Reflection for December 14
It seems like such a benign, reasonable question to ask. John the Baptist sends his disciples to Jesus to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
That John asks this question is a little bit surprising, though, when you consider that even before he was born, John had already recognized Jesus when Mary and Elizabeth met. During the Visitation in Luke’s first chapter, John leaped in Elizabeth’s womb, as if he already recognized Christ. In Luke’s third chapter, after people asked John whether he might be the Messiah, John preaches the good news of Jesus, talking about how it is Jesus who will baptize the people with the Holy Spirit, recognizing Jesus for who he is. Certainly, John knew Jesus.
Nevertheless, John still sends his disciples to ask, “are you the one?” Perhaps it was a result of the despair of being imprisoned by Herod. Whatever the cause, John seems to be questioning what he had already come to know to be true. He is human after all.
Jesus’ response is such good news for all of us. Jesus isn’t angry but encourages John and others to believe what they have seen and heard. Jesus calls them to be faithful. He calls us to this as well. Advent is a time of preparation. We might use this time to think about what causes us to doubt. We might use this time to better understand how we at times forget what our faith asks of us. We might use this time to remember how, even in dark times, we see Christ continuously at work in our world through people of faith.
For sure, it could be easy to look around the world and find yourself dispirited. There is plenty of darkness that might shake your faith and cause you, like John, to question. There is war. There is violence. There is suffering. But for each moment of darkness, there is an inbreaking of light. There is countless rushing to ease the anguish of war, to soften the pain of violence, to comfort those who suffer. That inbreaking of light is the person who chooses to be the hands and feet of Christ in the world.
This Advent, may we all reflect with intention on how our lives help light to break into the darkness of our world.
Christopher Haddad