Priesthood Ordination
Bishop of Lake Charles
Priesthood Ordination
Reverend Jacob Scott Conner
December 18, 2010
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
“I will raise up a righteous shoot to David.” Jeremiah 23:5
We call these the “O” antiphon days, for each Magnificat antiphon at Evening Prayer begins with that expression, “O,” a sigh of expectation and longing. In former times, today was an Ember Day, a special day of penitential practice to begin the final week of preparation for Christmas. These final days bring into focus the object of our hope, the birthday of Christ, our Savior, the Word of God become flesh. And here a new priest takes his place in our midst, in persona Christi, the embodiment of Christ’s presence. What possible meaning could the desire expressed in an “O” antiphon have for a priest who receives such a responsibility? Perhaps we should let each antiphon speak.
“O Sapientia” is the first. I remember when I was a young priest. I thought I knew it all or at least enough to know what it is I needed to do. It was simply a form of arrogance, a youthful conceit, and it is no help at all to the pursuit of “wisdom.” We must never confuse the zeal and idealism of youth with “wisdom.” They are wholesome and good but they are means to an end, not the end in itself. How many times did I pray in the Liturgy of Hours, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10) and fail to make the connection between what it is I lacked and who it was who could give it to me? First I had to admit that I lacked something. God cannot fill a heart that is cluttered with self-esteem. It is precisely for this reason that the virtues of obedience and humility are important for the priestly life. Without them we fail to acknowledge how incompetent we are and how fully dependent on the Lord we must be. “O Wisdom.”
“O Adonai” cries out the second antiphon. Who is this “Adonai”? He is the Lord. The Lord who took the initiative to speak to Moses in a burning bush is the same Lord who had the audacity to descend from heaven and speak to mankind in the Word made flesh. “Adonai” you must seek, but remember He has first sought you. It is we who evade Him. He has hidden nothing and revealed it all in His love. How does St. John, the great theologian of Christmas, express it? “In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins” (I John 4:10). Seek the Lord, always, in your Eucharistic hour and in your faithful praying of the Liturgy of Hours and realize that He is with you. He will take you by the hand and lead you. “O Adonai.”
“O radix Iesse”reminds us of our origins. I recall the marvelous Tree of Jesse window in the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Chartres which depicts the tree coming forth from the “root of Jesse”—all the descendants forming a royal line, culminating in the Prince of Peace. We descend from him also, being part of this spiritual genealogy. How can we make such a statement? Only because of Christ, can we say such a thing. As St. Paul so victoriously says, “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendant, heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29). Belong to Christ and to no other. Your celibacy and your chastity will remind you to whom you belong and what you should seek with a well ordered life of proper priorities. They will also remind others to be in your presence for the right reasons. Cherish that purity. “O root of Jesse.”
“O clavis David” unlocks the door for the King. We use keys to open and close, to lock and unlock something valuable. Always be aware that a priest is called to open the minds and hearts of the faithful to Christ. When our Lord, Jesus Christ, said to St. Peter, “I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 16:19), He used a rich metaphor to reveal His gift to the apostle. Only the king could give to his chief steward the keys to the palace. And it is only the Lord, whose priest you become, who can give to you the riches that you will share with others. They belong not to you but to Him and to those with whom He shares them through your ministry. St. Paul reminds St. Timothy, “Do not neglect the gift you have, which was conferred on you though the prophetic word with the imposition of hands of the presbyterate” (I Timothy 4:14). Do not bar the door of entry to the flock by laziness and ineptitude. Persevere in opening the door for the sheep to enter. Always live so that the faithful say that you opened for them the path to Christ. “O key of David.”
The sun is one of the most conspicuous symbols of all, because it is the brightest. “O Oriens” is our next antiphon. Our solar system’s star is a most ancient reminder of Christ, the Son of God, who rises in the east and lights up the world, slowly but surely dispelling the darkness of the night. As a priest, you are called to bring that light to others, freeing the guilty from sin’s darkness, strengthening the faith of the weak, and putting to rest uncertainty and doubt. The truth of what you proclaim in Christ must be spoken, preached and lived openly as a priest without reservation. Recall what Jesus said to those who believed in Him. “If you remain in my word, you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31). Never obscure Christ from those who seek Him and even from those who do not. Do not force people to make appointments with you in order to confess their sins. Their faults have shamed them enough. Do not hide or conceal yourself. You are the instrument of God’s grace. Let that truth speak for itself through your holy availability, as inevitably as a rising sun evaporates a fog or melts the frost. “O rising sun.”
“O Rex gentium et desideratus earum” expresses our yearning for a leader who is attentive to our needs. Jesus the King is the one who protects, rules, and gives meaning to life through His very person. “Then you are a king?” (John 18:37)Pontius Pilate asked Jesus. Pilate was perhaps confused, maybe engaging in some mockery, but Jesus accepted the attribution. “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth” (John 18:37). Jesus lays claim to His kingship from the very moment of that first Christmas. His kingdom is a kingdom of truth, to which His birth to a humble virgin of Nazareth in a manger of Bethlehem gives radical testimony. Be a priest who leads, who makes decisions after an ascent to the mountain and a night of prayer, a priest who is not afraid to proclaim the kingdom. The people are tired of the hireling “who is not a shepherd and … sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away” (John 10:12). They want the truth, even when they are reluctant to hear it. They want the King—“O King whom all the peoples desire.”
And so we come to our final antiphon. “O Emmanuel” is the name that means “God is with us” (Matthew 1:23). Years ago, when our area was plagued by church fires and the authorities feared an arsonist, the Bishop ordered the churches to be locked day and night, except at times of Masses. That same Bishop was fond of telling the story of how one day a Protestant gentleman approached him and asked when the churches would be re-opened. To have them closed was a pity, he added, because he had many Catholic friends and many Catholic employees and they took such consolation from entering their churches to pray at any time. It was the strength they drew from the Eucharistic Presence, and he would hope the fear would pass and the churches would cease being locked. How often have good and conscientious people outside our communion reminded us, who are Catholics, of what should require no reminder—that “God is with us,” that the Eucharist is our most priceless gift, that it should not be hidden, that it is an abiding presence. Some of our Church Fathers thought this presence was prefigured at Jesus’ birth, for the name “Bethlehem” in Hebrew means “house of bread.” As a priest, remember your vocation flows from the Eucharist. Do not be slack in celebrating the Eucharist and do not fail to adore Christ present when you celebrate the mysteries of Redemption. “O Immanuel.”
There is something inextricable between the priesthood and the Incarnation. If the priest is to be another Christ, then the priest must advance “in wisdom and age and favor before God and man” (Luke 2:52). His vocation is a mystery of Christ present, a desire for which all the “O antiphons” give expression. It was Pope John Paul II who, in reflecting on his own initial call to priesthood, said, “There was a clear sense that what I heard in my heart was no human voice, nor was it an idea of my own. Christ was calling me to serve him as a priest.” In a sense, this ordination is your Bethlehem and you will inevitably have your Gethsemane and your Calvary, but when in the deepest moments of prayer you sense that call that is not your own, may you come to find an angel and a star leading you to the manger and an empty sepulcher and the Lord in the breaking of the bread.