Dear Beloved: since this man, James Martin Gebhart, our son and your relative and friend, is soon to be advanced to the Order of Priests, let us, with him, carefully consider the nature of the ministerial rank in the Church to which he shall be raised.
Responding “Present”
Several minutes ago, Deacon James, you were called forward from your family and the faithful gathered here in the Cathedral of St. Peter, as one who is to be ordained a priest. Your response to your name being called was probably, if you are like me, reminiscent of having your name called when attendance was being taken in elementary school. You simply said: “Present.”
Present to God’s Action at Ordination
Let us reflect for a moment on what being present means at this moment and in your future life as a priest. We begin with this moment. As you come forward, James, and present yourself for ordination, notice that you are not being asked if you are ready. You are not being asked how you want your life as a priest to unfold. You are not being asked to provide us with a resume of your qualifications. While any of those things might be relevant in other situations, at this moment you are being asked to simply present yourself to God, so that God can configure you, through the Sacrament of Holy Orders, to Jesus Christ. You will be made, in the words of today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews, “a priest forever in the line of Melchizedek.” You will, like Isaiah in today’s first reading, have the Spirit of the Lord come upon you. I know that you are aware of these things for you’ve told me of how you are very conscious and humbled by how God, through ordination, will use you as you celebrate the Eucharist “for the glory of God and the sanctification of the Christian people” (Rite of Ordination, 152). You’ve told me of how you look forward to sharing in the ministry of the forgiveness of sins that Jesus, as we heard in today’s Gospel, gave to the Apostles and through their successors to priests and is now experienced through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. You recalled for me how your head was anointed 26 years ago when you were baptized. And then, 13 years after your baptism you were confirmed and again anointed with Chrism. And now, 13 years after Confirmation, you will again be anointed. This time, however, it will not be your head that is anointed, but rather your hands, for it will be your hands that will used by God to offer the Eucharistic sacrifice. Yes, James, I am pleased to say, you are very aware that you are presenting yourself today so that God can use you as a conduit of his love.
Present to God in Prayer
Having reflected upon how you are presenting yourself today for ordination, let us now turn our attention to how you will be presenting yourself in the days and years ahead. We begin with a word on how you will present yourself to God in prayer. Certainly prayer is a vital part of the life of every Christian. It is something that the Gospels tell us Jesus did again and again throughout his public ministry. It is something that the Acts of the Apostles tells us took place again and again in the story of the early Church. Prayer is,
after all, the means by which the branches stay connected to the vine. And by being connected to the vine, Jesus tells us, we are no longer servants but friends. And just as friends spend time with one another, they open their hearts to one another and they listen to one another, prayer is spending time with Christ and opening our hearts and ears to him. And yet as essential as prayer is for all Christians, it takes on an even deeper meaning for the priest who is called to strive to be configured to Christ. It is, in the words of Pope Benedict, “The core of the priesthood…[for o]nly in this way can we truly speak in persona Christi” (Chrism Mass, 2006). I have little doubt, James, that there will be many opportunities for you to exercise your priestly ministry. While some of these will be challenging, it is my prayer that your life as a priest life will be as I have found my priestly life—I life that is very fulfilling. Rooting your life in prayer, will give you strength to face challenges, it will keep you centered on doing God’s will, it will help to prevent you from falling into a mere activism. It will, in a word, enable you to keep your eyes on God’s call to serve Him as a priest. [Prayer in the life of a priest enables us to be like the person St. Gregory the Great spoke of when he said: “Anyone who is determined to reach his destination is not deterred by the roughness of the road that leads to it. Nor must we allow the charm of success to seduce us, or we shall be like a foolish traveler who is so distracted by the pleasant meadows through which he is passing that he forgets where he is going” (Hom. 14. 3-6: PL 76).] As you go forth from here, James, continue to present yourself to God as you pray the Hours, meditate on God’s Holy Scripture and contemplate God’s goodness and mercy.
Present to the People of God
Having reflected upon the need of presenting oneself to God, let us take a moment on
how your priestly life is also a call to present yourself to the People of God. In being present to people, you will, in the words of Vatican II, share their “their joy and hope,…grief and anguish” (Gaudium et Spes, 1). As one who is configured to Christ, remember that it was at a well in Samaria that Jesus gave living waters to the thirsting woman of that town, that it was on a walk through Jericho that Jesus called Zachaeus down from a tree, that it was in a crowd of people pressing in on him that he felt healing go out from him to cure the woman suffering from hemorrhages. In a word, Jesus had the heart of a shepherd who went out in search of the lost. His heart was moved with pity. His heart was moved with joy. His heart was moved with sadness. His heart was moved with longing. May the people, James, you are called to serve know through your presence to them, a shepherd’s heart. And may, Jesus, the Good Shepherd work in you and through you.
Going Forth as a Priest
As you present yourself today to be ordained a Priest of Jesus Christ, we rejoice at the gift of the Priesthood that is conferred upon you today. May you, like Isaiah, go forth to “bring glad tidings to the lowly; to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and release to the prisoners. To announce a year of favor from the Lord.”
