THE WORD
Is 49,1-6 / Ac 13,22-26 / Lk 1,57-66.80
When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her. When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child, they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, but his mother said in reply, “No. He will be called John.”
But they answered her, “There is no one among your relatives who has this name.” So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called. He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God. Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, “What, then, will this child be?” For surely the hand of the Lord was with him. The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel.
IN OTHER WORDS
The central theme of the Gospel today is the birth of John the Baptist. John popularly means
God’s Grace or God is gracious. Obviously he was a gift from God to Zechariah and Elizabeth to whom an angel made reference during that annunciation to Mary that she would be the mother of the son of God. The angel said,” And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” (Luke 1:26-38)
John was the name and was already destined to be the forerunner. The question “What, then, will this child be?” became moot and academic. Still, the process of gradually understanding the very grace that was granted to the old couple would be a challenging task ahead.
As we celebrate the birth of the great prophet John the Baptist, we are likewise ushered in to reflect the value of human life. That life is all a gift from God, a grace that understandably solicits expression of gratitude, just like what Elizabeth and Zechariah exhibited by naming the son John, something that was not culturally practiced. How often do we pause and re ect on the value of our life and the task embedded in us by God, just like destiny carved already for John the Baptist as the forerunner of the Savior Jesus Christ?
- Fr. Jun Javines, SVD | USC, Cebu City
The Word in other words 2016
An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.
