Strengthen The Priest! (February 8, 2004)

Recently I’ve been blessed more by listening to the Catholic radio station, AM 820, than the evangelical one, FM 90.1 (WMBI). My theology of course lines up mostly with WMBI, and I remain convinced as ever that the Catholic Church must repent of the errors that Martin Luther pointed out hundreds of years ago. But at least the Catholics know how to do Christian radio, and I wish that WMBI would be that deep and reverent and respectful of the listener. You have no idea how frustrated I get listening to evangelical Christian radio show hosts trade inept banter and joke about trivialities. (Though maybe the Catholic radio does that too, and I just haven't heard it.)

Sunday morning on the way to church I listened to ex-baseball commissioner (and devout Catholic) Bowie Kuhn share nuggets of wisdom at what appeared to be a Catholic version of a "Promise Keepers" meeting. Among the pieces of advice he himself had received and acted upon was a comment made to him by a bishop who said, "When you go to Mass in whatever city you’re visiting, don't sit in the back pew any more. Sit in the front."

"Why?" Kuhn asked.

"To strengthen the priest!"

(I love that word "strengthen". We evangelicals would say "encourage", but "strengthen" is better.)

The bishop explained that the priests would know who Kuhn was, and it would help them to see a public figure setting an example of interest and respect for the rest of the parishioners. In his own mind, Kuhn saw himself as nothing special, and he had no idea that where he sat would make a difference to anybody. But challenged to view things from a perspective outside his own, away from the pew and up on the chancel where there stood a possibly discouraged priest, it made sense that, by sitting up front, he could render a small kindness to the man of God. From then on, at every new church he visited, he sat up front.

A commitment to moral behavior involves sending your mind outside its selfish confines in order to view yourself from the perspective of another. I am thankful Kuhn was able to "see himself" from the chancel and perceive the effect, and act upon it. Many times I have had the "weakening" experience in the pulpit of watching church leaders giggle to themselves over private jokes as the sermon began, or watching them go out in the middle of the sermon to get a cup of tea. It is hard to feel the Holy Spirit's power when preaching to inattention and irreverence.

But with a congregation of Bowie Kuhns, the preacher will feel stronger and the parishioners will receive a greater blessing.