50th Anniversary of Priestly Ordination
of Father Ralph Fraats
23 May 2010 - St. John the Evangelist Church, New Hartford, NY
I must first express my gratitude to Father Fraats for the joy and great honor that he has given me in asking me to give the homily on the occasion of his fiftieth anniversary of ordination to the priesthood. We thank Father Fraats for his many decades of service to the people of God and we thank God for the gift of Father Fraats.
A few years ago, I was having dinner in a nice restaurant with a friend. Unfortunately, we were having difficulties with the waiter. Everything was going wrong: I don’t know if it was us or him, but we were not communicating well. And he was blaming all the mistakes on us He was rather elderly and my friend—uncharitably—remarked that the waiter was arrogant because he had served the meal at the Last Supper. I chuckled then, but later that evening, I reflected that—at least for the most important part of the meal, the institution of the Eucharist—there were no waiters. Jesus Himself was serving the food, in this case, His own Body and Precious Blood.
Waiters were needed only when Jesus was no longer bodily present. And these waiters are the priests. In today’s church, we regularly speak of priestly ministry—and this somehow obscures the true “serving” role of the priest. For a few moments, I would continue to reflect on the role of a “waiter” to see if this metaphor can give us any insights into the role of the priest in the Church.
What is the fundamental role of the waiter? To bring the food to the table. It is not his food; he did not prepare it. He just brings to us what he has been given. And this is like the role of the priest. The priest is not bringing to us something that is his. He hands over what he has been given. The Church has entrusted the priest with the most precious gifts of Word and Sacrament—and the priest shares these gifts with us. The priest shares with us the inspirations of the Spirit that he has received in prayer and study.
The waiter is not part of the group of people dining at the table. He is the servant—always outside the group. He might be our favorite waiter in our favorite restaurant. We might exchange pleasantries, inquire about him, and joke with him, but he is still the waiter. He will come and go. He will serve not only our table, but enter into other similar relationships with other diners at other tables. So it is with the priest. He serves families; he shares in their joys, their sadness, their secrets; he provides support and guidance, but he is not part of the family. He moves on to other families, to other parishes.
The waiter must always remember that he is a server, bringing the food to the table. He cannot dictate to the people what they should order to eat, nor can he force them to eat the food if they don’t want to do so. He must treat the diners with respect. He must not be intrusive or obnoxious, drawing attention to himself. Again, we reflect that this is the role of the priest. The priest brings the gifts of God to the people. He cannot force them to accept them or even appreciate them. He can simply offer them in the best way that he knows how. It is the right and the responsibility of the people to use these divine gifts in the most effective manner.
The waiter should not expect too much praise. He just brought the food; he didn’t cook it. So, if he gets a nice tip and perhaps a kind word of thanks, that is enough. He would be foolish to expect a statue in his honor for the meals he served. So too must the priest be cautious in his expectations for recognition, accolades or rewards.. In the end, we priests must expect nothing more than the words offered spoke by the master of the good servant in the parable, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful…” (Matthew 25:23)
Lastly, let us recall that we have all been taught how to treat waiters. Abusive and unreasonable demands are uncalled for. Even when things don’t go as one would expect, let us be patient and appreciate at least the good will of the waiter. As we deal with our priests, most of whom have served with grace-filled dedication, let us remember that they offered themselves for priestly ordination because they want to serve us. This should count for a great deal for us—it does with God.
