St. John the Baptist can be our helper and “patron” as we prepare to celebrate this weekend’s Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. The Baptist led a very austere life, dressed in the simplest of clothes, and sustained himself on whatever nourishment he could find in the desert. He made a name for himself as “a man of God” and large numbers went out to hear him preach and be influenced by him.
The opening words of today’s Gospel (taken from Mark 1,7-11) tell us that St. John was proclaiming “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” It is important not to misunderstand the meaning of these words. It would be quite wrong to think that people simply had to come for baptism in the river in order for all their sins to be wiped out. That would be little more than superstition. The baptism itself was a symbolic act which had to be accompanied by an inner change. The word for ‘repentance’ in Mark 1 is metanoia in Greek. It implies a radical change in the way we look at the meaning and purpose of life and how we live that life ourselves. It calls for much more than is normally connoted by ‘repentance,’ which we normally understand as ‘being sorry’ for something we have done. Metanoia is much more than just feeling sorry. It calls for a total reorganization of one’s attitudes so that such errant or hurting behavior would disappear from one’s life. It is “turning a new leaf” of “turning the page” to another chapter of life.
Also, the “forgiveness of sins” in a Biblical sense is more than just God just wiping out the guilt and the threat of punishment that our sins might involve. In a sense, our sins can never be wiped out. The damage they do often lasts for a very long time and cannot be undone. If we have murdered someone, they stay dead no matter how sorry we feel. If we have destroyed a person’s reputation, it may remain destroyed forever. Hurtful words spoken cannot be called back.
Let St. John the Baptist help you open your heart to a spirit of metanoia in order that you may be open to the “change of heart” to which Jesus calls you.
Let us pray. “Father, through the intercession of St. John the Baptist, show us your Son. Son, show us your Spirit. Holy Spirit, grant us both wisdom and grace through your mercy and love. Whatever we have done, whatever our troubles today, whatever tomorrow may bring: you love us as we are … and nothing is greater than your love. Amen.”
