My Greek isn’t great but using the limited knowledge of the Greek language I have, let me read the beginning of today’s Gospel. “A man came, sent by God. His name was John. He came as a martyr, as a martyr to speak for the light, so that everyone might believe through him. He was not the light, only a martyr to speak for the light.” I guess I can’t impress you with my Greek but I hope that you have picked up that one Greek word in the passage - MARTYR. The first Christians when they heard this passage proclaimed at their Masses they heard it in the way I have just reread to you. In our English version of the Bible we have it translated very nicely as a witness. It can give us lots of material for reflection what it means to be a witness. We could have a polite discussion on what it means to be a witness of Christ. Probably we could come up with, at least, a few options how to be a witness of Christ to the world. But St John the Baptist doesn’t fit into so called politically correct way of speaking. His preaching wasn’t cozy because his whole being was challenging the established social system. This Sunday of Joy, as the Third Sunday of Advent is called, the Prophet from the Jordan comes to us in order to challenge, and maybe to shake up, our established and settled way of thinking, our cozy way of understanding and being Christians. A few years ago when we had the World Youth Day in Sydney the theme of the gathering was: “When the Holy Spirit comes, you will be my witnesses.” That’s what Jesus said to his Apostles before he ascended to heaven. Using our improving Greek we can say: “When the Holy Spirit comes you will be my martyrs.”
My Dear Friends, who is a martyr? The one who lies his or her life for Jesus. I just wander how many parents present in this Church would be rushing to organize the Baptism of their children if they were aware that they are putting them on the path to be martyrs. I guess that we would have very few baptisms. But why? What is wrong about giving up ones’ life for Jesus? Our Blessed Lord says: “The one who wants to save his life will lose it but the one who loses his life for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel will save it for life eternal.”
On December 13, the Church remembers St Lucy, a martyr from the early centuries of the Church. I am always touched by her words which we recall in our priestly morning prayers for her fest day: “I am the lowly servant of the Lord, who wished only to offer everything to the living God. Now since there is nothing left to be offered, I give myself to him.” These are the words of a young girl who like all of us wanted to be happy and she did find such a happiness. It is in surrendering one’s life to the Lord so that one’s light may shine before people so that they could see one’s good deeds and praise our heavenly Father. John the Baptist made it very clear that that what drew people to him was the light of Christ already shining from him. It wasn’t his own light but the light of Christ. It reminds us of Moses who during the march from Egypt to the Promised Land would enter the Holy Place in the Sacred Tent to speak with God. When he was leaving the Tent his face was shining from his exposure to the Almighty God.
My Dear Sisters and Brothers! Each single person in this Church is called to be a witness – a martyr of Christ. Most of us won’t be faced with the kind of martyrdom St Lucy met but you and I are called to be martyrs by our commitment to Christ, by our perseverance and faithfulness to our life vocation, by our selflessness, by making sacrifices and doing all these things not to get people admiration but to direct people’s admiration to Our Blessed Lord whom we have encountered and got so impacted by that encounter that we now believe that our lasting joy and happiness is in making of our life an offering to the One who has created us and who has redeemed us.
My Dear Friends, who is a martyr? The one who lies his or her life for Jesus. I just wander how many parents present in this Church would be rushing to organize the Baptism of their children if they were aware that they are putting them on the path to be martyrs. I guess that we would have very few baptisms. But why? What is wrong about giving up ones’ life for Jesus? Our Blessed Lord says: “The one who wants to save his life will lose it but the one who loses his life for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel will save it for life eternal.”
On December 13, the Church remembers St Lucy, a martyr from the early centuries of the Church. I am always touched by her words which we recall in our priestly morning prayers for her fest day: “I am the lowly servant of the Lord, who wished only to offer everything to the living God. Now since there is nothing left to be offered, I give myself to him.” These are the words of a young girl who like all of us wanted to be happy and she did find such a happiness. It is in surrendering one’s life to the Lord so that one’s light may shine before people so that they could see one’s good deeds and praise our heavenly Father. John the Baptist made it very clear that that what drew people to him was the light of Christ already shining from him. It wasn’t his own light but the light of Christ. It reminds us of Moses who during the march from Egypt to the Promised Land would enter the Holy Place in the Sacred Tent to speak with God. When he was leaving the Tent his face was shining from his exposure to the Almighty God.
My Dear Sisters and Brothers! Each single person in this Church is called to be a witness – a martyr of Christ. Most of us won’t be faced with the kind of martyrdom St Lucy met but you and I are called to be martyrs by our commitment to Christ, by our perseverance and faithfulness to our life vocation, by our selflessness, by making sacrifices and doing all these things not to get people admiration but to direct people’s admiration to Our Blessed Lord whom we have encountered and got so impacted by that encounter that we now believe that our lasting joy and happiness is in making of our life an offering to the One who has created us and who has redeemed us.
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