Tonight, Fr. Stephen Chan Mun Hung, OFM gave his first of the three talks on the theology of ministry to members of the permanent diaconate, including the candidates and aspirants. He applied sociological reasoning in the understanding of the development of the hierarchy.
To begin with, he recalled that all Christians share the triple ministry of king, priest and prophet of Jesus through baptism. He warned that we are using Old Testament terms but we should not think that there is any logical continuity. We truly share these three offices with Jesus but not in the Old Testament manner.
When society was primitive, division of labour was not developed. It was common for a patriarch to take up several roles. For example, Abraham led his servants into battle like any ancient kings did (Genesis 14:14). He built altars to offer sacrifice like priests (Genesis 13:18). Furthermore, he was called a prophet in the story of Abimelech (Genesis 20:7). Even in Moses and those judges in Canaan can we find these 3 roles performed by a single person. However, when society evolved, division of labour became more sophisticated. The role of kings was separated from prophets with the election of Saul, the first Israelite king. When the first Temple was built, the role of priests was separated from kings. When the class of scripture copyists arose, priests would specialize in butchering and offering sacrifice. They no longer preached and taught the Law. In short, when a society evolves, more and more institutions arise to get things done in an effective and efficient manner.
Jesus was a charismatic leader. He did not work within the establishment. Jesus was not a Levite or member of the Zadok family. Thus, Jesus could not be a priest in the OT establishment. Yet. Jesus is the eternal High Priest, whose body is the true Temple and the true Sacrifice at the same time.
Jesus could not be a spokesman of God's word because he himself is the Word of God which the prophets speak about! Jesus came to reveal more clearly and directly God's love.
Jesus is the Universal King, not in the political sense. He comes to serve and to suffer for our sins. His dominion lies in conquering death.
That is why Fr. Stephen Chan warned us beforehand not to confine our thinking in the Old Testament manner. He also pointed out one important consequence of Jesus being outside the establishment: Jesus allows institutions to develop and adapt to the temporal and regional needs. The Church can be more flexible in adapting to different civilizations. Had Jesus come from within an establishment, the Church would have been bound by strict traditions.
Fr. Stephen Chan then turned to the early Church in the first century. He believed that Apostles and prophets mentioned in Pauline epistles were charismatic but itinerary leaders. Like Paul, their charisma prevented them from staying in the same place for too long. Bishops and deacons were bureaucratic resident leaders. They stayed in a local church to handle daily routines. Charismatic leaders could not pass on their charisma to their successors. They do not have successors. They are important and instrumental for the genesis of an organization but their leadership is doomed to be taken over by residential local leaders whose job descriptions can be written down in details.
In the end, Fr. Chan reminded us to keep in mind Jesus' ministry. He came to serve with love. The ministry of deacons belongs to routine ones. It can be repetitive and boring. However, each subject we serve is different. Therefore, the ministry is not totally routine. With the model of Jesus in mind, Fr. Chan is confident that we can do a good job.
Dear Lord, may Your words be our guiding light and burning fire to keep our compassion for the needy aglow. Amen.
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