Hey, Church fans! I had a great vacation and am back in the saddle. NB, I think you want to watch the video on this one. There is a whole second section that is not in the text. Blessings.
I’ve been truly blessed in my life. I was privileged to be able to attend the University of Notre Dame College of Business and ended up getting a degree in Organizational Theory and Labor Relations.
When one enters the College, you spend the first year in introductory classes including Finance, Management, Accounting, Statistics and such. It’s a very challenging and competitive environment and everyone wants to do well. Our first mid-term exam in the Introduction to Business Management course was 10 essay questions, each worth ten points. Most of the questions where variations of what had been covered in the course. Except the last question. It simply read: “What is the name of the man who cleans this building? – 10 points.”
When grades came back the next week, most of the students were furious. This was not part of the material covered, they protested. How could they be held accountable for information like this?
Our professor was a pretty cagey fellow. He listened patiently until they had all had their say, then he replied, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is a Catholic University and the values of our faith are part of everything we do. Chief among those values is the life and dignity of the human person. If you succeed here, once you leave, you will be using the tools of management which we will endeavor to teach you. But you must never forget that you will be doing so within an organization that made up of people, each of whom has a dignity given to them by God and none of whom are insignificant. The people who clean your building are some of the most important people in the organization. The first impression that anyone gets of your company is what the campus looks like. Facilities that are well-maintained and clean, grounds that are well-groomed and inviting – all of this sends a message as to what kind of organization you are. Everyone in your organization is important.
Incidentally, the janitor’s name was Phil. The only reason I knew that for the exam is because I was chatting with him the day before as he was headed in to clean the restrooms. I had been a janitor in high school and so we were able to talk shop, so to speak.
There’s a little bit of that going on in today’s gospel. To the religious mindset of the people of Jesus’ day, the signs that one was righteous before God were the blessings of health, wealth, and lots of male children to carry on your name. The poor in spirit, the meek, those who mourn, the persecuted did not come to mind as those blessed by God. But there it is. One of the things that Jesus is pointing out to them is that there are no insignificant people in the Kingdom of God. Leo the Great once told the newly baptized, “Christian, remember your dignity!” As Christians we are at our best when we remember the dignity of those around us, especially when we uphold that dignity in the public square.