was imprisoned and later beheaded. In other words, John had to go out “feet first” in order for Jesus to take center stage as the Messiah. Transitions, it seems, are always tough, even between the Best Man (John) and the Bridegroom (Jesus). Still, John the Baptist would ultimately say: “He must increase and I must decrease” (Jn. 2:29), which sounds a lot like Arnold winking and saying to the Rock, “Good luck.”

Folks, I think it is pretty easy to see examples of how tough transitions of power can be. The most glaring example is that of the 45th president of the United States. Can you guess who that is? Regardless of any irregularities in voting, it is clear who won both the popular vote and more than 270 electoral votes. The time has come for a peaceful transition of power, to leave the legacy of leader of the free world to another; to wink and smile like Arnold Schwarzeneggar to Dwayne Johnson and say, “Good luck.” Or, even better, to humbly step aside and support your successor like John the Baptist and say, “He must increase and I must decrease.” That would be the honorable thing to do; that would be the Christian thing to do, but transitions are always tough.

Of course, we don’t have to throw stones at the White House for failing to relinquish power; in this respect, we all live in glass houses. Who wants to leave a parish in the hands of another priest? Not me! Who gladly gives up being principal of a school so someone else can steer the ship? Who wants to sell their house and move into an assisted living facility? Who wants to hand over their car keys because they can’t drive faster than 40 miles per house on the freeway? Who wants to leave this world in the hands of the next generation, who we know will just screw everything up? We all feel the frustration of Dylan Thomas, the Welsh poet, who wrote this about death, the final transition: “Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” Transitions are tough for all of us.

As we approach the Eucharist, Jesus the Bridegroom, prepared for by John the Baptist, his best man, may we too whisper: “He must increase and I must decrease.” Maybe that will help us to make our own transitions of power more peaceful.

Praised be Jesus Christ!