THE GREAT AND THE SERVANT,
THE FIRST AND THE LAST
A
visit to the Obizpado de Cubao is always a pleasant experience for me.
Bishop Honesto Ongtioco would joyfully welcome me and other visiting
priests. He would walk me to my car at the parking area and wave goodbye
until I have left. Dining with him is another story. He puts food on my
plate and serves me whatever I want for drinks. And then he would put
out all the possible “to go” items that I could bring home with me.
And there’s the late Msgr. Ceferino Sanchez, a housemate at the
Cardinal Sin Welcome Home. When my psoriasis was at its worst, he bought
an ointment prescribed to him by a dermatologist. Not only that, he
lovingly applied the ointment to my wounds with his bare hands. Oh, how I
cried at his deathbed. (By the way, I’m now psoriasis-free!)
Jesus says in the Gospel, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be
the last of all and the servant of all.” Pope Francis exemplifies this
call of the Gospel.
Following the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi, he commits himself to
the service of the poor, the least and the last. He washed and kissed
the feet of prisoners, AIDS patients and inmates at a youth
rehabilitation center. He is a servant at heart.
As a parish priest, I was used to being served until I moved to my
present residence, where I get to serve at Mass like a sacristan, help
another priest read the sacramentary, prepare things for the Holy Hour,
visit and cheer up the bedridden housemates. I may not have the heart of
a servant yet, but I enjoy playing the supporting role to other
priests.
Receiving a child in Jesus’ name means serving the little ones, the
voiceless, the powerless. It means seeing Jesus in them and serving Him
in them. It was one great challenge that the Lord gave His Apostles in
their quest for greatness — the same path on which we are invited to
journey. Fr. Erick Y. Santos, OFS
REFLECTION QUESTION: Do you recognize Jesus’ invitation for you to serve the little ones?
Lord Jesus, help me to find joy not in greatness but in humble service to others.
No comments:
Post a Comment