Teaching with Authority

+ The Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Today’s Readings:Deut. 18: 15–20; Ps. 95; 1 Cor. 7: 32–35; Mk. 1: 21–28

There’s story told about the USS Montana, one of our Navy battleships, that was out doing maneuvers on a foggy night. The navigation officer observed a light in the distance that seemed to indicate that another vessel was heading straight toward the ship. The signalman radioed a message: “Attention unknown vessel. This is the USS Montana. Alter your course ten degrees south.”

A message came right back: “Attention USS Montana. Alter your course ten degrees north.”

The captain was summoned. He personally took the radio. “I am a captain in the United States Navy and I am ordering you to bear ten degrees south immediately. Identify yourself and state your rank.”

He heard a feeble answer, “Sir, this is Seaman First Class Scott. You must turn ten degrees north.”

The captain was infuriated at the insubordination. He barked, “I am on the bridge of a battleship, and I am commanding you to bear ten degrees south.”

Seaman Scott radioed back, “But Sir, I am in a lighthouse. You must turn ten degrees north.”

This funny little tale actually illustrates an important truth about authority. A person’s authority is based on two factors: his credibility and the content of his message. In our story, clearly a U.S. Navy Captain carries more weight than a Seaman First Class. But the truth of the situation—there’s no way that a lighthouse is going to go anywhere—definitely shifts the authority equation. If the captain doesn’t swallow his pride and turn his ship, well… oops…

Most of us deal with matters of authority all the time. We’re always making judgments about who and what to believe. The problem is, we don’t always have a clear fix on who a person really is. What’s real and what’s bogus? And to know the genuine, underlying truth to a situation may be more difficult still.

The gospel today says that Jesus “taught with authority, not like the scribes and Pharisees.” The scribes and Pharisees, of course, taught their interpretation of the law. And we know they loved the ego-trip of their position in the Temple. Christ, on the other hand, wasn’t like that. He was powerful because he spoke like a man with authority and the words he spoke were true.

Over the course of his ministry, the proof of Jesus’ authority became clearer. He was kind and loving. He worked wonderful signs and wonders: healings of the sick, miracles of nature, reading minds and hearts. Everything he appeared to be was in complete balance and sync with the message he proclaimed, so both he and his teaching were filled with credibility and authority. He taught: love your enemies… be kind to one another… forgive those who harm you… turn the other cheek. Even from the cross he did just that; he forgave those who tortured him and were about to kill him. Christ spoke about God’s kingdom and lived as the perfect member and model of that kingdom. So much so, that 2000 years later, we still believe him.

But what about us regular people? It’s a funny thing. Most of us want what Aretha Franklin sang about: R-E-S-P-E-­C-T—even if there may be a less noble and less deserving side to who we are. You must listen to me because I deserve respect: I’m the father… I’m the teacher… I’m the boss… I’m the experienced one… I’m older… And more often than not, who we are, or the position we hold, speaks louder than words. But does our position or title guarantee our authority? Only if there’s real truth in the message and our image and our message are consistent.

I can’t tell you how many times people have complained to me about the nasty treatment they received from some priest. As a result, some of them unfortunately quit going to church entirely. But think about it. It’s not right to stop going to your church because of a problem with a priest. If you don’t like your haircut you change stylists; you don’t refuse to ever get another haircut! Isn’t it interesting that the priest who is supposed to lead people in following Christ spoke louder by being unkind than if he had screamed at the congregation during his Sunday sermon.

During the past few years, the media have reported all kinds of stories stemming from the clergy sex abuse scandal. There’s no question that priests who hurt children should be punished. Even so, the message that they had been preaching from their pulpits for years was still true. Sadly, much of their message has now been lost. Those priests were not true to their own message and as a result, their credibility—their authority—was damaged and possibly even destroyed.

Parents want their children to be kind. But if the kids see Mom and Dad being nasty to each other or bad-mouthing other people, they are going to learn nastiness, not kindness, as the standard way of acting. If the parents tell the children to be honest, but then laugh about cheating on their taxes or quietly pocket the money if a sales clerk gives them too much change, aren’t the parents sending a message that is a lot louder than their words?

We know of organizations that are supposed to help people live good Christian lives and bring the love of Christ to the world. Their leaders preach forgiveness, tolerance, and so many other beautiful virtues… but then turn around and venomously bash people who don’t fit into their mold. Isn’t it something that these organizations can raise tons of money for charity, but they can only claim to be charitable, because their uncharitableness towards others, not their gifts of charity, defines who they really are.

Jesus was not like that. He was not like the scribes and Pharisees. He had real authority. He wasn’t two-faced. He wasn’t a hypocrite. He didn’t have a dark side to his life that he kept hidden. He didn’t just speak the truth, he was the truth and lived the truth. Jesus gave orders to unclean spirits and they obeyed him. It wasn’t the words that kicked the devil out, but the person who spoke those words.

Jesus wants us to have that kind of authority, too. In Luke’s gospel, he says, “If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would obey you” (Lk 17: 6). The lesson is that kind of authority comes from being congruent: a fancy word that simply means that your life on the inside is exactly the same as your life on the outside. What you are and what you believe are identical to what you say and what you do.

If trees aren’t obeying you… if other people don’t always seem to put a lot of stock in your words… maybe it’s time to take a good look inside yourself and see where the real you and your outer actions and words go off in different directions. Jesus can help you fix all that. Turn to him and ask for his guidance and strength to get all of you onto the one, right track. Let him help you become more like him: a person of authority.