Fr. Roger J. Landry
\nSt. Francis Xavier Church, Hyannis, MA
\nSecond Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
\nJanuary 16, 2005
\nIs 49:3,5-6; 1Cor 1:1-3; Jn 1:29-34<\/p>\n
1) There\u2019s a truly remarkable phrase in today\u2019s Gospel, that occurs not once but twice. Sometimes we can become so habituated to the episodes in Christ\u2019s life that we miss these important details, details which indicate to us God\u2019s method of action and chart for us the path of our own. John the Baptist twice confesses publicly, \u201cI myself did not know him.\u201d Even though he had been consecrated and sanctified by Christ in utero during the Visitation about three decades earlier, the adult John the Baptist had no idea what his cousin would look like. Jesus probably would have looked like any of the thousands of Jews descending to the Jordan to listen to and be baptized by John. There would have been nothing extraordinary in his appearance.<\/p>\n
2) How was he to tell who Jesus was? John describes that the \u201cone who sent me to baptize with water \u2014 here we can read, I think, God the Father \u2014 said to me \u2018He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.\u2019\u201d As John was preaching and baptizing, he would have been constantly looking for this sign. Then one day, as Jesus came to the Jordan, that sign was fulfilled. John says, \u201cI saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.\u201d That\u2019s we he shouted out, \u201cBehold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
3) So there was a two-fold process to Jesus\u2019 adult epiphany. First, God the Father and God the Holy Spirit pointed Jesus out to John. Then John pointed Jesus out to everybody else.<\/p>\n
4) John the Baptist\u2019s mission, therefore, was not just to call the people of God to repentance. It was not just to make straight the paths of the Lord and prepare the Jews for the advent of the Messiah. It was also to POINT OUT the Messiah when at last he came. Just like the angels needed to indicate the baby Jesus to the shepherds and the wise men needed the star, so the adult Jesus also needed an indicator to point out that he who looked fully human was also in fact divine. John was that star. John was that angel. He concluded his account by saying, \u201cI myself have seen and have testified that this is the SON OF GOD.\u201d<\/p>\n
5) Across the path of two thousand years, the need for people to have Jesus pointed out to them has only grown. It\u2019s grown precisely because the Son of God has taken on even more humble disguises than he did in Palestine. Because Jesus is so masked, many people ordinarily MISS his presence. The Church continues to fulfill the mission of John the Baptist in our own day by pointing Christ out. Because we are now in the midst of the Year of the Eucharist, I would like to focus, in particular, on the FOUR PLACES the Church \u2014 in the Second Vatican Council\u2019s document on the liturgy \u2014 says that Jesus is present IN THE MASS. Before I mention what those four ways are, I\u2019d like to pause just to give you the time to ask yourselves where these four places would be. If I, or one of the catechumens present today, asked you what they were, how many would you be able to name? The reason why I ask this question is because, if you don\u2019t recognize all four already, you really will need to listen to the modern John the Baptist as the Church describes for you where Christ is to be found among the \u201cordinary\u201d events of the Mass you attend every week.<\/p>\n
6) Here\u2019s what the second Vatican Council teaches: \u201cTo accomplish so great a work [of salvation], Christ is always present in his Church, especially in her liturgical celebrations. He is present in the sacrifice of the Mass not only in the person of his minister, \u2018the same now offering, through the ministry of priests, who formerly offered himself on the cross,\u2019 but especially in the eucharistic species. \u2026 He is present in his word since it is he himself who speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church. Lastly, he is present when the Church prays and sings, for he has promised \u2018where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them\u2019 (Mt. 18:20)\u201d (Sancrosanctum Concilium, 7).<\/p>\n
7) So there are four places where we behold the Lamb of God in disguise: in the person of the priest, in the Eucharist, in the Holy Scriptures, and in the praying faithful. We can focus on each of the four:<\/p>\n
a. In the person of the priest \u2014 On the day of a priest\u2019s ordination, he lies on the floor and dies to himself. In the older rites of the ordination of priests, they used to lay a funeral pall on top of him to symbolize his death and, upon rising, he would receive a new name. The Church teaches that the priest is \u201contologically changed\u201d by ordination \u2014 he is changed in the essence of his being \u2014 configuring him to Christ in such a way that he acts IN THE PERSON OF CHRIST. Regardless of a priest\u2019s personal sanctity or virtue, Christ acts in him whenever he celebrates the sacraments with the proper intention. It is Christ who says, \u201cThis is my body,\u201d \u201cthis is the cup of my blood.\u201d It is Christ who says, \u201cI absolve you from your sins.\u201d It is Christ who says, \u201cI baptize you.\u201d<\/p>\n
b. In the Eucharist \u2014 This, at one level, I hope, should be obvious. The Church uses the Baptist\u2019s very words to prepare us to receive the Lord each Mass: \u201cBehold the Lamb of God.\u201d But on another level it clearly isn\u2019t obvious. John asked his people to believe that what looked like an ordinary Jewish man was really the Son of God. The Church asks us to believe that what looks like ORDINARY BREAD AND WINE disguises that same Son of God. None of us could possibly come to that conclusion without being told about it. The Church points Jesus\u2019 presence out because Jesus himself pointed out his presence. In the Synagogue of Capernaum, he announced that we would have to eat his flesh and drink his blood and that his flesh is real food and blood real drink (Jn 6:53-55). One year later, he explained what he was describing, when he took bread and said, \u201cThis is body\u201d and wine and said, \u201cThis is the cup of my blood.\u201d<\/p>\n
c. In the holy scriptures \u2014 When the word of God is read, the Council teaches, it is really God who speaks. This is not just because we believe that each of the books of the Bible were inspired by God the Holy Spirit, who assisted their human authors. We believe that when they are read in Church, the Word is \u201cliving and active\u201d (Heb 4:12). The word is ALIVE and in the proclamation of the word, GOD SPEAKS TO US LIVE. When we read the beatitudes, for example, we\u2019re not hearing only what Jesus said on the mountain 2000 years ago, but what HE IS SAYING TO YOU AND ME RIGHT NOW IN THE PRESENT. He teaches us, in real time, like he taught the disciples on the road to Emmaus, making his disciples\u2019 hearts burn as he \u201cinterprets\u2026 the things about himself in all the scriptures\u201d (Lk 24:27).<\/p>\n
d. \u201cWhen the Church prays and sings\u201d \u2014 We\u2019ve always believe that Christ is present in each of the members of his Mystical Body when they are in the state of grace. The vine is present in each of us living branches (Jn 15). Each of us needs to recognize that the person sitting next to us in the pew, or behind us, or in front of us, bears the image of God and is united to Christ if he or she is in the state of grace. The way we treat that person is the way we treat Christ. Jesus himself said that twice, when he stated, \u201cWhatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do to me\u201d (Mt 25:40). And when Saul was persecuting the Church, Christ stopped him and said, \u201cSaul, Saul, why do you persecute ME?\u201d (Acts 9:4). But as true as this is, this is not the presence of Christ that the fathers of the Second Vatican Council are calling us to notice, but is based on it. The Council is not describing Christ\u2019s presence in every INDIVIDUAL CELL of his mystical body, but in the WHOLE BODY, praying and singing together. When Christ\u2019s body prays and sings hymns of praise to the Father, it is Christ who prays and sings in them. THIS is the fourth presence the Council describes.<\/p>\n
8 ) The Church continues to point out Christ in each of these ways. But just as the Baptist had the mission to point Christ out to others that the Father and the Holy Spirit pointed out to him, so EACH OF US has the mission to indicate to others the presence of Christ in each of these ways the Church has designated to us. And in order for us to fulfill that mission well, we also need to understand the \u201ccounter-signs\u201d against Christ\u2019s presence in our own behavior sometimes that can make it more difficult for others to recognize Christ. Each us us has the mission:<\/p>\n
a. To point out Jesus in the priest \u2014 We have to admit that it\u2019s often hard to recognize Christ in the priest. We priests don\u2019t always behave in a way that immediately evokes Christ. I\u2019m not talking here just about the scandalous behavior of some priests who, rather than trying to sanctify Christ\u2019s flock, abused it. I\u2019m talking about the rest of us, who too often live not as icons of Christ but live as everyone else does, in too worldly a way. Rather than being transparent images of the High Priest, we can be opaque and hinder people from seeing the Lord. But that\u2019s the way it\u2019s been from the beginning. Jesus didn\u2019t choose perfect people to be his priests, but reconciled sinners who, as we see in the lives of the apostles, do not always live up to their dignity. That\u2019s why we need to ask the Lord for the gift of greater faith to able to see Christ in his priests. Regardless of their personal sanctity and virtue, as I said above, Christ still acts in and through them. And we need to reverence Christ in the priest. What I\u2019m not saying is to put the priest on a pedestal, which happened in the past, and led to problems. What I am saying is to behave in such a way that, despite a priest\u2019s defects, we never lose sight of Christ\u2019s presence acting through the priest. Sometimes people can easily jump on the bandwagon of criticizing a priest for almost anything they don\u2019t care for. \u201cHe preaches too long.\u201d \u201cHe preaches too short.\u201d \u201cHe\u2019s too shy.\u201d \u201cHe\u2019s too concerned about the old people.\u201d \u201cHe\u2019s too concerned about the young people.\u201d \u201cHe doesn\u2019t do much.\u201d \u201cHe does too much.\u201d I ask myself, sometimes, would we have said the same things to Christ? \u201cSorry, Jesus, your sermon on the mount was just too long.\u201d \u201cStop talking in parables \u2014 just get to the point.\u201d \u201cStop going from place to place, I can never find you.\u201d Criticism against priests can do harm to others, even when the criticism is true. The more we focus on the priest\u2019s defects or the parts of his humanity we care for least, the harder, of course, it will be to focus on Christ working in and through his priests. The corollary, I think, is also true. The more we focus on Christ in the priest, by the way we talk, by the way we behave, the easier it will be for others \u2014young people, catechumens, non-Catholics, etc. \u2014 to discover Christ in them. I also think that the more we directly treat the priest as a Christ-bearer and reverence Christ in the priest, the more Christ-like priests we will form.<\/p>\n
b. To point out Jesus in the Eucharist \u2014 I have always loved watching young parents showing their kids how to behave in Church, pointing out \u201cJesus\u2019 house\u201d (the tabernacle) to them, showing them how to genuflect, teaching them how to bow in reverence before Holy Communion, how to make a true throne with our hands to receive the King of Kings if we receive on the hands. When I was young, I learned so much from the simple of gesture of my mother\u2019s teaching us to make the sign of the Cross every time we passed a Church, \u201cbecause Jesus was inside the Church in the Eucharist.\u201d It\u2019s in these little ways that we point Jesus out to others. When our colleagues, or fellow students, or family members discover that we make a visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, that conveys an important message, because we don\u2019t make that effort to worship a piece of bread or a symbol. Such sacrifices, of course, would be fitting to the Lord of the universe. But there are counter-signs to his presence, which can scandalize others and make it much harder for them to see him in the Eucharist. One is when we don\u2019t go to Mass every week, which is a contradiction to young kids. If we really believed that the Eucharist is God, how could we ever behave in such a way that we say by our actions that something is more important than receiving God within? Another counter-sign occurs when people receive Holy Communion and head straight out the door. Priests call this the \u201cJudas shuffle,\u201d because the Gospel tells us that, as soon as he received Christ\u2019s body and blood that first Mass, he went \u201cout into the night\u201d to betray Christ. If we really believed that we had received God inside, why would be in such a rush? Were the Magi and the Shepherds in a hurry, do you think, to leave the manger? My point is that our body language is the best sign of what we really believe, and the Lord is asking us by that body language to do all that we can to announce his presence in the Eucharist.<\/p>\n
c. To point out Jesus in Sacred Scripture \u2014 If Jesus does speak to us live in the Gospel, then our behavior needs to show that. This starts with our rapt attention to the proclamation of Sacred Scripture. I wish that I could take each of you one-by-one and have you stand here next to me sometime as I proclaim the Gospel. I think you might be shocked at what you see. Rather than seeing a people hanging on every word of Jesus, I often see people looking distractedly about, looking at their watch \u2014 maybe even thinking it was broken! \u2014, flipping pages in the missalette, or even reading the bulletin or talking with someone in the pew. We stand for the Gospel precisely because it is Jesus who is speaking. But we first need to recognize his presence and proclaim it to others by how we comport ourselves. I\u2019d like to be very practical here: Unless you\u2019re hard of hearing, or you\u2019re an immigrant and your comprehension of spoken English still needs work, please put down the missalette during the proclamation of the Gospel and listen directly to Jesus speaking to you. The people who heard Jesus preaching in the synagogues didn\u2019t have written texts and didn\u2019t need them. Similarly, unless we\u2019re hard of hearing or linguistically challenged, we don\u2019t \u201csubtitles\u201d for the Gospel either. You\u2019ll capture more if you LISTEN \u2014 and you can always re-read the text later. I\u2019d like to make one other application, especially for families. If Jesus really speaks to us in the Gospel \u2014 and he does! \u2014 then we need to try to open up the Gospel at home to let his voice echo and sanctify those who live in that home. That is what will help make the family a \u201cdomestic Church\u201d \u2014 which is what Christian family is called to be.<\/p>\n
d. To point out Jesus praying and singing in his Church \u2014 This may be the most challenging of all, even though in some ways it should be easy. We need to come to Mass with the intention to be united with others in prayer and singing. Many people seem to come more as spectators rather than participants. It\u2019s discouraging how many people never even open the hymnal to pray the hymns with their brothers and sisters. When I process to the altar each week, I\u2019d say about HALF \u2014 and I\u2019m not exaggerating! \u2014 of the people were not participating, as the rest of us praise the Lord in song. I wonder what these people would do if Jesus himself came up to them and told them to open up their hymnals to number 131 so that we could all sign to his mom, \u201cImmaculate Mary.\u201d Would some of us say, \u201cNo, Jesus, I don\u2019t like that hymn\u2026 You sing it!\u201d? Or would we say, \u201cJesus, you gave me a real stinker for a voice, and therefore I\u2019d just as well not use it!\u201d? None of us would say that to the Lord directly, but many of us say that to him indirectly each week. I really think that someone who doesn\u2019t want to enter into communion with Christ\u2019s body in praying the whole Mass should not come to receive him in holy communion, because one really isn\u2019t fully in communion. I know that\u2019s a provocative statement and it\u2019s meant to be. The refusal to pray parts of the Mass is not a light matter, because it\u2019s a refusal to allow the Lord to pray in us and to bring us into prayerful communion with others. And it causes scandal. I think it\u2019s one of the principal causes for one of the worst and most common blasphemies of our age: the blasphemy that \u201cMass is boring,\u201d heard by so many young people as the reason why they don\u2019t want to come to Mass. They say that \u2014 as they\u2019ve told me on many retreats and during my time as a high school chaplain \u2014 because so many adults they witness behave as if they\u2019re \u201cbored out of their minds\u201d and are at Mass only because they think they have to be. We have to be honest: While our Protestant brothers and sisters lack the presence of Christ in the Eucharist and in the priesthood, they recognize and manifest much more than we do Christ\u2019s presence praying and singing in and within them. We need to learn and imitate their zeal and their joy in praising God in prayer and song. To pray and sing is not someone else\u2019s job or mission. It\u2019s the mission of every Christian. God will help us to fulfill it, provided that we don\u2019t refuse him.<\/p>\n
9) In summary, John the Baptist\u2019s mission was to point Jesus out to others after the Father and the Holy Spirit had pointed Jesus out to him. In the same way, each of us \u2014 having discovered or rediscovered Christ\u2019s presence in these four ways at Mass \u2014 is called to go with courage to announce the presence of Jesus to others. As we get ready to receive the \u201cLamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,\u201d we ask Him to take whatever sins blind us and others to his presence, so that, having seen him, we may be as faithful to our mission of announcing him to others as the Baptist was.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Fr. Roger J. Landry St. Francis Xavier Church, Hyannis, MA Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A January 16, 2005 Is 49:3,5-6; 1Cor 1:1-3; Jn 1:29-34 1) There\u2019s a truly remarkable phrase in today\u2019s Gospel, that occurs not once but twice. Sometimes we can become so habituated to the episodes in Christ\u2019s life that we […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[831,3,6],"tags":[835,8710,340,834,601,151,98],"class_list":["post-737","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2005-year-a","category-homily","category-year-a","tag-1cor-11-3","tag-2005-year-a","tag-2nd-sunday-in-ordinary-time","tag-is-493-5-6","tag-jn-129-34","tag-st-francis-xavier","tag-sunday"],"yoast_head":"\n