Homily for the Third Sunday of Advent, Year B

John the Baptist: The Greatest Man Ever

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Third Sunday of Advent, Year B

Church of St. Bridget of Minneapolis, MN

Sunday, December 17, 2023

On this Third Sunday of Advent, we hear about one of the saints of Advent, John the Baptist. The other two are prophet Isaiah and the Blessed Mother Mary. Today’s Gospel begins as follows, “A man named John was sent from God.” What is his mission? To testify to the light— because he was not, himself, the light. From ancient times, God has sent messengers, spokespersons. Think of the patriarchs, the fathers of the Old Testament— Abraham, his son Isaac, and Isaac’s son, Jacob. Think of all the prophets of Israel— Jeremiah, Isaiah, Amos, Elijah, Daniel, Malachi, etc. and indeed of every sage, philosopher, artist, or poet who has communicated something of God’s truth and beauty. Think of great political figures like Constantine, Abraham Lincoln etc. who keyed into God’s intense desire to liberate all people from the shackles of slavery and oppression. Think of all the great saints in our Catholic tradition who became “alter Christus” (“another Christ”) and by doing so became role models for us. Think of our parents, grandparents, godparents, faith-formators, priests, bishops, teachers etc. who taught us the vital importance of knowing God, loving God and serving God. In different ways, they have taught us of the necessity and indispensability of God. What do all these figures have in common? They were all sent by God to lead us to the light. Those of you who have listened to my sermons in the past know how much I speak about my mother and grand-mother. I lost my father very early in life. As such, it was these two great women of faith who relentlessly formed and guided me on the path that ultimately brought me to where I am today. When I was coming of age, I heard my mother say, as she was addressing her children, “Whatever you think is greater than God, don’t give it to me. I don’t want it.” The impact of her words was that immediately I knew that God should be the greatest pursuit of my life and of everyone’s life. I knew that God is the Highest Good, Summum Bonum. 

We have a long list of people who have been sent by God and who communicated to us God’s love, God’s compassion, God’s justice, God’s will, God’s purposes, and God’s desires. But the birth and sending of John the Baptist is qualitatively different. It is one of its kind. How come? Judaism considers Malachi to be the last of the biblical prophets. Before John the Baptist was born, ancient Israel went four hundred years without a prophet. People wondered if Yahweh had stopped speaking and if Yahweh had forgotten them. Then in the early 1st century AD, John the Baptist entered the stage. His ministry started with a bang. His revolutionary message got the attention of all and sundry. Although he was a son of a temple priest, he did not preach from the temple. He preached from the desert, a place far away from home, yet, people against all odds, went there to listen to him. As shown in our Gospel passage for today, priests and Levites wondered if he were the Christ. To his credit, John did not claim to be who and what he was not. He simply said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, make straight the way of the Lord.” The humility and honesty of John later prompted Jesus to say, “Among those born of women, there has been none greater than John the Baptist.” Of all those sent by God, John is uniquely different. Why? He is the one that concretely and directly points to Jesus: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, “A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me” (John 1:29-30). The Blessed Mother Mary is considered the greatest woman ever. And I say that John the Baptist is the greatest man ever. When the Ark of the Old Covenant was being brought to Jerusalem, we were told that King David danced before it. Centuries after, when the Ark of the New Covenant, Mary visited Elizabeth, the infant John the Baptist danced in his mother’s womb before Mary. Of all the messengers and spokespersons sent by God, John the Baptist is the greatest. By the grace of God, he knew the long expected Messiah was in their midst. He announced it loud and clear. He called people  to prepare to welcome him. Even when people thought he was the Messiah, John said no, that he was basically a voice announcing the Adventus of the Messiah. And as soon as Jesus appeared on the public scene, John identified him as the Lamb for the sacrifice. He did not contest the stage with Jesus. In fact he said, he will decrease and Jesus will increase. And after that, John took the backstage and allowed Jesus to take the centre stage that is deservedly his.

Asked by the Pharisees in our Gospel today, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ or Elijah or the prophet?” John says, “I baptize with water.” What’s the significance of his baptism? To show that ancient Israel was unfit and ill-prepared to meet the Messiah. His baptism is that of repentance. Repentance, metanoia in Greek. In our culture, repentance has been given a bad name. It is mistaken to be judgmental. Speak about repentance and you will see people even in church rolling their eyes and looking for a way to leave the church. But Advent is supposed to be a desert time, to strip things away and purposely and consciously ask the great questions of “How do I stand with God?” “Is the worship of God the greatest thing in my life?” We are worried about so many things— jobs, family, entertainment, politics etc. We are worried about traveling, about the airport, about money etc. Those can be our distractions and diversions. But the message of Advent, the message of John the Baptist is that of preparation. Are you ready to meet someone who is qualitatively different? Are you ready to encounter the bearer of divine truth? If you are not, the Baptist says, repent! Μετανοώ in Greek which literally means “Go beyond the mind you have!” Reform! Change your way of thinking, change your way of seeing. How do you see and assess the world? If you don’t see it as God sees it, change! Wear the world lightly. Enjoy the goods of the world but don’t become attached to them. Be ready to let them go and do not make their pursuit your greatest and ultimate pursuit in life. Be willing to share with the poor. Practice at least one of the corporal works of mercy like feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, and visiting the sick and imprisoned. Do this and it will make you holy. Finally, sustain these practices with prayer. 

God bless you!