2^nd Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); 1-19-20

Is 49:3,5-6   Ps 40   1 Cor 1:1-3   Jn 1:29-34

Deacon Jim McFadden; SJB

 

         We are now in Ordinary Time, that period of the liturgical year when we pay closer attention to what it means to be a follower of Jesus. On some Sundays we are going to look at the challenges of being a disciple. On other Sundays, such as today, we look to Jesus, just as John the Baptist did, and renew our commitment that He alone is our ultimate leader and that we are called to bear witness that He is, indeed, the long-waited anointed One of God.

            The Gospel presents us John at the moment in which he bears witness to Jesus. Seeing Jesus come forward to him, he says: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me’” (Jn 1:29-30). This is the Messiah. John bears witness to this fact. And several disciples of John, upon hearing this testimony, left John and followed Jesus: they go after Him and are happy. “We have found the Messiah” (v. 41) they exult. Jesus is magnetically attractive and they felt to the very core of their being his presence. Notice how they encounter Jesus. They did so because there was a witness; because there was a man who bore witness to Jesus they were able to be in relationship with Him.

People of God, just as this happened to John the Baptist and his disciples is meant to happen to us as well.

There are many Christians who profess that Jesus is God—at least count 2 billion people or 30% of those who occupy the planet. There are many bishops, priests, and deacons who profess that Jesus is God. But does everyone give witness in the same effective way that John the Baptist did?

“Yes, I am a Christian; I must act in a certain way and have these core beliefs. As a Catholic I’m obliged to participate in the Sacraments. Even though I am an orthodox Christian—I have the right beliefs—and coupled with my right behavior, am I really a disciple of Jesus? As we reflect on the Gospel, it seems clear that being a Christian, first of all, is bearing witness to Jesus. This is the first thing—everything else is secondary, including the Catechism and the Sacraments. This is what the Apostles did: they bore witness to Jesus. In their persons, in their very bodies, they were bearers of Jesus. When people engaged with them, they encountered the Risen Christ. That’s why Christianity rapidly spread throughout the Roman Empire despite intense persecution. Eventually, Christianity spread throughout the entire world. Witness!   And, you know what else the followers of Jesus did? They were willing to sacrifice their lives for his sake. The love they shared with Jesus was worth more than their physical lives.   This was a powerful witness; as Tertullian sagely noted, “Martyrdom was the seed of Christianity.”

The Apostles were not into prosletyzing. They weren’t trying to convince people through polemics, argumentation as if Christianity was an ideology or a set of doctrines. No, they felt the Holy Spirit within them and they followed the inspiration of the Spirit, which compelled them, indeed, drove them to joyfully proclaim that Jesus is Lord because they experience Him in their hearts, in their gathering, and especially in the Eucharist. They were faithful to their baptismal promises because they experienced Jesus as being alive, as being Risen, and they couldn’t do otherwise than share this Good News with others.

One could beg off by saying, “Oh, deacon, this isn’t for me. I’m just a run-of-the-mill Christian; and, besides that, I’m really a sinner; I’m not very holy.” Well, you know what? You’ve got plenty of company because we’re all sinners! Look at our first Pope, Peter, who betrayed Jesus. And, the motley crew of Apostles at one time were more preoccupied with who was the greatest among them. Peter and the other Apostles were sinners, just like you and I. But, despite their infidelity, in the end, they were like the poor woman, who bathed Jesus’ feet with her tears and said in so many words, “Yes, I am a sinner, but Jesus is Lord and I love Him; therefore, I bear witness to him, and I seek to do good everyday, to amend my life, to take the right path.”

Brothers and sisters, we are all sinners, but, more importantly, we are forgiven sinners and despite our wounded condition—perhaps even because of it—we are all called to holiness. The Lord is addressing this call to everyone of us. We hear “Be holy, for I am holy” (Lev 11:44; cf. 1 Pet 1:16). 2000 years later the 2^nd Vatican Council reiterated this clearly: “Strengthened by so many and such great means of salvation, ALL THE FAITHFUL, whatever their condition or state, are called by the Lord—each in his or her own way—to that perfect holiness by which the Father is perfect.”

            And, this calling is realized in our ordinary experience: in our relationships, especially in the family, in our work, in our recreation we are called to by holy by living our lives with love. The love we share with Jesus, we share with others; and, in so doing, we bear witness that Jesus is Lord by everything we do, wherever we find ourselves.

To love like Jesus is not easy because we are often weak and sinful. But just to try to love as Jesus loves us shows us, shows others, that Christ is sharing his own Risen life with us. This power is palatable and it’s contagious. In this way, our lives will demonstrate, just as it did with the Apostles, that the power, the dynamism of Jesus is at work—even in the midst of human weakness. So, the deepest meaning of bearing witness to him is not to wok for Jesus but to be with Jesus! (Cf. Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis).   Amen.