From The Bishop

The Bible is full of interesting characters. One of the more colourful is John the Baptist. The scriptures describe him as a man who dressed in clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. While living in the wilderness his food was locusts and wild honey (Mt.3:4). He tells us that he is “The voice crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straightâ€� (Mt.3:3). John the Baptist understood that his purpose was to preach repentance and help people prepare for the Messiah. “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fireâ€� (Mt.11). John knows that Jesus is the Messiah and that “He must increase, but I must decreaseâ€� (Jn.3:28-30). In a world where so many seem to be pumped up with pride, John the Baptist is a powerful example of what it means to live the virtue of humility. The Latin root of the word humility is “humusâ€�; which means earth or soil. To be humble is to be “groundedâ€� in the knowledge that we were made from the dust of the earth. We are the created and not the Creator. John the Baptist understood this very well when he stated that he was not the Messiah, but only the messenger. The spiritual equation for humility seems simple enough: I decrease so that God may increase. I focus less on myself and more on God and others. The incredible thing is that God does the same for us. In his 2006 Christmas Midnight Mass homily, Pope Benedict XVI offered the following reflection: “God’s sign is simplicity. God’s sign is the baby. God’s sign is that he makes himself small for us. This is how he reigns. He does not come with power and outward splendor. He comes as a baby â€" defenceless and in need of our help. He does not want to overwhelm us with his strength. He takes away our fear of his greatness. He asks for our love: so he makes himself a child … God made himself small so that we could understand him, welcome him, and love him.â€� Pope Benedict reminds us that our God decreased so that we could increase. This is God’s gift to us. John the Baptist states that he is the “voice crying out in the wildernessâ€�. We know that a voice can only be understood when it forms words. Words give intelligibility. At Christmas, Jesus the Word made flesh was born. Jesus, the Word, gives meaning to our lives. He has given us so much and yet it is so easy to forget. Our sinful pride can blind us to what God is doing in our lives and in our world. It can also cause us to forget about how important it is to love God. It seems that right now retailers are often reminding us of how many shopping days we have before Christmas. We are encouraged to spend some time thinking about what we are going to give to others. Sometimes we may even ask a person what he or she would like for Christmas. What about Jesus? Have you ever thought about what he might like for Christmas? If we consider the quote from Pope Benedict, then we already know what Jesus wants, “God made himself small so that we could understand him, welcome him, and love him.â€� This Christmas, Jesus wants our love. Are we prepared to give him what he wants?

"This Christmas, Jesus wants our love" was first published on http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/2017/12/22/faith-matters-this-christmas-jesus-wants-our-love