NATIVITY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST

Monday 24 June 2024
Lk 1:57-66,80

“On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “No; he is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives has this name.” Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And all of them were amazed”
(Luke 1:59-63)

Who is John the Baptist? Jesus affirms that there is no one greater than him (Mt 11:11), his cousin. John is the bridge between the Old and New Testament. He is the “new Elijah” (Mt 11:14), the “voice that cries out in the desert” (Jn 1:23), and “the friend of the Bridegroom” (Jn 3:29). John is the baptiser, preaching a baptism for the remission of sins, and he has come on a mission: God has sent him to prepare a people well disposed.

In our cultures, the choice of a baby’s name tends to follow the “sounds good”criteria. This portion of the Gospel shows how different criteria is followed: it shows how important a person’s name is in the biblical world, representing the individual’s identity and their mission.

The discussion is between the name Zechariah, strongly proposed by relatives and the people present, and the name John, tenaciously held to by the boy’s mother Elizabeth, and his father who, unable to speak, takes a writing tablet to put an end to then controversy.

While Zechariah means “God has remembered”, John means “God is favourable; God is gracious”. So then, from the point of view of the name’s meaning, there is a notably qualitative shift on the part of God, from “remembering” to “acting with favour”. It is a decisive shift: the name of John is a ministry, a mission that still to this day continues, and the command word is GRACE!

We are no longer in the time of judgement, but in the time of forgiveness, mercy and Grace. So, let’s open our hearts and let’s welcome this fundamental announcement of John the Baptist: “God is favourable and wants the best for you!”.

Fr. Giuseppe