Just passing by

The wisdom of the one who wrote the Fourth Gospel invites us today to discover some truths about encountering Jesus: the one who has the power to change our lives if we dare to get to know him.  This invitation is issued on the day of our baptism, and is renewed every day.  All we need to do is respond by listening.  The rest is already taken care of, and the possibilities are endless.

This reflection, offered to the people who pray in this place, is also available for others who encounter it here, both in podcast version and in text:

In pursuit of holiness

This weekend, at the last of the liturgies celebrated with this community, we will welcome two newcomers: children who are being presented by their parents.  Every time we celebrate the Sacrament of Baptism, I for one see it as an opportunity to learn a lesson about what God is asking, not only of parents, but of this entire community.  Whether they realize it or not, parents who bring their children to a church and ask for them to be baptised, are responding to a call which they themselves have heard ever since the day of their own baptism.

It is God who awakens the gift of faith in our hearts, just as he taught Eli the sound of his voice, just as he made himself known to Samuel by calling his name in the dark of night.  At this first encounter, we are told that Samuel was asleep.  I wonder whether the same is not true of those of our own age who exist from day to day but who are deaf to the sound of God’s voice calling them by name.  Only when Samuel was able to recognize the voice and respond to it, was he able to grow in wisdom.  Similarly, if we are able to listen for God’s voice in the dark of our nights, and respond accordingly, we too can grow in His wisdom.

Like Samuel, before we can learn how to listen to God’s voice, we must first meet him.  Our first encounter needs to be guided by someone who can point the way, someone who can guide us and teach us how to recognize him.  The gospel passage for today’s liturgy provides us yet another example of this truth.

John’s account tells us that the Baptist and two of his followers saw Jesus walk by.  In order to understand the wisdom of this particular gospel passage, we need to first remember that there were often double meanings to John’s words.  In this case, perhaps Jesus did indeed physically walk by the Baptist and his disciples, but more importantly, Jesus came to meet them, to invite them to follow him, and the Baptist, who had previously encountered Jesus was able to point him out.  As they grow, children need their parents to provide for their physical needs, but they also need their parents, their godparents and others to point out Jesus when he passes by.  We do this by teaching them to pray in our homes, by bringing them to the Church and by helping them to understand that every day we live is a gift from God.

Once children have been taught how to listen for the voice of God, they too will want to get to know him more.  Like the disciples who asked about where Jesus lived, today’s children too will want to see for themselves where he is to be found.  This quest will lead them to ask questions which in turn will lead them to discover the power of his loving forgiveness and to the great gift of the Eucharist, and all because Jesus responds with an invitation: Come and see.  Throughout our lives, this invitation is repeated, so that if we have the eyes to see it, we are able to marvel at God’s presence in our world.  He is present in the wonder and excitement of a toddler, in the challenging questions posed by a teenager, in the exhilaration of newfound love and in the quiet assurance of companionship with one we trust unreservedly.

Once we ourselves have found the place where our Teacher is to be found, not only will we want to always return to this place where we can listen to his voice and where all the questions of our lives can be and are answered, we will also want to invite others to discover it.  Listening to this voice allowed Paul to call the Christians of his time to a new appreciation for God’s wisdom, and to a new understanding that even the bodies we have been given in this life are gifts from him, meant to be seen as precious reminders of his abiding love for us.  Listening to this voice prompted Andrew to call his brother Peter to listen for it as well, and to be formed by its wisdom.  Listening to this voice might even prompt us to respond to a call which we have heard … ever since the day of our own baptism.