Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Nativity of John the Baptist. It’s pretty awesome that throughout the centuries, the Catholic church perpetually remembers Saint John the Baptist’s birthday. You may be asking yourself what is so important about John the Baptist that we honor his birth? We honor Jesus’ birth at Christmas and Mary’s birth on the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, but why John the Baptist? Well, if you remember, Jesus said: “I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John” (Lk 7:28). Jesus honored John above all other men and so it is fitting that we honor him too.
Jesus and Mary were both set aside for a special purpose before they were born and so was John the Baptist. The first reading from the book of Jeremiah today says “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you”. This reading was about the prophet Jeremiah, but it could just as easily apply to Saint John the Baptist as well. In fact, the first reading could also apply to all of us too. God knew us before we were formed in the womb, before we were born too. That’s really something for us to think about in modern times, when abortion has become such a widespread phenomenon. Every human life is valuable and precious in God’s eyes. We will never know if a future Albert Einstein, Beethoven or Mozart were never allowed to have the gift of life, let alone people who may have become saints if they had been given the chance to do so.
Peter says in the second reading “Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him”. This reading of course, is how we love the Lord Jesus even though we can not see him during our earthly lives. We have such a beautiful hymn that expresses this heartfelt sentiment most perfectly, called “Without Seeing You”. It’s a shame that all young women who find out they are pregnant, can not hear the words to this hymn, because it also expresses how they could love an unborn child that they can not yet see and believe that this new life is a beautiful gift from God.
In the Gospel today, Zechariah prayed for this gift of a little baby and God did hear his prayer. Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were good and righteous before God and must have been very pleasing to Him, because God granted their wish. We should pay attention to how Zechariah and Elizabeth led their lives too. God listens to our prayers and grants them a little more often if we remain in His friendship and live according to His will.
Two small things that are easy to pass over in today’s Gospel is that the Angel said that John “shall drink no wine nor strong drink”. It was probably because he was to be preserved in purity and holiness, mind, body and spirit. However, Jesus did drink wine and this too, was part of God’s will. What is God’s will for one person may not be His will for another.
The second scripture verse that is easy to pass over is that the angel said John was sent to “turn the hearts of the fathers to their children”. This is pretty neat that God wants fathers to pay a little more attention to their children and love them more deeply. Fathers work hard to provide for their family’s needs, yet God seems to want them to realize their children need their love just as much as the necessities of life. And a final thought about the verse “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children” and the verse from the first reading today “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you”. Fathers are so important to children, even fathers who are not married to the mother of their child. Fathers can be a very positive influence in their children’s life even before their child is born, whether they are married or not, and continue to be a stable and loving influence on them throughout their lives. Love never ends. It lasts forever. To love a little baby who grows into a child is to love another human being forever and to have them love you back as well.
We should remember to pray for all expectant mothers and fathers, that they come to love their little baby that they have not yet been able to see. This would be a good thing for us to do today, in honor of Saint John the Baptist’s birthday.
