Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish

FR MICHAEL BOAKYE YEBOAH

CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF KUMASI, GHANA.

A COMPETENT CHOICE!

Why did God settle on the choice of Eliakim and Peter when he needed a competent leader to handle the keys of his household?

What makes a competent leader? There are different schools of thought. Some may go for the “Philosopher-King type”, advanced and promoted by Socrates and Plato. Have we had some philosopher-king leaders in world history? I don’t know.

Some worldly people believe in the school of thought that promotes the ideas of Nicolo Machiavelli. The Italian philosopher crafted an imagined competent leader after the renowned Medici Prince, Lorenzo di Magnifico. He wrote his masterpiece The Prince with Lorenzo in mind. It is believed that many leaders read this book and aimed to be like the famous prince of Machiavelli. Do we have a typical example? I also don’t know on this.

A competent leader was always a topic of discussion in Jerusalem and Judah. Will you fault the Jews who continue to be obsessed with the arrival of the Messiah? The house of Israel continues to honor the faith-centered leadership Abraham offered them. Moses continues to guide them in the Torah while Elijah’s prophetic eyes continue to predict their future. And for David, he continues to reign as their celebrated King.

As much as they were blessed with quality leadership in Abraham, Moses, Elijah and David, at every age and time they prayed for a competent leader. In 714 BC, a question of a competent leader came to the forefront. Isaiah the prophet prophesized to the people about the downfall of Shebna and the advancement of Eliakim. 

A wise man once said: “the old man who set off to plant trees may have known that he may not live long enough to benefit from the shade of the trees and yet he planted them because, it is his aim that the generations that will come after him will benefit from his labor.”

In the first reading, we are told about the prophecy of Shebna’s disgrace. God had set-up a project for his people concerning a sustainable future for Judah and Jerusalem. To achieve this, Shebna was appointed treasurer and entrusted with managing the revenue. Anyone would agree that in any project be it religious, social, or political, a person who manages the revenue should be a person who is trustworthy and focused. Normally a treasurer should not complicate his work with other responsibilities but that could not be said of Shebna. We are told he was a man of boundless ambitions. Because he wanted everything to come under his control, he sought control over all things. Our elders say, it is common for self-seeking men to grasp at more than they can manage. When a lot comes under the control of one person, his primary responsibility is neglected and that was the ways of Shebna. At the end of the day, his duties were described with maladministration, for which Isaiah is sent to prophesy against him.

Apart from Shebna’s maladministration, the Jews believed that Shebna kept up a traitorous correspondence with the king of Assyria and was in treaty with him to deliver the city into his hands. Shebna turn out to be an enemy of the true interests of Judah and Jerusalem.

A sustainable goal for a nation or a religious group cannot be pursued if characters like Shebna are chosen as administrators. Bad managers of God’s gifts to humankind have been the biggest problem of our world. The clear goals were set when God created the world but like Shebna, Adam and Eve were not pleased with what God gave them to manage and wanted more. The devil always preys on man’s insatiable desires. But unfortunately, men like Shebna are not the only people in our world. When others fail, God always chooses people who are capable, competent and trustworthy.

When Shebna had failed, God made another choice and so in today’s first reading, the Prophet Isaiah said: “On that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah; I will clothe him with your robe, and gird him with your sash, and give over to him your authority. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah…” In life we should note that those who are diligent in doing the duty of a low sphere stand fairest for preferment in God’s books. Eliakim did not undermine Shebna, nor make an interest against him, nor did he intrude into his office; but God calls him to it. Shebna craved multiple roles that were not freely given to him, but for Eliakim it was the Lord who placed him as lord-chamberlain of the household, lord-treasure, and prime-minister of state.

We need to pray for the Lord to bring the right and competent people to lead us or else we will never enjoy and sustain the goodness God blessed our world with.

Eliakim was the choice of God likewise the choice of Peter in today’s gospel passage. When we get the opportunity to choose leaders, let us pray for the Spirit of the Lord to direct us. Our world needs competent leaders. There are a lot of Shebna-type of leaders in our world and we do not need them. They are too self-centred. Please God, bless our communities, towns, nations and churches with the right people who you have chosen to lead your people. As good as Plato’s philosopher-king leader may be, we need leaders you have chosen as you chose Eliakim and Peter to lead your people. OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP PRAY FOR US.