September 23, 2012
Reflection
on Lectoring
We started this series of reflections on your role as a
lector by considering why God selected you to serve. This week, and in the
weeks that follow, we’ll consider some of the possible reasons why you decided to
answer God’s call.
If you asked the prophet Jeremiah why he chose to serve God, he might direct your attention to the following quote:
“You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped, you were too strong for me and you triumphed. All the day I am an object of laughter, everyone mocks me. . . I say to myself, I will not mention him, I will speak in his name no more. But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones; I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it” (Jeremiah 20:7, 9).
This passionate statement was not an intellectual analysis of the pros and cons of accepting an assignment. Jeremiah does not ask: “Do I have the time? Can I do this well enough? Isn’t there someone else who could do it better?” Jeremiah’s answer to the question, “Should I do this?” is not about thinking. It is about feeling. It is about having something burning inside that needs to come out. It is knowing that you must try, because there is nothing worse than not trying.
When sharing the Scriptures burns in your heart, it consumes your entire being. It is not about having a good voice, clear diction, or even a respectable suit of clothes. It is about every part of you - your beliefs, the things that make you happy, the things that make you sad, the love you have for others, and the love you have for God. When lectoring becomes part of you, you begin to understand what consumed Jeremiah when he says, “I grow weary holding it in. I cannot endure it."
If you asked the prophet Jeremiah why he chose to serve God, he might direct your attention to the following quote:
“You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped, you were too strong for me and you triumphed. All the day I am an object of laughter, everyone mocks me. . . I say to myself, I will not mention him, I will speak in his name no more. But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones; I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it” (Jeremiah 20:7, 9).
This passionate statement was not an intellectual analysis of the pros and cons of accepting an assignment. Jeremiah does not ask: “Do I have the time? Can I do this well enough? Isn’t there someone else who could do it better?” Jeremiah’s answer to the question, “Should I do this?” is not about thinking. It is about feeling. It is about having something burning inside that needs to come out. It is knowing that you must try, because there is nothing worse than not trying.
When sharing the Scriptures burns in your heart, it consumes your entire being. It is not about having a good voice, clear diction, or even a respectable suit of clothes. It is about every part of you - your beliefs, the things that make you happy, the things that make you sad, the love you have for others, and the love you have for God. When lectoring becomes part of you, you begin to understand what consumed Jeremiah when he says, “I grow weary holding it in. I cannot endure it."
________________________
“To
whomever I send you, you shall go; whatever I command you, you shall speak.”
_______________________________
First Reading - Wisdom 2:12, 17-20
Anger, Sadness or Hope
All three of today’s readings could make you angry - very angry.
In the first reading, the wicked say, “With revilement and torture let us put the just one to the test.” In the second reading, James asks where do the wars and conflicts come from? He supplies the answer when he warns, “Is it not from your passions that make war within your members?” In the Gospel, Jesus tells his apostles that he will be killed, but incredibly they seem more interested in knowing which of them holds the highest rank in the group.
You could get very angry, or very sad. Or maybe there is another option.
In a strange way, the wicked in the first reading may have the answer to reconciling the harsh reality of human frailty and the promise of something better. Perhaps when they say, “for according to his own words, God will take care of him,” they might grudgingly be admitting that there is a real answer that cannot be assailed.
What tone or feeling should the assembly hear in the words of today’s first reading? Anger, sadness or hope? Is there a reason to be hopeful in the midst of intolerance, injustice and conflict? It is a question that the lector must first resolve for himself or herself before ascending to the ambo.
____________________________
Second Reading - James 3:16 - 4:3
Wisdom and Common Sense
In the beginning of his letter, James tells his
readers/hearers, “If any of you lacks
wisdom, he should ask God who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly”
(James 1:5). In today’s second reading,
he shows that wisdom and common sense have a lot in common.
Envy can destroy a community and the people in that community, including the person who possesses envy. On the other hand James says, “righteousness is sown in peace for those who cultivate peace.” So simple, so obvious, yet so hard to do without God’s help.
As we saw in the selections from James over the past couple of weeks, the author is concerned with the kinds of behaviors that strengthen the individual and the community. People don’t live in isolation, and a person’s behavior touches everyone else around him or her.
As was true for the first reading, the tone of your proclamation may be the one thing that people at Mass remember most. Will they hear the comforting words “peaceable, gentle, compliant,” and be encouraged? Or will they hear the angry words “kill and envy,” and feel reprimanded? Or will they hear both sets of words, and recognize that “wisdom from above’ and a little common sense will “cultivate peace.” How well you proclaim these words may significantly influence what they hear and remember.
Envy can destroy a community and the people in that community, including the person who possesses envy. On the other hand James says, “righteousness is sown in peace for those who cultivate peace.” So simple, so obvious, yet so hard to do without God’s help.
As we saw in the selections from James over the past couple of weeks, the author is concerned with the kinds of behaviors that strengthen the individual and the community. People don’t live in isolation, and a person’s behavior touches everyone else around him or her.
As was true for the first reading, the tone of your proclamation may be the one thing that people at Mass remember most. Will they hear the comforting words “peaceable, gentle, compliant,” and be encouraged? Or will they hear the angry words “kill and envy,” and feel reprimanded? Or will they hear both sets of words, and recognize that “wisdom from above’ and a little common sense will “cultivate peace.” How well you proclaim these words may significantly influence what they hear and remember.
© 2012 George Fournier
