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“Jesus said, ‘Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.’” (Luke 4:24)
“SOUL-SURFING” – January 31, 2010
Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 4:21-30
Fr. Robert deLeon, CSC
The gospel passage we hear today begins as Jesus has just finished preaching in the synagogue, and among his listeners were some who remembered him and his parents from earlier days. Amazed they were that this young man who now stood before them preaching with such power and conviction was the same little kid who’d lived just down the street, who’d played in the sandlot with their own kids. In fact, so amazed they were that they just couldn’t bring themselves to take seriously the message Jesus preached in the synagogue. Reading their minds and hearts, “Jesus said, ‘Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.’” (Luke 4:24) And it doesn’t seem to be with anger that he spoke these words to the congregation; more was there resignation in his voice, for he knew the human condition so well. As flesh and blood like us, Jesus experienced the same frustration as others who have ascended the pulpit to preach the Word of God.
Several years ago, a Presbyterian pastor of my acquaintance authored a reflection on preaching which appeared in our local newspaper. I share it with you because it mirrors so well my own experience in preaching, both in the flesh from a pulpit and also as a cyber-preacher. Rev. Harry Heintz, pastor of Brunswick Presbyterian Church, Troy, New York, wrote:
“While I can explain some parts of this mysterious activity called preaching the word, I would be the biggest fool of all to pretend that I understand it even though I've been preaching for a little over 40 years, including about 33 years in one congregation. If you have a sense that God is calling you to preach, try to forget it. Then, if you know you can't forget it, you have good reason to get out of the boat in faith and see what these waters hold for you.
“I don't want to make of preaching more or less than it is. Like every avenue of service, it has its highs and lows, though both, I think, are more exaggerated than in many other lines of service. Preachers have some control over what they say, but no control over what people hear. I sometimes hear my preaching quoted in ways that trouble, hurt or embarrass me. I want to say, ‘I didn't say that.’ No two people will hear anything you say in exactly the same way. Once people leave worship, they may attribute to you what you didn't even say. You must develop a certain level of thickness of skin or you'll be afraid to say anything. When you speak only to win the favor of people or to appease them, you have stopped preaching.
“With a thick skin, you must keep a tender heart. You can't please everyone. Some will want you to preach longer and some shorter. Some will want you to quote poetry and some MTV. Some will want you to endorse one political party and others another party. Some will want you to leave all the dots unconnected and let them connect them. Others will want you to connect all the dots for them. Some will want you to be prophetic. Others will want you to be pastoral. If you try to please everyone, you'll end up ripped apart and empty.
“The pressure isn't all on you. The worship service preaches God's grace. Hymns and songs, sharing of blessings and concerns, prayers and responses and, of course, the sacraments all powerfully proclaim God's saving word to us. The sermon is but one voice through which God speaks. But if you're a preacher, you've got to believe that your preaching is nothing less than the vehicle for God to speak the Good News of salvation to those who hear you. That conviction must grip your soul. Don't ever stand up to preach if you don't believe that God is speaking his words in your words. We preachers don't save or change anyone. We're just foolish enough to stand before others and give our best understanding of how God's eternal word is speaking to this world, for which we receive two great joys. First, we get to hear God's word in an intimate way every time we prepare to preach. That work in the study -- that intense work of blood, sweat, toil and tears -- is crucial and results in great joy as God speaks to you. Second, we see lives being changed by God's word. If you stay in one place long enough as a preacher, you'll see the spirit of the living God taking your feeble efforts and doing amazing things with eternal implications. I am a witness to that.” (Albany, NY “Times-Union,” June 30, 2007)
Yes, I know well just what Pastor Harry Heintz means. I also know well just what Jesus meant when he said to his synagogue congregation, “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.” (Luke 4:24) You see, serving as chaplain to 35 members of my own religious community, many of whom have known me since I was a teenager, I stand at altar and pulpit seven days a week and look out at my elders and pray that God will use my voice to say something of hope and encouragement to them. I guess the fact that, after 8 years together, they’re all still speaking to me in pleasant tones indicates some level of success!
I think, though, that today’s gospel passage speaks not only to professional preachers but even more so to those who daily preach by word and deed to minds and hearts sometimes unreceptive to the message. I speak, of course, of parents who must shepherd a flock of occasionally recalcitrant sheep. How often have parents lamented their unenviable state as, throwing up their hands, they echo the words of Jesus, “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.” (Luke 4:24)
This day, as together we reflect on the challenge of bearing witness to the Word of God, we ask for heaven’s strength as we journey on toward home.