Solemnity of the
Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
June 24, 2016 8:30am
I think Saint John the Baptist
has something to say to us today.
In our second reading, John makes
his relationship to Christ very clear.
He asks, “What do you suppose that I am?
I am not he.
One is coming after me; I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his
feet.”
In another place, John refers to
Jesus and says: “He must increase; I must
decrease” (John 3.30).
So John displays what we call
self-effacement.
That is about as popular a word as
humility in our culture.
In many sectors of our society,
blowing one’s own horn, as the saying goes, is almost a necessity.
I think we have to blow our own
horn when we are applying for a college or looking for a job, things like that.
We have to assert and lift up our
strengths.
This is appropriate and necessary
at times.
The danger is that this kind of
self-promotion can flow into many areas of our lives.
For example, we may dominate or
interrupt conversations to make sure others perceive us as being very
knowledgeable and smart and competent.
Or we may tout our
accomplishments or titles or whatever.
Instead of this, let’s try
listening to others and even questioning to understand their viewpoint.
And let’s try commending others
for their achievement or skill and giving the focus to them.
John the Baptist has this kind of
self-effacing, humble approach in relation to Jesus.
His example calls us to embrace
this in relation to Jesus and in relation to one another so that we can grow to
become Jesus-like persons.
