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January 12, 2023Gospel Reading
John 1:29-34
John testifies that Jesus is the Lamb of God, God’s own Son.
Thanks to so many of our parish family who made the Season of Advent and these days of Christmas blessed and beautiful. It takes many parishioners to prepare for the celebration of the Christmas Mystery. Thanks to all who made these seasons special and memorable for all. Also, thank you to everyone for the many cards, received greetings, gifts and good wishes – your thoughtfulness is a humble sign of your care and affection and much appreciated. During this season, we celebrate the birth of Christ into our world and into our hearts and reflect on the gift of salvation that is born with him, including the fact that he was born to die for us. I pray that you enjoy a New Year overflowing with the joy that only God can provide.
Today we celebrate the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. In John’s Gospel, Chapter 1, we hear John the Baptist testify that Jesus is the Son of God, the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. In this encounter, John recognizes Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He reveals that Jesus is God’s Chosen One upon whom the Spirit has descended and came to rest. This moment of divine revelation refers to St. Matthew’s account of the Baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan by John the Baptist. In Matthew, Chapter 3, after the Lord was baptized, the heavens were opened, the Spirit descended upon him like a dove, and the voice of the Father thundered, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased.”
As John saw the Spirit of God descend upon Jesus, this is how he knew that Jesus truly is God’s Son. God told John to look for a sign. This sign helped John the Baptist complete his mission of revealing to others the Lamb of God. The Holy Spirit guided Jesus in doing his work on earth. At our Baptism, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, and this Spirit, when called upon and discerned, helps us do our work on earth as followers of Jesus. In the end, Jesus accepts his mission as God’s suffering Servant. Jesus allows himself to be numbered among sinners.
The foreshadowing of God’s strength revealed in glory is found in today’s first reading, Isaiah 49. It is throughout Israel that the Lord will show forth his glory and splendor. Israel is identified as a light for all the nations, whereby salvation will come to all people. Today’s second reading from 1 Corinthians 1, echoes the words of Psalm 40, which is about discerning the call to do God’s will. Paul and Sosthenes greet the people of Corinth, reminding them that they are called to be holy people. They are to discern God’s will because Jesus Christ has sanctified them.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches: John the Baptist is "more than a prophet." In him, the Holy Spirit concludes his speaking through the prophets. John completes the cycle of prophets begun by Elijah. He proclaims the imminence of the consolation of Israel; he is the "voice" of the Consoler who is coming. As the Spirit of truth will also do, John "came to bear witness to the light." In John's sight, the Spirit thus brings to completion the careful search of the prophets and fulfills the longing of the angels. "He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God. . . . Behold, the Lamb of God." (CCC 719)
We, too, are to discern God's will by being open to the different kinds of spiritual gifts encountered throughout the Church and world. When we bring these gifts to life and light within ourselves, we show the world that Jesus' Spirit is alive and in us. The Holy Spirit teaches us the truth. The Spirit gave the apostles the strength and course to follow Jesus' example. The Holy Spirit continues to guide the Church in its mission today. Before Jesus returned to his Father in Heaven, he made a promise to all who call on him as Lord, promising that the Holy Spirit would come to stay with them. Throughout the Gospels, the Holy Spirit is present: when Mary becomes pregnant, Jesus' baptism, in the Gospel for the first Sunday of Lent when the spirit leads Jesus into the desert, and in the Gospel for the second Sunday of Easter when Jesus comes to his disciples, breathes on them and gives them the Holy Spirit. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit continues to provide us with the strength and courage to do what is right, helping us to make good decisions in the coming days in our family and community.
This year, we celebrate the Feast of St. Meinrad on the Sunday before his feast day (January 21). As we gather as a parish family to celebrate our faith and heritage on the feast of this hermit, martyr and patron saint of hospitality, I invite you to think more about the call to pray without ceasing.
We need daily prayer. Prayer is time dedicated to God, and it allows us to listen with the ear of our hearts to God's daily invitation to follow Christ and his Church, as did blessed Meinrad. Those who have gone before us in faith heard and received the same invitation in 33 AD, 1854 AD, 1861 AD and 2023 AD.
Try visiting your parish church daily to pause and pray. Parishes are open from dawn to dusk. See what happens to your heart, fears, and worries when you pray with them and leave them at the foot of the cross. Try learning what it is like praying before the Eucharist, just you and God. Eucharistic Adoration is weekly from 3-4 p.m. before Holy Mass begins on Wednesday at 4:15 p.m. at St. Meinrad Parish.
When praying before the Blessed Sacrament, I often think of this quote from the Curé d'Ars, "When we are before the Blessed Sacrament, instead of looking about us, let us shut our eyes and open our hearts; and the good God will open his. We will go to him, and he will come to us, the one to give, and the other to receive. It will be like a breath passing from one to the other. What delight we find in forgetting ourselves that we may seek God." – St. Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney, the Curé d'Ars, 1786-1859.
I pray for you and your loved ones daily at the altar, for your health, prayer, and petition, and especially for the prayers and petitions entrusted to me by you.
With a grateful heart, I am
Father Anthony, OSB
