First Sunday of Advent
Installation of Fr. Rob Jaskot
Our Lady of the Fields, Millersville
December 2, 2023
Heartfelt Gratitude
It is a pleasure to return to Our Lady of the Fields for the installation of Msgr. Rob Jaskot as your Pastor, and to join with Bishop Adam Parker, a native son of this parish, for Holy Mass. Msgr. Jaskot has been serving as your pastor for a number of months and in that time you have already discovered what a good priest he is, how dedicated he is to the spiritual welfare and growth of this parish, and what a good shepherd and guide he is for each of you and your families. Let’s express our heartfelt thanks to Father Rob!
Season of Advent
Happily, we come together on the First Sunday of Advent, the first Sunday in the Church’s liturgical year. For us as Catholics, today is like New Year’s Day, a moment when we begin our spiritual journey again. Following the promised Christ through his Incarnation, his life, teaching, and miracles, we encounter him in the reality of his death, resurrection, and exaltation, and receive afresh the Holy Spirit from his Father and from him, while awaiting his return in glory.
We do this year in and year out so as to open our hearts ever more widely to the Lord, seeking to grow in holiness, discipleship, and zeal for the mission to share the Gospel. So, this 1st Sunday of Advent, this Sunday of new beginnings, it is also appropriate to celebrate the official beginning of Fr. Rob’s service as your pastor.
Watchfulness
In the Gospel proclamation for this Sunday, we hear the Lord saying to us: “Be watchful! Be alert!” … …lest we miss the presence of the Lord among us and cease to expect his return in glory, all because we’ve become spiritual drowsy, overwhelmed by error and sinful desires, or distracted and discouraged by the anxieties and problems of daily life. Yes, the Lord aims to put us all on “high alert” as we begin this new liturgical year.
Yet, the Lord’s words to all of us today have a particular application for those of us who have been called to serve the Church as priests and pastors. For the prophet Ezekiel is described as “a watchman for the house of Israel.” And taking his lead from Ezekiel, Pope St. Gregory the Great describes his pastoral role as that of a watchman, appointed to watch over, guard, and foster the life, mission, and ministry of the Church throughout the world. “Anyone,” he wrote, “appointed to be a watchman for the people must stand on a height for all his life and help them by his foresight.” St. Gregory the Great goes on freely to admit his need for God’s mercy and grace in fulfilling the lofty role to which God in his Providence has called him.
On the occasions when I have visited Pope Francis, he has said, “Pray for me, being pope is not an easy job.” But what is said of popes can also be said of those of us who are your pastors. None of us imagine that, left to our own devices, we are fully adequate to watch over the flock of God, to guard and foster the flock of God. All of us realize how dependent we are upon God’s grace and upon you, God’s People, who are our partners in discipleship and ministry.
Irreducible Responsibility
Nonetheless, the pastor is like a watchman in a tower, not a tower that separates him from the needs of others, but a tower that helps him see clearly both dangers to be avoided and opportunities for evangelization and ministry to be seized. For as we know from experience, the faith we profess and the life of holiness to which we are all called by Baptism is something very beautiful but also very fragile. And we are striving to live as followers of Christ and members of his Body the Church in an environment that often makes all of that very difficult, even as we struggle with the unruly tendencies of our own hearts. The pastor must clearly point out these dangers for himself and for those he serves.
What’s more, a pastor does not lord his authority over anyone but he does look out over those to whom he sent and seeks to assess through listening and dialogue what the true spiritual and pastoral needs of his people are, what dangers and challenges they are facing, and what opportunities exist to help his parish grow and flourish despite the headwinds.
And there is yet another aspect to the pastor’s role as watchman. It is easy enough to see that a watchman must be able to see what lies in the distance, but a pastor must also be a watchman who can see what is going on up close, in the lives of individual parishioners, not only in times of extreme stress and tragedy, but also in the daily routine and rhythm of their lives and families, especially the daily wear and tear of life’s challenges big and small. In a word, a pastor is to be a perceptive watchman and shepherd who not only looks but listens, who not only speaks but pays attention to what is said. For just as Jesus knows us and loves us as members of his flock, so too a pastor must know and love his people and deeply appreciate their joys and hopes, their griefs and anxieties.
The Goal
Lastly, as a pastor fulfills his role in the watchtower, he is not only looking out for danger as also for opportunity, he is also shining a bright light, the light of Christ, as one shines a search light over a darkened countryside. For he is first and foremost in the Church’s mission of evangelization, the proclaiming of the Gospel, leading the unchurched to the sacraments, continually forming anew communities of faith, worship, and service.
You are blessed to have in Fr. Rob a wonderful priest, an experienced pastor, a father, a shepherd, and indeed a watchman who will guide and foster this wonderful parish, Our Lady of the Fields, with you and for you, for the glory of God and salvation of souls. May God bless you and keep you always in his love!