When it comes to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass I freely admit that of all the Eucharistic Prayers that are offered I do LOVE the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer I) the best. The words after the consecration are specifically about our role in this heavenly drama:
“we, your servants and your holy people, offer to your glorious majesty from the gifts that you have given us, this pure victim, this holy victim, this spotless victim, the holy Bread of eternal life and the Chalice of everlasting salvation.”
Are not those words just beautiful? And then, after a few lines, “in humble prayer we ask you, almighty God command these gifts be borne by the hands of your holy angel to your altar on high—–so that all of us may be filled with every grace and heavenly blessing.—“ Magnificent, even out of context. But I skipped a few lines that come between the italicized words. Specifically, “the offering of your high priest, Melchizedek—“
I don’t know about you but I confess, I never thought about “Melchizedek.” Who is he? Where did he come from? Why am I thinking about this after all these years? Well, I heard a homily the other day where the priest talked about tithing. (Everyone’s favorite topic). First he quoted from the Letter to the Hebrews, Ch 5; 6, “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” Then he went on to say that in Chapter 14 of the Book of Genesis Abram’s nephew, Lot, was captured during the Battle of Sidim. So Abram takes 318 of his best men and goes and rescues him. Enter Melchizedek (I have just given new meaning to the word “synopsis”).
Anyway, the point Father was traveling to was this. After Abram won his victory, the King of Salem, Melchizedek, came out to greet Abram and gave him bread and wine, and being a priest of God, he blessed Abram with these words “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, the Creator of heaven and earth—“ And Abram knew immediately that he was supposed to give Melchizedek 10% of all he had. And he DID.
As soon as Father said this, drums began beating inside my head. Amid the pounding I began hearing words, “WHAT! WHAT! What did he say? Did he say Abram just knew? How did he know that? How could he know that? Why not 5% or 25%?” The pounding turned into doubting.
He immediately directed us all back to the quote from the Letter to the Hebrews. He explained that since Jesus was “a priest forever in the line of Melchizedek” and Abram knew what to do, that is why we are asked to give 10% as a tithe. Father did admit that no one really knows who Melchizedek was or where he actually came from. Salem could have referred to the future Jerusalem or Zion or to a tabernacle; there is much speculation. Oh well.
I am far from being a theologian, so I assume this is solid Catholic teaching. Since Jesus is identified as a “priest forever in the line of Melchizedek,” He assumes the role of High Priest once and for all. This I will not question even though I really do not understand it. But I posted this here because our CWG site is a truly Catholic place, and I am hoping for some simple input regarding the tithing business.
Father finished by saying, “All of us priests follow in Jesus’ footsteps. Therefore we have the right to request money from you, and you have an obligation to give it.” He said it, and I did not like it. For me it was like swallowing a pill that got stuck in my throat. Well, the pill is still stuck, right where it stopped. Any ideas on how I can get that pill swallowed without gagging would be appreciated.
LarryPeterson
Larry is a Catholic/Christian author and blogger and posts weekly commentary. His work has appeared in such publications as Zenit from Rome, Aleteia, New Evangelists, Top Catholic Blogs, Big Pulpit, Catholic365.com and others. His first children's picture book, "Slippery Willie's Stupid, Ugly Shoes" was published in 2011. In 2012, his full-length novel, "The Priest and the Peaches" was released. His second novel, "The Demons of Abadon", was released in the spring of 2016. Larry’s latest novel, “Horizon Homeless” was released in ebook format in May of 2017 and the paperback followed on July 27, 2017. Larry belongs to the Catholic Writer’s Guild, The Catholic Writer’s Society, The Knights of Columbus, and the St. Vincent de Paul Society. He has been an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion for over twenty years bringing communion to the homebound and hospitalized. He lives in Pinellas Park, Florida and his kids and six grandchildren all live within three miles of each other. His first wife died of cancer in 2003. He remarried four years later and became the primary caregiver for his wife, Martha who came down with Non-Hodgins Lymphoma in 2011. The cancer was in remission when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in October of 2014. Sadly and unexpectedly, Martha passed away on March 27, 2017. The writer says, "God has me where he needs me and I try my best to make Him proud. Larry’s blog site is http://www.slipperywillie.blogspot.com You can find more at www.larrypeterson-author.com
We do not give to the collection because we must. Nor should we be asked to give a set amount.
We give out of love.
We serve (as volunteers whether in maintenance, flower arrangers, choirs, servers, housekeepers, bookkeepers and the list goes on )just as the cohorts of women and helpers followed Our Lord and His Apostles for cooking, washing etc. For those selfless volunteers, the Blessings are many and countless.
Unfortunately, many places now have very few – if any – volunteers – we have let our hearts be hardened, just as few families are praying that they will be Blessed by a son becoming a Priest or a daughter or son entering Religious Life.
Our Priests are a tiny bit of Christ, and we serve in the parish and make offerings for the maintenance of the church buildings and for the upkeep of the Priests out of love for Christ and his Priests who bring us Christ’s everlasting miracle of His Body and Blood in Holy Communion.
We give according to our means. The poor widow’s penny is just as valuable – if not more – as the rich man’s offering. What makes any offering precious is the love with which it is made.
Let us not fall into the trap of quantifying how much money we give to the Church. Rather, let us give ourselves selflessly to the work in the Lord’s vineyard in whatever way is needed.