The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today exhort us to be faithful witnesses in our lives of the truth, beauty, and goodness in Jesus Way.
In the reading from the First Letter of John, we affirm Life from God’s Anointing.
* [2:19] Not really of our number: the apostate teachers only proved their lack of faith by leaving the community.
* [2:20] The anointing that comes from the holy one: this anointing is in the Old Testament sense of receiving the Spirit of God. The holy one probably refers to Christ. True knowledge is the gift of the Spirit (cf. Is 11:2), and the function of the Spirit is to lead Christians to the truth (Jn 14:17, 26; 16:13).
* [2:22–23] Certain gnostics denied that the earthly Jesus was the Christ; to deny knowledge of the Son is to deny the Father, since only through the Son has God been fully revealed (Jn 1:18; 14:8–9).
* [2:24] Continuity with the apostolic witness as proclaimed in the prologue is the safeguard of right belief.
* [2:28–29] Our confidence at his judgment is based on the daily assurance of salvation. Our actions reflect our true relation to him. (1 John, CHAPTER 2 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 98 praises the Judge of the World.
* [Psalm 98] A hymn, similar to Ps 96, extolling God for Israel’s victory (Ps 98:1–3). All nations (Ps 98:4–6) and even inanimate nature (Ps 98:7–8) are summoned to welcome God’s coming to rule over the world (Ps 98:9). (Psalms, PSALM 98 | USCCB, n.d.)
The Gospel of John proclaims the Testimony of John the Baptist.
* [1:19] The Jews: throughout most of the gospel, the “Jews” does not refer to the Jewish people as such but to the hostile authorities, both Pharisees and Sadducees, particularly in Jerusalem, who refuse to believe in Jesus. The usage reflects the atmosphere, at the end of the first century, of polemics between church and synagogue, or possibly it refers to Jews as representative of a hostile world (Jn 1:10–11).
* [1:20] Messiah: the anointed agent of Yahweh, usually considered to be of Davidic descent. See further the note on Jn 1:41.
* [1:21] Elijah: the Baptist did not claim to be Elijah returned to earth (cf. Mal 3:19; Mt 11:14). The Prophet: probably the prophet like Moses (Dt 18:15; cf. Acts 3:22).
* [1:23] This is a repunctuation and reinterpretation (as in the synoptic gospels and Septuagint) of the Hebrew text of Is 40:3 which reads, “A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the Lord.”
* [1:24] Some Pharisees: other translations, such as “Now they had been sent from the Pharisees,” misunderstand the grammatical construction. This is a different group from that in Jn 1:19; the priests and Levites would have been Sadducees, not Pharisees.
* [1:26] I baptize with water: the synoptics add “but he will baptize you with the holy Spirit” (Mk 1:8) or “…holy Spirit and fire” (Mt 3:11; Lk 3:16). John’s emphasis is on purification and preparation for a better baptism.
* [1:28] Bethany across the Jordan: site unknown. Another reading is “Bethabara.” (John, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)
Carol Zuegner comments that John the Baptist wanted people to be ready for the message of Jesus, even though all of the preparation might not equal the impact of Jesus.
I like to think I plan. I dutifully make a to-do list each morning, though I rarely cross everything off of it. Lately, I have been asking God to make my to-do list a prayer – to help guide me through my day of important work and the errands that must be done. One thing I do prioritize is time in the morning to pray and journal and write that to-do list. By preparing for my day, I can think about my tasks, but I can also think about the people I will encounter and remind myself to find God in all things, even those things that likely will make me irritated. Instead of planning for pricks of irritation, I can prepare for ways that I can be open and kind, to deflect taking my irritation out on people who are just doing their jobs.
It might seem that my 21st century to-do list is a far cry from John’s time in the desert and making straight the way of the Lord. I know that we can live out our faith in big ways and small ways. I know to find God in all things is often a challenge, but one I can plan and prepare for every day. (Zuegner, 2024)
Don Schwager quotes “John points to the Redeemer,” by Gregory the Great (540-604 AD).
"John did not baptize with the Spirit but with water, since he was unable to take away the sins of those being baptized. He washed their bodies with water but not their hearts with pardon. Why did one whose baptism did not forgive sins baptize, except that he was observing his vocation as forerunner? He whose birth foreshadowed greater birth, by his baptizing foreshadowed the Lord who would truly baptize. He whose preaching made him the forerunner of Christ, by baptizing also became his forerunner, using a symbol of the future sacrament. With these other mysteries he makes known the mystery of our Redeemer, declaring that he has stood among people and not been known. The Lord appeared in a human body: he came as God in flesh, visible in his body, invisible in his majesty." (excerpt from FORTY GOSPEL HOMILIES 4) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 1:19-28 comments that many people today live in a spiritual desert, a desolate landscape of fear and hopelessness.
So don’t be overwhelmed by the task of fixing everyone’s problems. Like John, just show the way to the One who can. And don’t be discouraged if you run up against your own shortcomings or sinfulness. Remember that imperfect people can still point the way to a perfect God. In fact, they’re probably the best pointers because they’re on the same path as everyone else! You can be a beacon, lighting the way to the one true source of hope, joy, and salvation.
“Lord, give me the boldness of John the Baptist!” (Meditation on John 1:19-28, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler notes that 1 John deals with docetism, a heresy that separates the human and spiritual nature of Christ. The author is very dualistic. Believe in true doctrine or the evil one. Friar Jude reminds us that the Baptist clarifies his role to go before and point to Jesus.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, helps us come to terms with the suffering of life, in his book Falling Upward.
Reality, creation, nature itself, what I call “the First Body of Christ,” has no choice in the matter of necessary suffering. It lives the message without saying yes or no to it. It holds and resolves all the foundational forces, all the elementary principles and particles within itself—willingly, it seems. This is the universe in its wholeness, the “great nest of being,” including even the powerless, invisible, and weak parts that have so little freedom or possibility. The Second Body of Christ, the formal church, always has the freedom to say yes or no. That very freedom allows it to say “no” much of the time, especially to any talk of dying, stumbling, admitting mistakes, or falling. Yet God seems ready and willing to wait for, and to empower, free will and a free “yes.” (Rohr, 2024)
We live out our Baptismal anointing as priest, prophet, and leader when we point to the Way through sharing our own experiences of full life.
References
John, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/1?19
Meditation on John 1:19-28. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/01/02/865653/
1 John, CHAPTER 2 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1john/2?22
Psalms, PSALM 98 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/98?1
Rohr, R. (2024, January 2). A Free “Yes” in Adversity — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/a-free-yes-in-adversity/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Christ Stands among You. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=jan2
Zuegner, C. (2024, January 2). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. Online Ministries. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/010224.html
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