SPECIAL EDITION ARTICLE #16 - May 26th, 2023 by Fr. Ben Daghir

[Pompeii]

One Thing, Jesus Christ.
SPECIAL EDITION ARTICLE #16 - May 26th, 2023 by Fr. Ben Daghir

Editor’s Note: Fr. Ben Daghir celebrates his one-year anniversary of the priesthood on May 27th. This one-year reflection focuses on the consistent prayer “Through Christ our Lord.”

Article:
The prayer “Through Christ our Lord” caught my attention during the first year of priesthood. I find the phrase to be incredibly challenging and intriguing.
 
“Through Christ our Lord” is stated more than any other prayer during the Mass. Of course, this is intentional. “Through Christ our Lord” is prayed because Jesus Christ is the mediator between God and humanity. Jesus says in the Gospel of John, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). 

The priest, despite his weaknesses, humbly stands in the sanctuary with the great responsibility of assisting parishioners to worship “Through Christ our Lord.” I now understand Paul’s phrase, “We hold this treasure in earthen vessels” (2 Corinthians 4:7). I am undoubtedly an earthen vessel with a few cracks and deformities while Christ is the pure treasure. 

The prayer “Through Christ our Lord” has brought out the best in me over this past year. But I must confess, it has also cast light on the darkness in my soul (which is a good thing). If the saint allows for everything to go “Through Christ our Lord,” the sinner has tendencies of directing things “away from Christ our Lord.” I am certainly a sinner. 

Just as Jesus hands over His entire being to the Father while on the Cross, the saints follow His lead. The saints direct their hopes, dreams, goals, relationships, gifts, talents, hobbies, expectations, perspectives, friendships, opportunities, decisions, possibilities, etc. through Christ our Lord. The saints also direct their worries, stresses, temptations, anxieties, sins, fears, regrets, grudges, conflicts, hardships, etc. “Through Christ our Lord.” We are called to hand over our entire selves to Christ, which includes everything He has given us and even what He never gave us in the first place - our sins. Everything must go through Jesus Christ. 

I need to be like the saints. My whole life must be directed “Through Christ our Lord.” The good, the bad, and the ugly of my life must go through Him. My past, present, and future must go through Him. Everything must go “Through Christ our Lord.”

Again, and this is straight from the boring Ben Daghir playbook, the sinner often convinces himself that the path “away from Christ our Lord” is the better, easier, and more effective route. My guess is that I am not alone in this faulty approach. I often forget the explicit words from Jesus, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). 

The words “Through Christ our Lord” remind me that apart from Christ, I can do nothing. 

Another image that has helped me to understand “Through Christ our Lord” is that of the altar crucifix. Many Catholic Churches have an altar crucifix which faces the priest. This crucifix challenges the priest to see the people in the Church through Christ crucified and risen. The priest looks through Christ crucified and risen and out beyond the Church doors into the streets, the communities, and into the world. This means that the priest sees the culture, the nation, economics, politics, sports, medicine, music, education, hobbies, etc. through Christ crucified and risen. This means that the priest sees all his ministries through Christ crucified and risen. This means that the priest sees all the current challenges (and those down the road) through Christ crucified and risen.

The message could not be clearer for the priest: see and interpret everything “Through Christ our Lord.”

As I conclude this reflection, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the many parishioners who have tremendously helped me during my first year of priesthood. Not only has the Catholic Mass guided me during this first year but also the witness of parishioners living out the Gospel. I have seen parishioners place everything through Christ our Lord: the good, the bad, and the ugly. I have witnessed this in the hospital, among young families, the nursing home, funerals, baptisms, daily Mass, the Catholic school, the confessional, marriages, ordinations, confirmations, first Holy Communions, and much more. 

“Through Christ our Lord” must always be our focus. 

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Fr. Ben Daghir is a priest for the Diocese of Erie. He is a graduate of Elk County Catholic High School in Saint Marys, Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, and St. Mary's Seminary & University in Baltimore, Maryland. He considers writing one of his favorite hobbies.