Robert Barron - What Real Power Looks Like
Peace be with you. Friends, our Gospel's taken from the 10th chapter of Mark, and it's such high octane spiritual business here. It just behooves us to attend very carefully to these dynamics because what's being laid out for us is something just pivotal in the spiritual order. Here's what we hear. "James and John, the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus and said, 'Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.'" This is comical. You know you're in a bad spiritual space. When you're opening move is to say to Jesus, you need to do whatever we want.
So right away, we're in a bad spiritual space when my ego is now dictating terms to Jesus. But you know what I invite you to do, fellow sinners? Is remember the times when you've been in precisely this attitude I can think of several. Lord, why don't you do what I want? Why are things going the way they're going? Just get with it. I know what's best for me, and why don't you just do it? You are ipso facto in a bad spiritual space when you start dictating terms to Jesus. Think of Martha in the Martha Mary story, "Hey, Lord, tell my sister to help me". There she is dictating terms to the word of God. Never a good idea. The Bible wants us always in the attitude of receptivity to the divine words. He's the opposite of this.
Lord, tell me what to do. Lord, show me the way. Lord, send me. Think of Isaiah, "Here I am. Send me". That's the right space to be in. So we know right away we're going to be in some trouble with these two. And they're young men. I think of James and John here. People died much younger back in ancient times. People lived in their 40s, their 50s, they were old people. So I think of these as young kids, and they show here the attitude of young, immature people. So Jesus humors them, "What do you wish me to do for you"? They answered, "Grant that in your glory, we may sit one at your right and the other at your left".
So in one way, reasonable enough, Jesus is by this time a pretty big deal. Many are convinced he's the Mashiach, the anointed of Israel, the son of David, the one who will throw off the Roman yoke, who will reign as king of Israel and even king of the whole world. That was the Messianic expectation. So these close followers of his watching all this, watching his miracles, watching the crowds gather, yeah, their ship has come in. They backed the right horse. This is the right guy to advance their career. Can I suggest, again too, maybe when you were younger, some of the older folks listening, young people listening right now, we find ourselves precisely in this position?
What I want above all, I want to be a power player. I want to get to the top of the greasy pole. I want to be in a powerful, honorable position. So I'm casting about, I'm looking for those who might facilitate this journey to the top. Pick your field, academics or business or finance or entertainment, or dare I say at the church, you can find this attitude. There they are, Lord. And in a way, I admire these two kids because they're so upfront about it. They're not trying to hide it. See, most people, once you mature a little bit, you still have these desires, but you're much more canny and you'll mask them. They're right up front, okay, "Here's what we want. One at your right. One at your left".
In other words, we want to be the two plenipotentiaries that are reigning over Israel and the whole world next to you. They want power. They want honor. Okay. You say, well, what's the problem with that? Is power a bad thing? No. And I've said this to you before. Precisely because we call God all powerful, it's an elemental description of God. It's in the creed, right? Almighty God. So power can't be bad in itself. And think of some of the most beneficent figures in history. They had power and they knew how to use it well. Power is the capacity to affect change. That's what power means. So if you have the reins of power in business or finance or government or religion, you can affect change.
Don't tell me for a second Lincoln didn't know how to use power and didn't want it. His law partner, Herndon, said that Lincoln's ambition was the little engine that knew no rest. I mean, Lincoln wanted power. And I'd say, thank God he got it at the right moment. Churchill wanted power all his life. Thank God he got it in 1940 and knew how to use it. FDR wanted power and knew how to use it for the most part in a good way. So I'm not bad-mouthing power or even the desire for power. They wanted honor. Necessarily a bad thing? No, no. Honor, as Aquinas said, is the flag of virtue. So when something's good or beautiful or true, we honor it. We put a flag on it and say, "Hey, look at that. That's worthwhile".
And so people have accepted honors. Everyone I just mentioned would've accepted honors in the course of his life. Mother Teresa of Calcutta accepted honors. And at their best, these people would've said, "Yeah, it's a flag of virtue. It's meant to draw attention to something good that I've done or am doing". All right, fair enough. To desire that in itself is not a bad thing. Now, what's the problem, though? And now listen to Jesus. Listen to Jesus. Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking". Why? "Can you drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized"? Of course, they say, "Yeah, sure, sure we can".
What's he talking about? What's the cup? What's the baptism? Precisely this baptism by fire, precisely this acceptance of suffering for the sake of the world. See, is Jesus powerful? Yes, yes. He's the son of the Almighty God. Of course he's powerful. When the son of man is lifted up like a king or emperor, he will draw all people to himself. That's a powerful move. But see, the lifting up is the lifting up of the cross, not on an imperial throne. The power is exercised precisely through a willingness, listen, a willingness to bear the suffering of the world. Jesus invites these apostles of his, he invites all of us who long to be his followers to take this same path.
Can you drink the cup? Can you be baptized? Can you accept suffering for the sake of the world? See, there are a lot of social justice warriors around, and I don't want to mock them too much, but the problem with the social justice warrior thing is, "That's wrong," and whatever it is. There's a thousand things wrong with the world you can point to. "That's wrong, and I'm against that, and I want you to know how much I hate that". Well, yeah, okay, good. You're right, probably. You could point all over the world, all over our country to all kinds of bad things, and you could shout out that's bad, but what's the test that you're not just signaling your virtue, as we say today? What's the test? The test is, are you willing to go where the suffering is and to bear the burden of those who suffer? Can you go and suffer with them so as to alleviate something of their own pain?
I mentioned Mother Teresa. It's a good example. Mother Teresa certainly noticed the great injustice in Calcutta when she was a young nun, the terrible suffering of the people there. Could she have stayed within the confines of her upper crust girl's high school and raised her voice and sent out mimeographed pieces of paper complaining about the situation in Calcutta? Yeah, sure. And would that have been a good thing? Yeah. Yeah. Would she have been right? Yeah, sure. But what does Jesus want? See, can you drink the cup? Can you be baptized? You want to be at my right and my left? Well, then you need to go where I'm going.
What did Mother Teresa do? Well, she left her comfortable high school and she went out into the worst slum in the world. I've been there. I saw it. I'm no Mother Teresa. I wasn't there serving the poor. I was there just to visit her sisters. But she went out into that slum. She didn't just complain about the injustice of it, but she picked up the sick and the dying, and she gave them food and water and medicine, and she brought them to hospitals and she cared for them in love until they died. She drank the cup, see. She was baptized with the baptism.
Now, go back. With all that in mind, go back to the first reading, and the church juxtaposes this beautifully with the Gospel. It's from Isaiah 53, and it's one of the most important chapters in the Old Testament. Get out your Bibles and look up Isaiah 53 and this description of the so-called suffering servant. It's mysterious because the same Isaiah who looks forward to the redemption of Israel and the return of the exiles and the Messianic era, but is very clear about who this Messiah is. Listen, "The Lord was pleased to crush him with infirmity. If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life. Because of his affliction, he shall see the light in fullness of days".
Now, listen, "Through his suffering. My servant shall justify many, and their guilt, he will bear". Oh, there's that cruel sadistic God of the Old Testament. No, no, no. When you see all the patterns and trajectories of the Bible, what is this? But the Lord is pleased when his Mashiach, his anointed, his son of David, indeed, the great leader of Israel is crushed by infirmity. That means he willingly bears the suffering of the world. and thereby saves many, thereby brings salvation. He doesn't bring it by announcing, "Hey, the world is full of injustice".
Well, okay, everyone can see that. He doesn't do it by signaling his virtue. Doesn't do it by hovering above the muck and mud of the world and pronouncing judgment upon it. No, no. He gets down into the muck and the mud. He bears the suffering of the world, suffers with those who are in pain, and thereby takes away their suffering. See, now go back. What's the cross? It's where Jesus is heading when these two naive kids come up and say, "Hey, we want power and honor". "Yeah, it's not mine to give. It's up to the Father," but the Lord is implying something here. "You want to be my right, my left, when I come into my glory"?
Well, when is that? That's precisely when he's raised up on the cross in this attitude of extraordinary suffering, taking upon himself, we say, the sins of the world. That's the messianic task. That's the kingly move. That's where he's going. They want to be at his right and his left? Okay. Think of the two thieves crucified on either side. That's what's on the right and left of Jesus when he comes into his glory. So in conclusion, anyone out there wants power and glory? Okay, they're not bad in themselves, but here's what they look like. Real power, real glory, they look like a willingness to enter into the suffering of the world, and with Christ, I'll use another New Testament image, yoked, yoked to him to help him bear the suffering of the world. And God bless you.