Yesterday, while visiting my sister-in-law who is caring for her mom—a Hospice patient—I heard a funny, but also disturbing, story about what happened when my sister-in-law called the parish to ask for a priest to come and visit. The conversation went something like this:
“Hello?” (no introduction)
“Oh ... Hi, is this the Church of the Saints and Angels?”
“No, that’s not what we’re called. We are referred to as Saints and Angels Church.”
“Oh, OK, I’m sorry … umm … but the sign in front of the church says, ‘Church of the Saints and Angels.’ Anyway, I was calling to ask for a priest to come and visit my mom and bring Communion. She hasn’t been able to get to Mass.”
“She hasn’t been to Mass?” (uh oh, disparaging tone is slipping into ‘get thee to confession’ mode!)
“Well, no, she’s 89 years old and under Hospice care. Could I leave a message for one of the priests to…”
“No, you’ll just have to speak to him yourself.” (an abrupt version of ‘I’m really not interested in hearing your story so save it for the priest’)
“What?” (I must be dreaming. What happened to ‘What would Jesus do?’ Maybe I should hang up and try again.)
“Hang on!”
A few seconds later a warm, engaging priest gets on the line, offers to be at the house in half-an-hour and the pastoral nightmare of the earlier conversation fades into a funny story to be told around the dinner table.
In reality, the tone and unprofessional behavior of this particular secretary is all too common in our parishes and schools, stories of which often overshadow the good work of secretaries who instinctively know the power of respect and kindness; to say nothing of the damage done to communities built by evangelization and hospitality.
Maybe it would help if new titles were awarded.
Today, while I was doing some research on how best to create a resume in today’s market, I came across a list of some workplace titles that have emerged during the past few years. My favorite was Director of First Impressions, formerly known as receptionist.
I like it, because it recognizes the importance of those who have a difficult job dealing with the often rude and crude general public, and it emphasizes the critical role of those who answer the phones and emails, build relationships and serve as the voice of a community.
And when that community is formed by disciples of Jesus, the voice should be one of joy, or at the very least, good humor.
Not always easy, to be sure, but curmudgeons are not a good fit for the job.
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