Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 134: A Prayer for Ministers to Be Faithful— “Bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord.” How do the servants of the Lord bless the Lord? They faithfully preach His Word. They faithfully call to repentance and proclaim forgiveness. They lift up their hands in the sanctuary, forgiving sin and giving the Lord’s benediction to the congregation of the faithful. Psalm 134 is the final Song of Ascents in the psalter. It was sung by the faithful as they awaited the benediction of the priest. It is as if they were praying for the priests to do their job, to stand by night in the house of the Lord and proclaim His Word. The Lord is “blessed” not by doing something for Him, but by faithfully doing what He has given His priests and pastors to do for the sake of the congregation. It is the same for us today in the New Testament Church. By faithfully preaching the Gospel and administering the sacraments, the servants of the Lord bless the Lord by giving to the congregation what they need to hear and receive. In the Old Testament Church, the congregation eagerly waited for the priest to emerge from the Temple, lift up his hands, and pronounce the benediction. In the same way, we pray for our pastors to lift up their hands and “bless the Lord” by faithfully administering His gifts to us.