2 Thessalonians 1:1-5,11-12; Psalm 95(96):1-5; Matthew 23:13-22
A lot is said about the problem of clericalism these days: that the behaviour of priests who shut out others from the running and organisation of the church. Well, if it exists at all, it is not new, as Jesus clearly had similar issues with he clerics of his time. Matthew's Gospel has a series of 'Woes' about the consequences of that sort of behaviour, and today in Chapter 23 we have the first of them. Jesus is Priest, Prophet and King - and in this section of the Gospel his prophecy is to the fore.
We must also remember that every word in the Bible also applies to ourselves. So Jesus' warnings about the consequences - the 'Woes' - that will happen if we engage in behaviour which prevents others from finding God, apply to each and every one of us. After all, we to were all baptised as Priest, Prophet and king, symbolised and brought into effect when we are anointed with Chrism at Baptism and Confirmation.
Pauls prayer, to the Thessalonians, that "God will make you worthy of his call, and by his power fulfil all your desires for goodness and complete all that you have been doing through faith; because in this way the name of our Lord Jesus Christ will be glorified in you and you in him, by the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ" is a prayer we should make for our Priests. We also must pray that those who pray about us in the same way, will have their prayers answered. For we all share in this priestly ministry of Christ, each in our own way fulfil an equally important - if different in nature - role in the Church.