The listeners’ right to hear

BY SAMUEL FRANCIS IMC

It is a pity that many Catholics do not go over the Sunday readings prior to the celebration of the Eucharist. Many hear the readings for the first time when they are proclaimed during Mass.

"A well-prepared sermon is already nine-tenths delivered."

Unfortunately, not all those who proclaim the word of God have the gift of eloquence and audibility. As a result, no matter how hard the faithful strain their ears, twitch their eyes and pull their heads closer to the readers or preachers, they sometimes receive very little to revive their drooping spirits.

Public speakers or preachers must learn to estimate their audience and project their voice in a way that everybody will hear and understand them. To address hundreds of people as though talking to a group of ten is doing great injustice not only to the congregation but also to the Word of God.

The lectern and the pulpit are splendid places from which to proclaim the Word and to preach, but it is so unrewarding to stand and talk there when nobody actually understands a word that’s being said.

In the celebration of the liturgy of the Eucharist, we have two tables; the table of the Eucharist and the table of the Word. For one reason or another not everybody is blessed to receive the body of Christ which is broken at the table of the Eucharist.

However, all the faithful have the right and the privilege to receive the Word of God at the table of the Word. They should never be denied this right, neither by those who proclaim the word nor by those who preach.

In addition, not all the faithful come to church as a duty; people are always in dire need of God’s consolation. They need someone to break down for them the Word of God in a way that is meaningful in their lives. Preachers should be alive to this fact.

After the Gospel is proclaimed, the faithful are unconsciously drawn to the preacher who, they feel, has a real message that he zealously desires to communicate to them. A well-prepared sermon is already nine-tenths delivered.

Well-preached sermons are those that accomplish the most good in the lives of the people. But what a disappointment when the sermon becomes dry, disconnected and undigested.

For a preacher, the sermon should be “bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh, the child of his spiritual labour and the output of his own creative energy”. Such a sermon will live and move and enter into the temple, walking and leaping and praising God, it will enter into the hearts of men and women causing them to rise like eagles and to walk in the way of duty and not faint or tire.

In the Catholic Church, the length of our sermons are getting shorter while the announcements keep getting longer and longer. Often announcements are made with great alacrity; loudly and clearly, repeated over and over to make sure that nobody misses a point. How beautiful it would be if our sermons were given similar attention.

It is interesting to note that many Christians leave the church not remembering what the preaching was about, yet the same Christians can give you an elaborate account of all the announcements made. The word of God is meant to change our lives, but how can we change when we leave our churches without anything to remember?

This is a great challenge to our preachers. Preachers should learn to brood over their texts so as to hatch a whole flock of promising spiritual ideas which will in turn nourish their listeners and bring about transformation in their lives.

Our faithful are hungry for the Word of God. They need to be consoled, encouraged, healed, reconciled, motivated and inspired. They need to know that God loves them.

They won’t receive these gifts anywhere else except in our churches. But that can only happen if we give the Word of God the attention it deserves.