Not a homily: my reflections on the Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Hello all,


I did not preach today but I really enjoyed the scripture readings that we had at mass today.  For your information there were two sets of readings.  The first set was for the vigil mass on Saturday evening and the other set was for the masses during the day today on Sunday.

Here we mixed and matched the readings and I enjoyed hearing them because I have a deep love for the reading first reading from the vigil mass (Jeremiah 1:4-10)  This is the calling of the prophet Jeremiah.  I also really enjoyed the Gospel reading from the masses during the day (Luke 1:57-66, 80)


Both of these readings touch me in a very personal way. 


The celebration of the Nativity of John the Baptist is essentially about who John the Baptist was as the person who God had chosen to prepare the world for the coming of Jesus' public ministry.


As I heard the readings and proclaimed the Gospel I connected with these readings personally.  I heard echos of my own vocational call.


So I thought that I would share with you a [brief] version of my vocational call.


As an aside: I'm not the only one who has a vocational call.  We are all called (that includes you) to help prepare the world to get to know Jesus.  We are all called like the prophet Jeremiah and John the Baptist to speak the truth and help the world draw close to God.  We are all called to discern God's will for our lives and follow it.  For me that is the key to real happiness and joy.


Here's my story:


When I was younger I suffered (and still do) from a very serious heart defect that I had from birth.  I've had open-heart surgery five times in my life.  I was 18 months, 14, 16, 17, and 21 years old when I "went under the knife."  During these surgeries I've come very close to death and even had (what some might call) a near death experience when I was 14.

Fr. Merrick

During the early part of my illness I spoke with my parish priest (Fr. Merrick Bednar) who himself had had a heart problem and a heart transplant.  He challenged me to unite my sufferings to those of Christ and to see in my pain a precious opportunity to grow spiritually.  He helped me go deeper in faith and trust in God's will for my life.  And so, since life was simple to me back then, I just did it.  I believed and trusted.  I never lost sleep over my illness and I was not afraid of death.


I don't say this to make you think that I'm special or holy (I'm not) but God was able to teach me something through the suffering, pain, and fear.  I learned that my life is not my own.  My life is a gift to me and I have a choice as to what I want to do with it.  


I do personally feel that what many were saying about John the Baptist in the Gospel from today "The hand of the Lord was with him" is in some way applicable to me.  I also am convinced that it is applicable to you too.  


From the time that I was 16 I also felt a call to be a friar and a priest and I can remember reading over and over the passage from the beginning of Jeremiah where God called him. 

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,before you were born I dedicated you,a prophet to the nations I appointed you. 

"Ah, Lord GOD!" I said, "I know not how to speak; I am too young." 

But the LORD answered me, Say not, "I am too young." To whomever I send you, you shall go; whatever I command you, you shall speak.  Have no fear before them, because I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD. 

Then the LORD extended his hand and touched my mouth, saying,
See, I place my words in your mouth!

When I was younger (and even now) I was a talker.  I was like my father and I would not stop talking.  I loved to talk and because I came from smart parents and I learned to speak well.


It is a joy to preach because I feel that God has given me the ability to talk and I love sharing something personal at the pulpit.


There was really one more aspect to my vocational call:


One day in college my roommate's friend (a beautiful young woman) came up to me and said that she wanted to pray with someone about some things in her life.  I was, at first, uncomfortable with this because I had no idea why she had asked me.


To make a long story short, we did pray together... many times over the next 2 1/2 years.  She was suffering from the most heart wrenching pain that I could ever imagine a young woman experiencing and she desperately needed to encounter God.  For some reason she picked me to pray with.


Over those years of praying with her every few months I saw God work a miracle in her life.  He did it through me.  It was not a fast or flashy miracle but it was amazing to see.  I didn't perform any miracle... I was along for the ride and I just tried to get out of God's way.


In-hind-sight I decided that if I could live my life in such a way as to simply make myself available to God and others so that He could use me to do his work then that is what I wanted to do.


I knew that my life was a gift and I wanted to give it back to God who had given it to me.