LIKE SOLOMON, MANY LEADERS START WELL AND END BADLY

XVII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME: 1 Kings 3:5,7-12

In the first reading of this Sunday’s liturgy, we are presented with Solomon at the beginning of his reign. As we hear the passage being read, we get the image of the young king encircled by God’s love and protection. Solomon is shown as a humble young man, full of ideals, who dreams of excelling in the service of his people, and for that he asks for wisdom, the wisdom that gives discernment in the carrying out of his duties as ruler of the people. He did not care about wealth, prestige and power. So it seemed. And God was well pleased with his attitude, and granted him not only wisdom but also wealth and fame.

The Bible presents Solomon as the great king, who brought about the golden age of the kingdom of Israel. He was remembered for the building of the temple, which became the symbol and the glory of Israel. And he was praised by his wisdom in the administration of his kingdom. He reorganised the State, and the country enjoyed a period of peace and development.

However, Solomon’s aura did not last. By the end of his reign, he had became a corrupt and unfaithful king, breaking the covenant with God and becoming an idolatrous king, who built temples to the gods of his wives.

Solomon started well, but ended badly. He was full of promises and people had put on him great expectations. However, little by little his power and his arrogance were felt by the people, who had to pay heavy taxes to pay for his magnificence, luxury and extravagance. During his reign, people kept quiet, but when he died, they had the courage to go to his successor and ask for a reduction of taxes, so that their lives might become bearable again (1 Ki 12:4).

Most of our politicians are like Solomon. Their promises fill people’s hearts with the expectation that their lot will improve. But, in the end, many of them serve their own interests, forgetting about the people and the service that they promised to them. And they are ready to trample on the most sacred values, which they promised to promote and defend, in order to protect their own power.

Let us pray that the Lord may grant our leaders, religious and political, a spirit of service and humility, so that they remain faithful to the ideals and the promises they made to God and to the people.