June 24, 2010
Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
Though I thought I had toiled in vain, and for nothing, uselessly, spent my strength, Yet my reward is with the LORD, my recompense is with my God…It is too little, he says, for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth. Isaiah 49: 4,6
"John is his name," and all were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God. Luke 1:63-64
Piety
“And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God by which the daybreak from on high will visit us to shine on those who sit in darkness and death's shadow, to guide our feet into the path of peace.” Luke 1:76-79
Study
Here we are, exactly halfway around the calendar since Christmas, celebrating the feast day of John the Baptist.
John had a special relationship with his cousin that was knit early in his life. Even before these two great men were born, they had a special relationship borne of the Word made flesh. We read earlier in Luke’s gospel of the reaction that John had in his mother’s womb when a pregnant Mary came to visit her cousin Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Luke 1:41-44
We mark this feast because that special relationship is not reserved just for John the Baptist. That special relationship is one that Jesus wants to share with each and every one of us. As the Psalmist reminds us, John is not the only being knits specially in his mother’s womb. All of us are so made.
You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother's womb. I praise you, so wonderfully you made me; wonderful are your works! My very self you knew; my bones were not hidden from you, When I was being made in secret, fashioned as in the depths of the earth. Psalm 139:13-15
Once we realize this, then we can fulfill our role and mission in life just as Zechariah did. As John’s father realized his special relationship with the Lord, he could not help himself from singing the praises of the Lord. As the Lord was with Mary, Elizabeth, Zechariah and John the Baptist, he also is with each of us.
Action
What then, will we, the children of God be? Surely the hand of the Lord is with us as it was with John. Then we must fulfill the action that the Lord expects us to observe. Once we accept God’s mission, our mouth will be opened, our tongue freed, and we will sing God’s praise with our thoughts, words, and deeds (piety, study and action).
What is stopping you from leaping for joy on this day?
