READY SET GOSPEL: WE ARE ALL DEACONS!
This is a very special edition. This Sunday, in Los Feliz, an lovely diverse enclave of the City of Angels, Fr Max is being installed as the Pastor of the century old Our Mother of Good Counsel Augustinian parish. So it is fitting that this week’s Gospel is all about the priesthood and Jesus’s formation of these ranks while here on earth with us.
Ready Set Gospel is a weekly opportunity to live in unity, truth and love as well as a few moments to prepare for the upcoming Sunday Mass. In this episode Fr Max speaks about how Christ calls all of us to serve - establishing the priesthood and calling us all to be deacons of the Word!
Father Max takes us back to the early challenges of the young Christian church and the importance of service, specifically focusing on the following:
Emergence of Problems in the Early Church: Despite an initial "idyllic phase," the early church encountered practical issues, such as food shortages and ineffective distribution. What struggles does the Church today have to contend where we can serve the greater good?
Establishment of the Diaconate: To address these physical needs and the grumbling of the people, the apostles appointed seven men to serve as deacons (diakonoi), a Greek term meaning "to serve".
Connection Between Spiritual and Physical Nourishment: There is a dynamic link between being spiritually fed by the "body of Christ" at the altar and the motivation to feed others' physical needs at the "dining room table".
The Heart of Holy Orders: Service is the core of holy orders; modern priests must first be ordained as deacons to remind them that the heart of their priesthood is to serve. In fact we can all be “little deacons” through our service!
Call to Action for Believers: Receiving the body of Christ should animate believers to act as "servants for others" and respond to the various needs of the world around them.
