We hold this treasure in earthen vessels so that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us. The Church honors today the memory of Pope St. Gregory the Great who served in the chair of St. Peter from the year 590 till his death in 604. He is renowned for having guided the Church through a tumultuous time as he instituted liturgical reforms in the Church. He is also remembered for organizing and promoting missionary work in the Church of his day. It was during his papacy that Christian missionaries were first sent to England. St. Gregory wrote on many moral and theological subjects, a cause for which he is regarded as one of the four great doctors of the Latin Church (the other three being St. Ambrose of Milan, St. Augustine, and St. Jerome).
As Pope, St. Gregory referred to himself as the servant of the servants of God. It is a title that, although coined and first used by Gregory, has come to be used by Popes to refer to themselves (the title occurs with frequency in papal bulls). It is a title that should serve to open us to the role of those who hold pastoral/leadership responsibilities in the Church. As Jesus reminded his disciples in the Gospel passage we have just read, following him is all about servitude. He/she who has chosen to be disciples of Jesus must be ready to be of service to his/her brothers and sisters just like Jesus did. A disciple must be willing to embody such an attitude not just for the sake of it but rather because of the weight of the responsibility that he/she assumes.
In the First Reading, St. Paul tells us that the responsibility of a disciple is that of preaching Christ. But because of the great chasm that our sinful nature places between us and Christ, St. Paul goes on to say that the Christ whom a disciple preaches is a treasure carried in earthen vessels. The worthiness of a disciple to preach Christ is granted him by Christ himself, but only if he/she recognizes himself as such. There is no doubt that Pope St. Gregory understood that he was an unworthy servant of Christ who was in service to his brothers and sisters. He also understood that despite his unworthiness, he had to make Christ present to his flock. His faithful carrying out of his duties rested in him embracing his role as a servant, not only to Christ, but also of his brothers and sisters.