Prophets and teachers

In a reading from Acts, Paul (still called Saul at this time) and Barnabas had just returned to Antioch and were speaking among prophets and teachers (Acts 12:24—13:5).  Prophets weren’t fortune tellers, but people sensitive to the presence of God in prayer, worship and daily life.  They helped interpret God’s desires for the Christian community.  Teachers were those gifted in the ability to faithfully pass on the traditions of the Christian community and to instruct others about Scripture.  These two roles are still indispensable to the life of the Church today.

“It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you….” (John 15:16)

In mind’s eye, I’m back on the dusty playground of my elementary school while teams were being chosen for just about any sport or game we played at recess or PE those days—volleyball, softball, dodge ball—and desperately hoping to hear my name called before one of the teams had to take either me or the other miserable kid standing forlornly beside me.

As I read the Acts of the Apostles again today, I realize that the Lord of the Universe has chosen even us playground losers for his team.

And what do we have to do to be worthy of this honor? “…to go and bear fruit that will remain.” (John 15:16)

I’ve been pondering what this means since we former team rejects will never cure cancer, compose a hymn that competes with “Ode to Joy” or work in Calcutta’s slums.  Then I think of a man who I’ve written about before, who used to attend the 5:30 PM daily mass at one of the churches in Bakersfield.

I never even knew his name, but whenever I would attend the weekday mass at that chapel, he’d be sitting in the front pew right in front of the altar playing his harmonica in a low tone.

Occasionally, I could figure out what he was playing, but not often.  Sometimes I thought he was composing his own song, since he would play the same notes over and over and over again.  He was an older man who walked with a stoop and had very arthritic fingers.  At weekday masses it’s uncommon for a lot of music to be heard.  But this man would play his harmonica during the offertory rite and again right after communion.

In retrospect, he was one of the “prophets” that the Holy Spirit chose to place in my life.  At first the harmonica playing was a distraction to me and my own ability to be “in the moment” with Christ at Mass.  But the more I heard the old man “witnessing” with his instrument, it became clear his playing was his way of giving his all to God through his meager talent.  Soon, his playing became a portal through which I entered into a more meaningful prayer with God.

So if any of us are overwhelmed with the idea of God actually choosing us for His team (even if we always struck out), we needn’t be intimidated.  Like my ‘harmonica troubadour’, remember that there are about a zillion small things we can do in our ordinary life to “bear fruit that will remain” and justify our place on God’s team.

As we continue to give thanks to God for the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we might also want to give thanks to the prophets and teachers who have helped us understand Scripture, revealed to us new methods of deeper prayer, encouraged us to be faithful, guided us with their wisdom, showed us effective ways to be sensitive to God’s presence in our life, reminded us of our true vocation as Christians and in times of confusion pointed us in the right direction.  We might not have called them "prophets" or "teachers."  Maybe we called them mother or father, brother or sister, uncle or cousin, friend or co-worker, pastor or associate, author or preacher—even “stranger”.  By whatever name we called them, they were God’s way of reaching out to us.