Take me away from me and give me to You.
About the Advent of Saint John the Baptist
“As they were going off, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John, "What did you go out to the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? Then what did you go out to see? Someone dressed in fine clothing? Those who wear fine clothing are in royal palaces. Then why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way before you. Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he." (Mt 11:7-11)
This is what Jesus says about John the Baptist. He points out that a special time has come in the history of Israel. The greatest of the prophets appeared, who is known by the nickname "The Baptist". He revealed himself as a link between the new and the old covenants. John is the prophet who will wash the old world dusty with the Law and its interpretation. His mission is not to emphasize the power of the Commandments, but to call to conversion. John completes what was omitted from the Old Covenant by the Israelites. People treated the Decalogue as an end, but it was a means on the way to God. God himself has asked for conversion of heart more than once. He complained that the people worshiped him with their lips. John breathes a new freshness that will refresh hearts and minds.
It is interesting to note that John's preaching begins in the wilderness. The Advent that he lives is the Advent of desert and loneliness. A paradox arises here. The place of preaching of the prophets was usually crowded gatherings in the cities and at the gates. John preaches in the wilderness. It is not he who goes to people. It is people who come to him to listen to him. It acts like a magnet. Attracts attention. The desert is John's home. It is there that he gains strength and speaks with God. In this he recalls the pilgrim Moses, who experiences God's action in the desert. John is alone in the wilderness, but he is probably not alone. He is still in the presence of God. Thanks to this, he hears and sees better. He is the first to recognize in Jesus the fulfillment of messianic announcements.
St. Matthew recorded the words of the prophet to his hearers: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." These are short words, but very specific. The call to conversion seems obvious, but we know well that in practice we often only declare our readiness to convert. Contrary to appearances, true conversion has very serious consequences. Many people are not ready to convert because it means turning their lives, responsibilities and beliefs upside down. Man has the ability to tell himself that he has converted. Sometimes he justifies the lack of conversion with good intentions. He accepts the Gospel, but on a very superficial level, and then marvels that its power does not reach the most important things in his life. It is like a stone thrown into water: wet and smooth on the outside, dry and rough inside. The half-way of conversion is a theme that returns again and again in the New Testament. In the Apocalypse we read in a letter addressed to the inhabitants of Laodicea: " I know your works; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot!" Jesus reproaches those who have known the Truth but do not live according to it.
John's attitude is completely different. It is he, right after the Blessed Mother, who is the man best prepared for the coming of God into the world. Moreover, Jesus himself praises him, which makes him the first among those waiting for the Messiah. " Among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist." John also has much in common with the prophet Isaiah, who foretold the content of his message. John is the voice. It does not matter how he is posture, his kinship with Jesus, or even the honey and locusts he ate for dinner. His mission is to be an "invisible" voice that will not obscure the true Lamb that follows him. John is like a lens. It gives sharpness to the prophecies that foretold the coming of David's descendant. He does not concentrate on himself but indicates that the One to whom he is not worthy “to loosen the thongs of his sandals” has come. He will say about himself: " He must increase; I must decrease". He thus predates Jesus' teaching about losing his own life, which is why he will be the first to lose his life at the hands of Herod.
John the Baptist is recognized as the patron saint of Advent. He gives us clear instructions and teaches us that the encounter with God must be prepared. In turn, the path we choose to Him must be straight. Preparation for the encounter with the mystery of the Incarnation requires of man a readiness to look at the world with the eyes of God. John could do it. There is a certain radicalism in this view that requires us to abandon our own ambitions and convictions. A Christian is not a man who has accepted the Gospel as true, but as "his own". It is not that we find it valuable. It gives value to us. People who follow the Gospel often have to be internally broken by the word of God. Moreover, John himself, when he addresses words to the Pharisees and scholars, does not mince his words and is able to call them "vipers". Maybe in Advent it is also worth thinking about us in this way. We often see ourselves only as victims. "Everybody is against us." We do not cope with weaknesses, we are unlucky in life, we meet ingratitude for good. If a man really believes what he says, he will quickly find himself on the other side of the barricade. He will not recognize the time of his visitation. He will lock himself in his little hell. John announces Advent, which is to awaken the awareness of the sin that dwells in me. I am not the lamb, but the wolf or butcher who kills the lamb. It is not I who take away my sins, but the One who stood by the Jordan and saw the heavens open.
John the Baptist teaches that none of us is the center of the world. Our problems, worries seem to be the most important from our perspective, but objectively for the world and others they are not. This is a painful truth. It strips us of the illusion that we are most important to ourselves. Klaus of Flue put it well in his prayer: "O my God and Lord, take me away from me and give me completely to You." Such entrustment seems to be the basis for speaking about a relationship with God. After all, we do not stand with God as equals. It is not we who show grace, but God who is grace. Many saints experienced the presence of God in their own absence. They often called themselves "nobody." Only God is "someone." I am nobody. Of course, this is not about denying myself, but about letting God become real in my life. After all, my life ultimately does not belong to me. I do not have absolute control over it. On the contrary, God, who is invited to life, suddenly becomes its Lord. The words of the doxology spoken during the Holy Mass then acquire a new meaning. All that we have placed on the altar is offered "through Christ, with Christ and in Christ." Here I have no place for "I", "mine", "yours", "ours". Here there is not even a place for verbs: "I will do", "I will give", "I will offer". Here only God rules. “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me” as Paul says.
John's radicalism is the great task of Advent. We must be ready for the fact that, like John, we can lose our heads for Jesus. Literally! The testimony is the culmination of the faith that John professed on the banks of the Jordan. Maybe in my life I will find time to come to Jesus on one Advent day and honestly confess to Him: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world."
Finally, it is worth returning once again to John's exhortation. In his teaching, he proclaims the closeness of the kingdom of heaven. What does this phrase mean? John is convinced that a new kingdom is coming that will bring deliverance. In some passages of Scripture, one can even get the impression that he is also counting on the political liberation of Israel from occupation. At the same time, John is not afraid to call this kingdom "the kingdom of heaven." For him, heaven is getting closer and closer to the earth. Christ brings heaven with him; he introduces a new order that is known only in heaven. It is there that only God reigns and the hierarchy of mutual respect and dignity is preserved. In heaven, everything remains in its proper place, therefore it is the kingdom of righteousness. No one can feel aggrieved or less important there. It occupies the place for which it is best suited. This kingdom is free from mutual competition, careerism, jealousy and bureaucratic disorder. It is truly the kingdom of God.
Advent with John is a call to conversion and a promise of the kingdom. There is no doubt about that. The preparation of the coming of the Lord Jesus absolutely assumes these two aspects, therefore, full of trust, we should cry out in prayer: Marana tha. Come, Lord Jesus! Thy kingdom comes!
Until Tomorrow
fr. george