In his Meditation on Two Standards in the Spiritual Exercises St Ignatius warns us that the devil will try to tempt us to covet riches and honour so that he can lead us to "surging pride." Then he has us where he wants us.

Nowadays thanks to the all pervading media, we have become aware of the almost insane desire on the part of some men and women to get power and then hang on to it at all costs. Of course we can never be completely sure of the motivation of others, but certainly a very strong desire for power is dangerous. Maybe it is safer and more useful to look into our own hearts and see if it is power that we really desire behind a facade of respectability.

In today's first reading even those as close to Moses and as aware of God's plans as Aaron and Miriam were for a while jealous of Moses. They wanted some of the glory for themselves. In the Gospel we find that some of the religious leaders of the time were perverted by their desire to protect at all costs their positions of power and influence. They ceased to be reliable guides. Their teaching verged on the absurd and dishonest.

To be of real assistance to others we have to be simple people, profoundly aware of the fact that when the good of others is on the agenda any "spin off" for ourselves is of minor importance. It's a bonus encouraging us to keep on keeping on.