Important! Read This! Important!

I often wonder what makes people important. This week, we got a new bishop, a local fellow and a very good person; he is just what we need at this point. The last bishop was Important, as well as being a total disaster: never spoke to anyone, never gave interviews, stayed holed up in his room and finally was moved.

The new person is not important. His first meal was at the local soup kitchen, where he arrived unannounced. I rather suspect he will visit each parish and chat with people, see how they are doing. He will keep the dignity of the office, of course, but not by walking over anyone or parading his rank.

We had some Important people at the courthouse, about 37 of them, now either in jail or heading there. They were corrupt, every single one of them; judges, row officers, all kinds of people. So Important that they could get away with shaking people down, accepting kickbacks and bribes.

Do we make people feel as if they are Important? Or are people important because they need to be, part of their work, and when they leave and go home they are happy to be the same regular people as the rest of us. Big difference; capital-I people make it known all the time and regular-i people just use their power to help people in need.

One of the important people in my life was the local barber; he taught me things about life. My grandfather was another. Neither one lorded it over anybody.