Gospel Commentary: The Dawn from on High

By Fr. Jack Peterson
Herald Columnist
(From the issue of 1/13/05)

John the Baptist’s father had proclaimed to him, "You my child shall be called the prophet of the Most High." We see, in the five verses of John’s Gospel chosen for the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, John the Baptist fulfilling his prophetic role in a direct fashion. Led by the Spirit, John points out "the Dawn from on high" and makes known Christ’s identity with accuracy and precision.

First, John informs the world that Jesus is the man whom God has chosen as Messiah. That Jesus is fully a man is clear to John: "A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me … " This man, Jesus, is indeed the long-awaited Messiah. He is the One chosen by the Father and anointed by the Holy Spirit. "I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven and remain upon him," John says.

But John makes it equally clear that Jesus is not just a man. Jesus is God. He exhibits the unique attributes of God Himself. He shares God’s power to forgive sins: "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world." In addition, He is eternal. John says that Jesus ranks ahead of him, "because he existed before me." Those familiar with Christ know that John was conceived in the womb of Elizabeth six months before Jesus was conceived in the womb of Mary. So, Jesus existed before John because He is God’s only begotten Son, and He has existed from all eternity. Just in case the crowds were not picking up on these obvious allusions to the divine nature of his cousin, John concludes with the bold statement, "now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God."

As a Church, we are still basking in the light of the mystery of Christmas, in which we recall that precious moment when Jesus, Son of God and Son of Mary, made his humble entrance into this world. I always feel like we can never adequately thank our Heavenly Father properly for this, the greatest gift the world has ever known. A similar sentiment should well up in us at Mass. That same God-made-man freely gives Himself to us in holy Communion to be our nourishment, our forgiveness and our pledge of eternal life, but also to be one with us, whom He loves so much that He laid down his life for us.

Just before this very precious moment at Mass, we recall the words of John the Baptist, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world … " Then we recall the fact that we are not worthy of such an unfathomable gift, and we beg God to say the word and heal us. May we never stop being overwhelmed by the sacred mysteries of God’s love poured out in the manger 2000 years ago and onto our tongues on Sunday.

Copyright ©2005 Arlington Catholic Herald.  All rights reserved.