Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul
Today we celebrate a special feast, the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul. This celebration always falls on June 29th and since it falls on a Sunday this year, it trumps what we would have otherwise celebrated – the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time. These two saints were unique among the apostles and other saints from Scripture. They were both tasked with being shepherds and fathers of the other apostles and the early Church. After our Lord ascended into heaven they would both stand in His place, not replacing Him but continuing His ministry. They would both feed, tend, and lead the flock Jesus entrusted to them.
This
is my last weekend at Precious Blood. I
find it moving and fitting that my last round of Masses would fall on today’s
solemnity. These last two years I have
been tasked with being your shepherd and your father. I was tasked to feed, tend, and lead you,
imitating those apostles as best I could.
It seems appropriate that I share with you what this has meant for me.
Being
a priest is a funny thing. In the first
year of my priesthood, with some exasperation, I told a mentor, a wise and
experienced elderly priest, that “I don’t exactly know what I’m doing. I’m still trying to figure out how to be a
priest.” He simply responded, “Me too.” Even after many years of
priestly ministry, he was still grappling with the gift and responsibility of
the priesthood. After all, the
priesthood is a mystery. Did Jesus need
priests to continue His work? No. Could
He have chosen any manner or means to carry out His ministry after He
ascended? Absolutely. And yet He
chose to use priests. He chose to use
Sts. Peter and Paul to continue His ministry, and throughout the following
centuries He has continued to use priests.
I
am, and every priest is, merely a man with many imperfections. And yet I have been tasked with imitating
Jesus the High Priest. As Jesus offered
Himself as a sacrifice, so I am tasked with offering my life as a sacrifice. As Jesus is a father, so I am tasked with
being a father. As Jesus is a shepherd,
so I am tasked with being a shepherd. It’s
an immense, and sometimes terrifying, responsibility that should not be taken
lightly. There is, after all, a great
difference and gap between Jesus the High Priest and where I find myself. The work of the priest must be to close this
gap, to conform Himself to Jesus the High Priest so that when people see the
priest, they see Jesus. This is
reflected in one of the promises the priest makes at his ordination when the
bishop asks him, “Do you resolve to be united more closely every day to Christ the
High Priest, who offered himself for us as a pure sacrifice, and with him to
consecrate yourselves to God for the salvation of all?” Every day the
priest must decrease so that Jesus may increase in his heart and in the hearts
of those to whom he ministers. The
priest must set his ego aside and allow Jesus to work through Him.
But
the priesthood is not merely an immense burden and responsibility. It is also an immense privilege and gift. Because I am a priest, people will frequently
give me instant access to the most intimate parts of their lives. People will tell me, “Father, we’re pregnant
and you’re the first to know” or “Father, I’m going to propose to my girlfriend
tomorrow and haven’t told anyone yet. Don’t
let it slip!” The priest is there on the wedding day, and there at the
Baptism. The priest is there to witness
the relief and peace of those who reconcile with God in Confession. The priest is with people at those moments of
deep joy and happiness. He is also with
people at those moments of deep sorrow and crisis. If a family member is dying or has died, they
call the priest. If someone is wrestling
with a hidden addiction or vice, terrified of their secret coming to light, the
priest may be the only one who knows. If
someone has been abandoned by a family member or loved one, the priest is there
for them to cry on his shoulder. In some
medical emergency or crisis, the priest is called. And am I, Ben Rivard, called because of who I
am? No. Rather, I am invited to
the baptismal font and the deathbed because of the gift Jesus has given me. I am invited into those intimate moments
because I am a priest, because I am father.
It’s an immense privilege that no priest should take lightly. It is Christ who works through the priest.
Although
I anoint someone on their deathbed, it was another priest who baptized them. It was another priest who heard their first
Confession and gave them their first Communion.
It was another priest who confirmed them and yet another priest who
witnessed their marriage. When I baptize
a little baby at the beginning of their life, it will be another priest years
later who sits by their bedside as they pass from this life to the next. The priest is there at the beginning, the
end, and all throughout life. He is
there to father and shepherd his people closer to Jesus. And in each of these moments, regardless of
the man behind the collar, it is Christ working through the priest.
I
did not have the good fortune of being your pastor very long. But remember that in every Confession heard,
in every reception of Communion made, in every Baptism and every Anointing of
the Sick, in every movement of grace, it was Jesus at work. Jesus was and is the true pastor of Precious
Blood Parish. Of course, we should love
our priests. But we should also remember
that they are instruments of Jesus, tools in His hands. We must keep our focus and gaze fixed on
Jesus.
Although
I have been with you for only two years, I am immensely grateful that I have
had the gift and responsibility of serving you as one of our Lord’s priestly
instruments. My time here has shaped my
priesthood in many beautiful ways and has left a mark on my heart that will
last forever. I was blessed and
privileged to be your pastor. From the
deepest parts of my heart, thank you.
And
for any way in which I have failed to live up to the standard of Jesus the High
Priest, for any way in which I did not allow Him to work through me, for any
time I have caused you unnecessary pain or suffering because of my many
imperfections and deficiencies, I am deeply sorry. I also forgive those in our parish who have
hurt me.
It
is incredibly painful and hard to leave.
I feel a deep sadness in leaving such a wonderful community. But the sorrow I experience in leaving only
highlights the deep love I have for all of you.
Please know that I love you.
My
final request is that you treat Fr. Jins with the same care and love you have
shown me. He is just a man like me, but
a different man, and will therefore have some strengths that I have lacked and
lack some strengths I have had. I ask
you to welcome his strengths with gratitude and be patient with him when he
needs it, just as you have done for me.
But
as he arrives remember that, like me, he is an instrument in the hands of Jesus. He will be the one at the deathbed of some to
whom I gave Communion. He will be the
one to give first Communion to some that I baptized. Just as Sts. Peter and Paul passed the baton
of their ministry onto others, it is my time to pass the baton on to Fr. Jins
who will continue the work of Christ the High Priest.
In
moments like these it’s crucial that we remember that Jesus is the ultimate
pastor who works through His priests. Peter
and Paul came and went. I was here for a
short time but now I must leave. Priests
come and go, but it is Jesus the Good Shepherd, Christ the High Priest who
remains constant. And so, pray for your
priests who are merely earthen vessels that hold a heavenly treasure. Pray that they might keep their promise to
resolve to be united more closely every day to Christ High Priest. Pray that your priests might make their lives
a sacrifice and a gift in imitation of Jesus.
Pray that they might faithfully bring you closer to our Lord. And finally, pray for me that I may tend well
to the field Christ gives me, never clinging to what I have done, always at the
service of what He is doing. God knows
we need all the prayers we can get. I
will continue to pray for you all as I leave.
Farewell.