Saturday – 20th Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel – Matthew 23:1-12

Back to School

Synagogue Church, Nazareth

This past week was back to school in Chicago, not just for my parish grade school but also for Trinity and St. Patrick High School where I taught for almost 40 years.  Is it a little bittersweet for me?  You bet!  I miss setting up my classroom – all the brain-teasers on my desk, all the world religions ‘stuff’ on the tables and walls, the music playing in the background!  I miss creating my seating charts and wondering if anyone this year will figure out the pattern!  I miss that first day when they get their first dose of crazy projects and tests (and my sense of humor)!  I miss the ‘chair’ and those meditation journeys!  And, most importantly I miss the students and the sheer joy I get when I see that moment of enlightenment on their faces when they ‘get it’!

There is one line in today’s Gospel that brings that whole teaching experience to mind.  “As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’  You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.”  I like to think we are all teachers and the best of us are teachers not merely by words in a classroom but by our example in the world.  Consider our greatest teacher, Jesus!  He taught with parables and teachings and then He lived out His words in His daily life! 

It reminds me of one moment during the ordination rite for deacons when the Bishop places the Book of the Gospels in the hands of the Deacon and says: Receive the Book of the Gospel whose herald you have become. Believe what you read. Teach what you believe. Practise what you teach."

We are called to not merely read or teach!  We are called to believe!  We are called to practice what we believe and teach!  Even in today’s Gospel, Jesus instructs His disciples to follow what the scribes and Pharisees SAY but not what they DO!  The meaning is obvious – they do not practice what they teach!

We are all called to be teachers, to be a living example of a Christian life.  But we are also called to live out our lives as ‘students” as well!  And isn’t that what a disciple really is?  Even the most influential teachers know that, in any classroom, there is this wonderful exchange of knowledge and inspiration.  And as much as the kids learn from us, so too do we learn and benefit from their insight.  None of us ever stops learning!  None of us ever stops growing in faith, in our words and in our actions!

Let’s pray today for a safe and exciting school year.  May our children be inspired and energized to grow in knowledge and faith!

P.S.  I do NOT miss lesson plans, grading papers or faculty meetings!

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