St. John the Baptist |
Precursor of Christ
in Birth and Death
From a homily by Saint Bede the Venerable, priest
As forerunner of our Lord's birth, preaching and death, the
blessed John showed in his struggle a goodness worthy of the sight of
heaven. In the words of scripture: Though in the sight of men he suffered
torments, his hope is full of immortality. We justly commemorate the day of his birth
with a joyful celebration, a day which he himself made festive for us through
his suffering and which he adorned with the crimson splendor of his own
blood. We do rightly revere his memory
with joyful hearts, for he stamped with the seal of martyrdom the testimony
which he delivered on behalf of our Lord.
There is no doubt that blessed John suffered imprisonment
and chains as a witness to our Redeemer, whose forerunner he was, and gave his
life for Him. His persecutor had
demanded not that he should deny Christ, but only that he should be kept silent
about the truth. Nevertheless, he died
for Christ. Does Christ not say: I am
the truth? Therefore, because John shed
his blood for the truth, he surely died for Christ.
Through his birth, preaching and baptizing, he bore witness
to the coming birth, preaching and baptism of Christ, and his own suffering he
showed that Christ also would suffer.
St. John he Baptist Imprisonment |
Such was the quality and strength of the man who accepted
the end of this present life by shedding his blood after the long
imprisonment. He preached the freedom of
heavenly peace, yet was thrown into irons by ungodly men; he was locked away in
the darkness of prison, though he came bearing witness to the Light itself,
which is Christ. John was baptized in
his own blood, though he had been privileged to baptize the Redeemer of the
world, to hear the voice of the Father above him, and to see the grace of the
Holy Spirit descending upon Him. But to
endure temporal agonies for the sake of the truth was not a heavy burden for
such men as John; rather it was easily borne and even desirable, for he knew
eternal joy would be his reward.
Beheading of St. John the Baptist |
Since death was ever near at hand through the inescapable
necessity of nature, such men considered it a blessing to embrace it and thus
gain the reward of eternal life by acknowledging Christ’s name. Hence the apostle Paul rightly says: You have been granted the privilege not only
to believe in Christ but also to suffer for his sake. He tells us why it is Christ’s gift that his
chosen ones should suffer for him: The
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory
that is to be revealed in us.
Stairway to Heaven |
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