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Gospel: Matthew 11: 2-11
When John the Baptist heard in prison of the works of the Christ,
he sent his disciples to Jesus with this question,
“Are you the one who is to come,
or should we look for another?”
Jesus said to them in reply,
“Go and tell John what you hear and see:
the blind regain their sight,
the lame walk,
lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear,
the dead are raised,
and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.
And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.”
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.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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It’s been said, “Opposites attract.”
I think of peanut butter and jelly, apple and cinnamon, wine and cheese.
But there are also things that don’t go well together. Oil and water. Me and bugs. Or, in the case of today’s Gospel, John the Baptist and Jesus Christ.
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Many things about John set him apart.
He lived an austere life in the desert, wearing a shirt made of camel’s hair, while feeding on bugs and wild honey. He shouted himself hoarse along the banks of the Jordan, crying out, “Repent, and believe in the Gospel!”
Meanwhile, Jesus exuded compassion. He healed the sick, invited himself into peoples’ homes, turned water into wine, washed the feet of his disciples, and forgave sinners, even those who would put him to death.
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At that time, there was a belief stirring among the people that a prophet had arisen in their midst. God had not spoken in four hundred years. But, finally, that divine silence had been broken.
Many believed that John was God’s messenger, perhaps the Messiah. Yet he says in no uncertain terms, “I am not the Messiah… One who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals.”
Suddenly, Jesus shows up on the banks of the Jordan, insisting on being baptized by John. This gesture inaugurates Christ’s public ministry, allowing John to disappear from the scene.
Later, reports surface that Jesus is performing miracles – the blind see, the lame walk, even the dead are raised. From John’s perspective, all that is lacking is Christ’s proclamation of divine judgment.
The “Herods” of this world would be condemned to everlasting fire, while the repentant would be saved. But this big announcement never comes. Christ proclaimed mercy and forgiveness, instead, drip by drip.
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Now, in today’s Gospel, John finds himself locked inside a humid, putrid prison cell deep inside the bowels of Herod’s dungeon because he proclaimed King Herod’s marriage as being unlawful.
John must’ve hoped that Jesus would come for him. Even the sound of Christ’s voice was enough to make the prison walls shake, thrusting open the gates of his cell.
But the call never comes. There is not even a protest.
Christ’s absence pushes John into a crisis of faith. After all that he did to prepare the way of the Lord, it seems like it was for nothing, his entire life was a downward arrow, pointing to this place of abandonment. Where was Jesus?
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Wondering if he got it all wrong, John somehow sends his disciples to Jesus asking, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
This was John’s Calvary.
This was his moment of desperation, wondering if his mission had failed.
Had he been duped by God? Was his entire life – from leaping in his mother’s womb at the presence of the Christ-child, to the penance of the desert heat, to the diet of bugs and honey, to shouting himself hoarse proclaiming repentance – all for nothing?
Did he get God wrong?
As far as we know, John died uncertain.
Shortly hereafter, he is beheaded, his head delivered to Herod’s unlawful wife on a platter at a dinner party by her twelve-year-old daughter.
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While wasting away in that prison, John represents all in this world who do good – and when struck by tragedy, grief, or the fear of their own mortality, question whether or not God has abandoned them.
Did he ever care? Did he hear their pleas? Was he ever there at all?
Jesus will endure the same haunting feelings when he cries out from the Cross, “Father, why have you abandoned me?”
This is the fiercest temptation of Satan, to make us wonder if God, our mission, or our life ever mattered.
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Belief can be a tricky thing. God cannot be boxed in or told what to do. As he proclaims through the prophet Isaiah, “My ways are not your ways,” making faith feel elusive, so much so that some never find it.
Even those who do believe can feel like their faith resembles a heartbeat; while it may be alive, it goes up and down. And sometimes we must go to great lengths to save it.
Faith is our lifeline. Our source of strength. Our connection to the Divine, who promises never to abandon us even when all seems lost.
Christ’s resurrection from the dead is our assurance of that.
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It’s been said opposites attract.
Peanut butter and jelly. Apple and cinnamon.
Christ and sinners.
Even doubt and faith.
Like John, we must wrestle with that question, “Are you the one who is to come? Or should we look for another?”
Yes, Lord, we believe you are the Messiah.
But when our faith contracts, help our unbelief.
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Image credits: (1) Francesco Trevisani, public domain (2) Holiday Smart (3) Saint John the Baptist in Prison, Juan Fernández de Navarrete