Beware of priestly demagoguery

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

THIS is a delicate topic. But on this second day of the New Year, we are reminded of this danger that is becoming to be more common these days when we read about John the Baptist whose vocation and mission it was to prepare a people fit for the coming of the Redeemer. (cfr. Jn 1,19-28)

It is obviously good for preachers, especially during the Holy Mass, to be persuasive, articulate and eloquent in their homilies, but they should see to it that they refrain from becoming like a demagogue, shouting and somehow giving the impression of scolding those attending at Mass.

It is as if they are the only ones who know the truth or, worse, who are leading such perfectly holy lives that they feel they have the right to talk and look down on the Mass attendees, speaking condescendingly and even haughtily and arrogantly to them. We priests should refrain from being simply as a performer or actor. We should be faithful ministers of Christ.

Pope Francis once said that the homily “is not a casual discourse, nor a conference or a lesson, but a way of ‘taking up anew that dialogue which has already been opened between the Lord and his people.’” In other words, the homily is a continuing dialogue that Christ has initiated with the people, applying the perennial truths of faith to the current circumstances of the people.

The homily is not therefore some kind of class or lecture, but rather Christ continuing his redemptive work on us, inspiring and edifying us. Pope Francis said that priests should deliver good homilies so that the “Good News” of the Gospel can take root in people’s hearts and help them live holier lives.

What is clear is that the priests in delivering the homily should be very conscious that he is assuming the very person of Christ as head of the Church. He has to project and channel Christ there, not himself. He should be careful not to “steal the spotlight” from Christ.

And the priest should be most aware that he is speaking to the people with the view of helping them to become more and more like Christ, who is the pattern of our humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity. He is not there just to entertain them, or to give them a lecture, much less, to scold them.

A homily is not a speech, a lecture or a class. It should have a friendly and serene tone that fosters the encounter between the people and Christ. It is not showtime, with some sing-and-dance sequence, or drama time with crying moments. But it should somehow be something that feeds the mind and heart of the people. In short, their soul.

For this, they have to make sure that the homily is immediately relevant to people’s lives. This will require a lot of study and meditation of God’s word whose relevance never fades. This will also require that we learn how to relate God’s word to our lives. We really have to know as much as we can the lives and concerns of the people.

With regard to this point, let’s remember what the Letter to the Hebrews said: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (4,12)

In other words, God’s word will always be relevant and effective in our needs. It is the most important word that we need to be familiar with and, in fact, to make also as our own. It is definitely much more important than what our philosophies, ideologies, sciences and technologies can offer us.