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Gospel: John 5: 31-47
Jesus said to the Jews:
“If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true.
But there is another who testifies on my behalf,
and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.
You sent emissaries to John, and he testified to the truth.
I do not accept human testimony,
but I say this so that you may be saved.
He was a burning and shining lamp,
and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.
But I have testimony greater than John’s.
The works that the Father gave me to accomplish,
these works that I perform testify on my behalf
that the Father has sent me.
Moreover, the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf.
But you have never heard his voice nor seen his form,
and you do not have his word remaining in you,
because you do not believe in the one whom he has sent.
You search the Scriptures,
because you think you have eternal life through them;
even they testify on my behalf.
But you do not want to come to me to have life.
“I do not accept human praise;
moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you.
I came in the name of my Father,
but you do not accept me;
yet if another comes in his own name,
you will accept him.
How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another
and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?
Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father:
the one who will accuse you is Moses,
in whom you have placed your hope.
For if you had believed Moses,
you would have believed me,
because he wrote about me.
But if you do not believe his writings,
how will you believe my words?”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Every morning before I begin praying at my desk, I light a tea candle and place it in a stand.
The candle burns bright for over an hour before its tiny little wick runs out, disappearing into a small silhouette of smoke.
It’s such a simple object, but that little candle reminds me of John the Baptist, whom Jesus praises in today’s Gospel.
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Like a candle, John did three things:
He gave off light – the light of faith.
He burned like fire – with passion for Christ.
And like a burning wick, his ego slowly faded until there was nothing left – only Christ alive within him.
As John proclaims, “The LORD must increase, and I must decrease.”
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How are we like John the Baptist?
Do we share our faith with others? Do we burn with passion for Christ? Do we allow the Lord to increase within us?
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Like a little tea candle, John was bright, warm, and slowly died to himself.
May we be the same today.
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Image credits: (1) Simply Catholic, Shutterstock (2) WCUcatholic.org (3) Pinterest