I don’t want to alarm anyone, but Christmas is only six months away. That should still allow for plenty of time to buy a nice gift for
that special pastor in your life, but you can’t put it off. It’s a process, after all. Now that the rummage sale has come and gone, opportunities to pick something really nice might be few and far between. (As a side note, we’ll have a final report from the rummage sale shortly. There are still a few outstanding bills and such, but it looks like we did very well once again.)
In all seriousness, Christmas is only six months away, which is precisely why the Church celebrates the birth of John the Baptist on June 24. John’s mission was nothing less than to herald the coming of the Messiah. It was a mission so important that he started working on it before he was born – leaping in the womb of his mother, Elizabeth, when Mary’s greeting sounded in her ears (cf. Lk. 1:44). It was a mission he continued in his adulthood, pointing out the Lamb of God and encouraging his own followers to follow Him (cf. Jn. 1:29), as well as preaching a baptism of repentance for sins. It was a mission he was ultimately willing to give his life for, because he knew the cost would be worth it (cf. Mt. 3:11).
Even nature recognizes the importance of John’s mission. Thursday was the summer solstice; from that day on, the days get progressively shorter – which is to say, they get less sunlight. As John himself said, “I must decrease, He must increase” (Jn. 3:30). John’s mission is to remind the world that no matter how dark things get, there is One coming after him that can change all that. Unsurprisingly, then, that just a few days after the winter solstice – the darkest day of the year – we celebrate Christmas, when the true Light enters the world.
During the uncertainty of the On Mission for the Church Alive! process, we need to ask ourselves if we’re onboard with the mission of Saint John the Baptist. Do our hearts leap for joy when we encounter Him in the many different ways we are privileged to meet Him? Do we point others towards Him, so that they too might have a personal relationship with Him? Do we seek out forgiveness, so that our relationship with Him might be more fruitful? How much are we willing to give to be witnesses to Christ?
It’s not often that a Sunday gets replaced, as it were, by a feast day. But this is one of those cases. The Church definitely wants us – needs us – to pray with and to Saint John the Baptist today, that we might become more authentic disciples.