He Has Been Raised Up

He Has Been Raised Up

February 8, 2013

Friday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

By Melanie Rigney

Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect hospitality, for through it some have unknowingly entertained angels. Be mindful of prisoners as if sharing their imprisonment, and of the ill-treated as of yourselves, for you also are in the body. (Hebrews 13:1-3)

The Lord is my light and my salvation. (Psalm 27:1)

King Herod heard about Jesus, for his fame had become widespread, and people were saying,
“John the Baptist has been raised from the dead; that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”Others were saying, “He is Elijah”; still others, “He is a prophet like any of the prophets.” But when Herod learned of it, he said, “It is John whom I beheaded. He has been raised up.” (Mark 6:14-16)

Piety

Lord, let me be spiritually indifferent about the dangers I may face, confident that should I perish in doing your will, one of my brothers or sisters will carry on.

Study

Poor Herod Antipas. Perhaps when he heard of Jesus, he was reminded of the Lernaean Hydra, the monster that according to Greek mythology had nine or more heads and regenerated a new head every time one was cut off. Eventually, Hercules with the help of his nephew would kill Hydra by burning the roots as each head was severed and burying the monster’s immortal head. But even then, the beast’s power did not disappear; Hercules used arrows dipped in its blood

Herod had had John the Baptist beheaded. He probably felt some guilt; after all, he hadn’t disliked John, in fact, he enjoyed listening to him. But then his stepdaughter did that amazing dance, and he offered to fulfill any wish and after the stepdaughter conferred with her mother, the wish was for John the Baptist’s head on a platter. And now came word about this man who sounded disturbingly like John. Was he back? Would he prove to be as difficult to kill as the Hydra?

Herod, according to Luke’s Gospel, met Jesus at least once—when Pilate sent Jesus to Herod, who in turn sent him back to Pilate for judgment. Less than a decade later, Herod would die in exile, having been politically outmaneuvered by his nephew and Caligula. He lived long enough to see that John the Baptist’s message of the coming of the Messiah and Jesus’ message of God’s love and of redemption were even more powerful than any mythological creature. The believers who would be called Christians would keep talking about Jesus no matter what the authorities did. No amount of torture, no number of executions, could silence the message—not in Herod’s time, and not in ours. There would always be and always will be someone else, another Hydra head, to carry on until Christ returns again.

Action

What are you being called to do or say today to carry the Word forward? Step up. Don’t assume someone else will answer the call.