Hail, Infant King!

The Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord

Sunday, 6 January 2019, Bruder Klaus

Is 60:1-6

Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6

Mt 2:1-12

Praised be Jesus Christ, True God and true man!

“May the splendor of your majesty, O Lord, we pray, shed its light upon our hearts, that we may pass through the shadows of this world and reach the brightness of our eternal home.”

That is the prayer of the Church on this Solemnity. Epiphany! Christ manifest! The Wise men, the Magi, the three kings from the East, drawn by a star to pay homage to the Child Who brings with Him a new world order. He brings a new world order affecting time and eternity. He, Baby Jesus, is the be-all and the end-all, the alpha and the omega. Granted, coming into our world and into our lives as a baby, it is sort of like tiptoeing onto the scene. There are no trumpet blasts or earthquakes at His Coming. Yet He is no less God for that and it is no less true to say that He comes in splendor.

“Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.” Epiphany!

And would you believe? Most folks in history and over time have just not been and still today are not a bit impressed by God showing Himself in time, as one like us in all things but sin! God in man made manifest! Even so, you and I both know that does not constitute a reason or an excuse for giving up on such great news. In His Coming at Bethlehem, Jesus provides us with all we need in freedom to choose Him, to choose His Kingship, His Rule over us, and thereby for us with Him to come out into the light.

“See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples;”

Over two thousand years ago now at Bethlehem, the Angels from Heaven announced Christ’s coming on the scene to the shepherds, to the lowliest, to the social outcasts of the day, sort of like how we would consider homeless people. We really are talking about those most in need in the world, the shepherds in their day and the homeless in ours. Two thousand years ago, the star drew the greatest of this world, kings, learned wise men coming from afar to place their expensive gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh at the feet of Baby Jesus. Epiphany: world shaking but not for everyone to see and comprehend! The shepherds and the Magi were privileged, as so are we.

Even back then, the Bethlehem innkeeper and his guests missed out on the Birth of the Child. Just outside the back door of the inn in that humble stable, the only begotten Son of the Father was busy shaking the world’s foundations by His Birth. King Herod missed out entirely on the implications of His Birth foretold in Scripture, of the coming in time of this King Who was no threat to him, but was destined to rule over peoples and nations for all eternity. Already over two thousand years ago, judgment had come upon the world; one only needed to read the prophet Isaiah correctly to be able to see and confess God in man made manifest.

“See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; but upon you the Lord shines, and over you appears his glory.” Judgment is what choosing Christ the King, the Baby Jesus, is all about: separating the sheep from the goats!

Today, if we fast-forward two millennia from the day of His Birth, we can ask what if anything has changed in our world. For as unimpressed and distracted as many of our neighbors are and remain, I guess it would be fair to say that our world still has not heard, has not comprehended, is still desperately in need of this prophecy; we need to hear the powerful words of Isaiah. This Old Testament prophet needs to ring out once again and for us. Today, as much as ever, Isaiah needs to be heard and understood in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

“See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; but upon you the Lord shines, and over you appears his glory.”

In some countries, the Epiphany is actually more popular than Christmas.

“Caravans of camels shall fill you, dromedaries from Midian and Ephah; all from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and proclaiming the praises of the Lord.”

It is sometimes classed as the Christmas of the Gentiles. The Feast of the Epiphany shows the importance of the Coming of the Messiah for the salvation of not just God’s Chosen People but for all the nations. Epiphany brings light to the world. We are not talking about something nice, simply to notice or pick up on, but this feast relays to people of good will a joyous call to bend the knee before your Maker and Redeemer.

As I say, today we pay homage to the Child Who brings with Him a new world order. I don’t know about you, but I spend way too much time dealing with those who have missed out on the proclamation, with, let’s call them, present day “King Herods”, with people who have ordered their world as they see fit, who don’t give a care for the words of the prophet, and who would give no place to the Infant King. Would you believe that even within the Church of God there are people who will not bend, who just will not deal with that Baby born of the Virgin? Freedom calls for our subjection to this Child. Marveling, wonderment is the order of the day.

“See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; but upon you the Lord shines, and over you appears his glory.”

I hope your Christmas holidays were not that hectic or that you did not find them boring. For people without faith in Christ, for people who do not believe or who are heavy burdened by self-indulgence, this can be maybe the worst time of year. That would certainly account for the anger of many nominal Catholics who believe some injustice is being done them because the Church does not fully conform to the world (equal opportunity employment, sheer willfulness when it comes to understanding and accepting God’s creative will). They do not seem to know the Baby Boy from the stable. They, like King Herod, seem to be threatened by someone so much greater than the plans they have set for themselves and want to impose on those around them. This Baby brings with Him a new world order and they would have none of it.

Epiphany has customarily been a time of house blessing for the New Year. May our families all be blest, may we learn to bow, to bend the knee to the Baby in 2019!

“May the splendor of your majesty, O Lord, we pray, shed its light upon our hearts, that we may pass through the shadows of this world and reach the brightness of our eternal home.”

That is the prayer of the Church on this Solemnity. May we be so graced!

Praised be Jesus Christ, True God and true man!

PROPERANTES ADVENTUM DIEI DEI

Reassurance from Approved Authors

Finding Confidence in Times of Trial: 

Letters of St. John of Avila. 

John of Avila. 

Sophia Institute Press. Kindle Edition. 

No contest: it is hard to buy me a gift. I am mostly happy when friends and loved ones don't even try. I must say, however, that this little book served as treasure in many of its parts, but especially for its later chapters and this one in particular: To a Friend On Preparation for Epiphany —  the Gold of Divine Love (p. 117).

By way of explanation: I was ruminating over the redeeming social value of the homily I have prepared for tomorrow, when St. John of Avila came to reassure me that my effort has its worth (Finding Confidence in Times of Trial).

There are hard sayings in this little volume as well, but they actually helped me push through another book which I have been at for the longest time:

The Ladder of Divine Ascent. 

Climacus, John. 

Kindle Edition. 

Climacus' thesis for the whole book is fairly well summed up in this quote from early on:

"Those who desire to rise with their body to the heavens, need first struggle and constant suffering, especially in the first part of their renunciation, until our inclination to pleasure and unloving hearts reach the love of God and purity by a manifest grieving. A great labor, very great, with unseen grieving, most especially for those who live recklessly, until by simplicity, lack of anger and toil we force our mind, which is a hungry dog of the kitchen given to barking, into one who instead loves purity and watchfulness. Let those of us who are feeble and lustful have the courage to present our illnesses and feeble nature to Christ with undoubting faith, and speak to Him. And we will confidently receive His help, even though this is beyond what we deserve. But only if we unrelentingly move to the full depth of a humble nature." (p. 2)

For the longest time, I put the book down and could not get past Step 5 - On Painful and Genuine Repentance Which is the Life of Godly Convicts, and Concerning the Prison. The whole thing seemed way too macabre. Enter John of Avila, who is not the least bit compromising, but who in his letters respectfully challenges his correspondents to grow in spirit. I really liked his letter to the priest on how to celebrate Mass:

"In short, such considerations, by God’s help, entirely change and possess the soul, and draw it out of itself — at one time, by feelings of reverence, at another, by love, and yet again, by the strong emotion caused by the realization of Christ’s presence. Although these thoughts do not inevitably produce this result, yet unless the heart hardens itself into stone against their influence, they strongly conduce to it. Let your mind, then, dwell on such reflections; listen to the cry: “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh” — your God cometh! Retire into the secrecy of your own heart, and open it to receive what is wont to come from so powerful a Light. Beseech this same Lord that, as He has deigned to place Himself within your hands, He will give you the further grace to esteem and venerate and love Him as you should. Beg Him fervently not to permit you to be in the presence of His Majesty but with reverence and fear and love. Endeavor constantly to have a fitting sense of our Lord’s presence, even should you contemplate no other part of this Mystery." [John of Avila. Finding Confidence in Times of Trial: Letters of St.  (pp. 27-28). 

Sorry, just a thought on the Vigil of the Epiphany and a word of encouragement to never cease reading in hopes of piercing the armor and slaying that wayward heart!

PROPERANTES ADVENTUM DIEI DEI

Tying up Loose Ends

His Angels at Our Side: Understanding Their Power in Our Souls and the World.

Fr. John Horgan. 

EWTN Publishing, Inc. 2018. Kindle Edition. 

This is the first book in a while that I have been eager to recommend for the general readership. It strikes me as solid, and above all else without a contentious bone in its 304 pages. If you do not know much about angels or would like to cultivate a proper devotion to them, this book could be of service.

Three passages about prayer in the book struck me in a particular way. 

The first, concerned the revival of the prayer of Pope Leo XIII to St. Michael the Archangel. Before the Second Vatican Council, it was generally recited at the end of daily low Mass. Just recently, it has begun to make a comeback in the face of the great trials the Church is enduring. "St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Hosts, by the power of God, cast into Hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen."

The second was the prayer which the Angel of Peace taught to the three children of Fatima: “My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love Thee! I ask pardon of Thee for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love Thee!” 

The third was new to me and concerns a prayer that comes down to us from Blessed Louis-Edouard Cestac (1801–1868), a great apostle among the poor and the cofounder, with his sister, of the Congregation of Servants of Mary. Our Lady told him that the time had come to invoke her as Queen of the Angels and to ask Her to send the holy legions to combat and to overthrow the powers of Hell. The prayer the Blessed Mother taught him is quite beautiful and enjoyed widespread popularity for over a century before falling into disuse: "August Queen of the Heavens, heavenly sovereign of the angels, thou who from the beginning received from God the power and the mission to crush the head of Satan, we humbly beseech thee to send your holy legions, so that under thy command and through thy power, they may pursue the demons and combat them everywhere, suppress their boldness, and drive them back into the abyss. Who is like God? O good and tender Mother, thou will always be our love and hope! O divine Mother, send thy holy angels to defend me and to drive far away from me the cruel enemy. Holy angels and archangels, defend us, guard us. Amen."

I make reference to these three prayers and to the whole spirituality which would enlist the aid of the holy angels in our struggle against Satan and his minions, because we have to our own peril either neglected it or been deprived of it in our ignorance. 

Read the book! Coming to know and appreciate the angels might be just what you need to escape the doldrums of a life below par. 

PROPERANTES ADVENTUM DIEI DEI

Impressive by Nature not Expressive by Design

Father Driscoll's video of 2012 popped up again on FACEBOOK. That could have been pure chance, but it sort of irked me. Father may not be anyone in terms of authority when it comes to formulating or imposing liturgical precepts, but nolens volens in the video he only makes clearer to me the argument for the urgency to move toward a full liturgical restoration of the Roman Rite. The Catholic News Service seems to want the video to show the liturgy of Paul VI in the very best light and insinuates the existence or opportunity for an ongoing "reform of the reform" scenario. Father Driscoll's use of a dichotomy concerning the object of liturgy as being an impressive or expressive action, however, brings me to urge the "buyer" to settle for no less than the sublime, or if you will, for the original, the Vetus Ordo. Pace Father Driscoll, 

what could or should be organic development of the liturgy has nothing to do with tinkering around by trial and error, hoping to get it right.

As I say, I watched the 2012 video again and sort of latched onto Father's repeated statement that it is not the nature of liturgy to be expressive (of us) but rather to be impressive (on us). It would seem that Father is conceding that post-conciliar liturgy lends itself to the expressive, which, he intimates, is not what liturgy is about. He comes within a hair's breath of breaking a lance in favor of privileging worship ad Orientem. 

He legitimizes the post-conciliar reform using what is termed the "Supreme Legislator" argument, which claims the Pope can do as he deems right and just in liturgical matters. The discretionary powers of the supreme legislator do not, however, go that far. Father's argument does not convince to the extent that it seems to promote the legitimacy of experimentation as a way of being. That cannot be and for the very reason that he admits it as something at odds with the very nature of Divine worship. The expressive model limps on its own, but rendering it a process of trial and error toward better horizons and you seem to be in the wrong no matter how well-intentioned the legislator might have been in blessing your efforts. Father goes on to say that mistakes can be corrected, that we can restore the good from the past. It would almost seem he is conceding that we could or should put back together again what is broken.

I must give it to Father Driscoll that his presentation is totally free of the rancor typical of those opposed to the continuance of the Mass of all ages in the Church. No doubt he is well disposed to the possibility of mutual enrichment as the way forward for the two forms. Nonetheless, his impressive/expressive caricature of the difference of animus of the two forms should move us to seek not adjustments but recovery.

What was done after the council was done with a vengeance and has reaped its meager harvest. Hopefully we have learned something in the process. Thanks be to God, at 68+ I have lived long enough to understand that the expressive model does not impress and contributes significantly to disaffection among ordinary Catholics. If you are younger, like I just read in a nice holiday newspaper review with a zealous 36 year old priest, you might think that the disaffection of the older generation (his parents and near contemporaries) was simply in defiance to authority. He notes and celebrates younger people returning to church of their own free will. In the case of the growing popularity of the Vetus Ordo among young people, I rather suspect that it has more to do with their being impressed by the sublimity of a rite which admits of no tinkering than with any particular authority issues.

Even in the days of my childhood and youth, Christmas brought crowds to Midnight Mass, including family members who otherwise rarely passed the threshold of the temple, except for weddings and funerals. No doubt the culture or social strictures pushed them to come, despite bitterness over something, confusion over some unresolved crisis, or a personal emptiness because of habits of sin. I would like to think that some of those who came at Christmas were indeed impressed, as they certainly had nothing of their own to express. 

Necessity would seem to be the impulse which ultimately frees and enables us to give expression to our understanding of our right relationship to the Creator and Redeemer, born for us and for us given.

PROPERANTES ADVENTUM DIEI DEI

The Good, The True and the Beautiful

Very early in my school career, perhaps already in first grade in parochial school in Minnesota, I learned my first German Christmas carol and exclusively in German. Usually in America for school pageants, people teach children "Silent Night" in a half dozen languages, including German, but always after they are well acquainted with the English version. That was not how it went with "Ihr Kinderlein kommet". Why? We'll blame it on the dear sisters and leave it at that. This carol forms a very cherished memory of back when and  holds a bright place in my childhood chronicles.

This little carol, which lends itself in a particular way to Christmas pageants, is what could be the object of the quest by German speaking ideologues for that something they peg under the heading of "volksnahe". I'm not any sort of a lefty sophisticate, and as such "Ihr Kinderlein kommet" learned by a little American boy from a melting pot background and living a mixed ethnic Catholic parish tradition speaks to my heart just as the great mystery of Bethlehem is supposed to, "volksnah" or not. It disposes well for properly receiving those tidings of great joy to all peoples, even though my formal German studies didn't start until age 14. The proof would be that the carol works across language boundaries and works best with children and most probably with tenderhearted grandmas.

The Good, the True and the Beautiful

Blame me if what follows seems a bit of a jump and sort of rings "stream of consciousness", but the Christmas carol came to mind as I read a great piece by Judy Roberts on the blog Rorate Caeli, entitled "Is the Church Crisis Driving the Faithful to the Latin Mass? An Interview with Dr. Kwasniewski". Peter has written much about the beauty of the tradition, especially in liturgy, and he makes no small amount of effort here and elsewhere at accentuating the integrity or wisdom of the Mass of the Ages, and perhaps thus its higher claims to being a place where truth is to be found in privileged fashion. Pointing to the good of it all, it would seem, is no small challenge. Even in another recent piece, entitled "For a Darkening 21st-Century Church, the Light Is Tradition", the appeal or claim would be for the truth and for beauty. (See also here)

Settling on the good of it all, despite the demands of culture, is settling on God alone, as we know from the words of Jesus Himself (God alone is good). A recent contribution by Joseph Shaw on LifeSite News helps point the way. In case you don't go there, the last part of the article is too good not to quote:

"Consider prayer. Praying will help you get to heaven, not as performing a chore will enable to take the afternoon off, but because the imperfect union with God which prayer in this life is, is, when perfected, what salvation is. Prayer brings us salvation not as an instrumental means to an end, but as a means which is partially constitutive of the end.
"Issues like effective communications are of no small account, and certainly the Catholic Church has not done very well in such matters. But they are not fundamental, and the Church’s problem is deeper than social media incompetence. The fundamental problem is that the Church is no longer using, in an effective way, the evangelical tools which are not merely means to an end, but actually constitute end: not only private prayer, but the public prayers of the Church—the liturgy—and the sacraments.
"Plenty has been written about the liturgy and the sacraments, and they have been changed radically in an attempt to make them more effective: an attempt which does not seem to have borne the fruit which was expected. I would suggest that this discussion and these changes have not been successful because what I have just argued was not kept in mind: that these things are not instruments to be adapted to bring about the desired result, but things which bring about in the worshipper a state of (imperfect) communion with God.
"It is not about finding the answers to the questions we want to ask, or in having an emotional experience of a particular kind, but of a profound contemplative communion with the divine. That is what we are going to be doing in heaven, after all."

 "Ihr Kinderlein kommet" is an endearing catechesis on how to assist at the manger in Bethlehem; it is a school of prayer, contemplative prayer for little ones, which should further communion with the Divine. It deserves to find its source and high point (fons et culmen) in the liturgy, not nailed down and thematized, but chocked full of those pregnant silences which gave place to hearing angel choirs, regarding that Beautiful Baby with Mary and Joseph in attendance.

I think I know where the beautiful universe is to be found; it cannot deceive or thwart that which we seek, namely, the encounter with the divine, the breaking in of all that is glorious and truly good.

Setting Our Hearts on Someone and Therein Our Joy

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

Gaudete Sunday

16 December 2018 - Bruder Klaus

Zeph 3:14-18a

Phil 4:4-7

Lk 3:10-18

Praised be Jesus Christ!

“Exhorting them in many other ways, he preached good news to the people.” These words from today’s Gospel refer to St. John the Baptist announcing the Day of Judgment. It is the Day when Christ is at the door and ready to harvest by separating the wheat from the chaff!

Rejoicing in judgment? Yes, that is today, Gaudete Sunday! It is the Third Sunday of Advent and we are joyfully thinking about how close Christ’s coming is both in terms of this year’s calendar for the Feast of Christmas and in terms of our final destiny for eternity.

On this Gaudete/Rejoicing Sunday I cannot help but comment on how, despite all the partying we hear about, people do not seem to be that happy. Even in church circles, you come across a lot of grumbling and melancholy, seemingly occasioned by things that really have nothing to do with the good news or with the essentials of the faith. That may be so, at least in part, because people have not grasped the substance of what the Baptist was announcing. He was announcing the coming of the long promised Messiah and urging all to make the Lord’s pathway straight. St. John did this by calling people to repentance, to renounce sin and accept baptism unto conversion of life.

But rejoicing in judgment you say? The Prophet Zephaniah says that judgment is about turning away your enemies and thereby rescuing us from sin, Satan and death.

“The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; he will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love, he will sing joyfully because of you, as one sings at festivals.”

These are glad tidings for the poor, tidings of great joy, just as what at the first Christmas the angels announced to the shepherds in that holy night!

As the Gospel of St. Luke recounts, it is normal to be a little perplexed by such a message. The people were truly at a loss at the Baptist’s words and asked him what they needed to do in response to his proclamation.

“What should we do?”… “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” …Tax collectors: “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” …Soldiers: “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.”

The Baptist’s message, the essential message at the heart of the Church’s life and action is bound to the great double commandment of love of God and neighbor. You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with your whole mind and with all your strength. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Happiness can be found here and nowhere else.

What concretely should we do to prepare for Christ, for His great baptism of judgment in the Holy Spirit and with fire on the world and on us? How does St. John the Baptist’s admonition apply to each one of us? Very simply stated, his exhortation is that we should change our ways and thereby shed our faint-heartedness. We need to stand forth gently but mightily in this world.

People say that Catholics are much more robust, when it comes to facing life’s challenges, than are non-believers. No doubt, that is true. It is probably the best reason there is to reject all the present day propaganda in favor of pluralism or multiculturalism as hallmarks of a healthy society. This claim of the dominant culture in the West just cannot be true. Hearts just cannot be set on something as dispersive as a multi-anything, let alone a multicultural anything. It is no good! It is pointless! The human heart best belongs not to something or to things but to someone and ultimately to that someone Who is God, Who made us for His own, Who created and saved us for joy.

We have a decided advantage over the people in today’s Gospel whose hearts were struck by the words of John. He took them very much by surprise, that is unprepared. We however do not have their excuse. We should know better, since we live in the light of Bethlehem, of Jesus’ teaching, of His Cross and glorious Resurrection. We have the teaching that comes down to us in the Church from the Apostles. We have the life of the sacraments; we have the Ten Commandments and the Precepts of the Church.

“Exhorting them in many other ways, he preached good news to the people.”  If I were to be the Baptist for you today, then I should remind you to live what you have been taught. John the Baptist told his listeners to share their cloaks and food with those who have none; he told tax collectors and soldiers to play fair and not take advantage of others because of their position. One of the good deeds that people understand and appreciate today are the free haircuts and shaves given to homeless people by famous barbers and hairdressers. Maybe the biggest challenge for most of us would be to show more and better respect toward all those who are part of our daily lives. Love of neighbor, it must be by far the most daunting challenge for most of us.

Even so, the first and greatest commandment, loving God above all, needs more attention here and now in this wasted world of ours. For adults, in particular, our habits of personal prayer need enlivening. Our daily offering of all we are and do to God can easily again become the first act upon waking. Meal prayers and why not the Angelus 3 times a day! Our examination of conscience, to see how the day went, and our bedtime prayer for rest in the Lord and His protection as we sleep, not that hard! A dad of a younger family shared with me just recently how he and his wife have worked into taking time together to say the Rosary and gently invite the children to take part, at least for a decade. He told me, it is actually working. Mary, the Mother of God, at Fatima asked that people spend time with her, 15 minutes on the first Saturday of each month.

For some people, assisting at Mass on all Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation is a big challenge. It must be faced with new resolve. Perhaps even bigger is adding regular confession to our lives. Here at Bruder Klaus most Sundays the priest is in the confessional for a half hour before Mass. It may take a sacrifice to get here by 9:00, but at least on the Sundays I have been here the line has not been long, so until it catches on, no waiting and no appointment, you are guaranteed the possibility of receiving forgiveness for your sins and failings. Nothing says “love” to those dear to us like a genuine “I am sorry”. Nothing is better than hearing the words of absolution spoken by the priest in Christ’s Name.

“What should we do?” They asked John. We all need to let our guard down and do the same. The human heart best belongs not to something or to things but to someone and ultimately to that someone Who is God, Who made us for His own, Who created and saved us for joy.

Praised be Jesus Christ!

PROPERANTES ADVENTUM DIEI DEI

Faithfulness to the Truth from God in Christ

2. Adventssonntag

Oberarth, 09. Dezember 2018

Röm. 15, 4-13

Mt. 11, 2-10

Gelobt sei Jesus Christus!

„Excita, Domine, corda nostra… So haben wir im Tagesgebet gebetet. Rüttle auf, o Herr, unsere Herzen, Deinem Eingeborenen die Wege zu bereiten, damit wir, durch seine Ankunft, Dir mit geläutertem Herzen zu dienen vermögen…“

Wer ist dieser Eingeborene, für den wir an diesem 2. Adventssonntag aufgefordert sind, unsere Herzen aufzurüttlen? Wir wissen, dass es sich bei ihm um unseren Herrn Jesus Christus handelt. Aber die Frage ist, wie ist er eigentlich? Was heisst es, der eingeborene Sohn des Vaters zu sein, der Gesalbte Gottes? Die Liturgie des heutigen Sonntags antwortet uns auf diese Frage indem sie sagt: Um zu wissen, wer Jesus ist, reicht es, auf seinen Propheten, Johannes den Täufer, den Vorläufer Christi zu schauen. Ich möchte betonen, dass es unsere Berufung als Christen ist, die Menschen von heute zu Jesus zu führen, wie Johannes der Täufer es damals für die Menschen seiner Zeit gemacht hat. Wir müssen Johannes den Täufer nachahmen bei der Verkündigung Jesu in einer Zeit, die Gott so sehr nötig hat.

Zu Beginn des Matthäusevangeliums hören wir aus den Worten Jesu selbst, dass Johannes der Täufer in seinem Leben ein prophetisches Zeugnis ablegt über den Gesalbten Gottes. Jesus sagt:

 „Was zu sehen seid ihr in die Wüste hinausgegangen? Ein vom Wind umhergetriebenes Rohr? Was zu sehen seid ihr hinausgegangen? Einen Menschen, mit weichlichen Kleidern angetan?“ Das Zeugnis des Johannes über den Gesalbten Gottes ist dasjenige eines Menschen, der beglaubigt ist durch eine radikale Askese. So ist Johannes der Vorläufer und zugleich spiegelt er das wahre Bild des Bräutigams, das Bild Jesu, der sich der Welt offenbart. Dieser Jesus ist in absoluter Armut in Betlehem geboren, hat sein Leben hingegeben für die Menschen in den Jahren seines öffentlichen Auftretens bis hin zu seinem Tod am Kreuz für die Rettung der Welt. Wie sagt der Heilige Paulus so schön in seinem Brief an die Gemeinde von Rom, den wir eben gehört haben: Wenn wir Jesus erkennen, dann finden wir in dem vielgeliebten Sohn Gottes, die wahre Hoffnung.

An wen richtet sich diese Botschaft der heutigen Tagesliturgie? An uns selbstverständlich. Und wer sind wir nun, an die diese Worte gerichtet sind? Wir sind verschiedene. Nicht nur das Volk des Alten Testamentes, welches durch das Zeichen der Beschneidung das auserwählte Volk ist. Wir sind auch diese andern Völker, die Heiden, die Gott loben, preisen und danken für seine Barmherzigkeit uns gegenüber. „Freuet euch, ihr Heiden, mit seinem Volk.“ Wir können feststellen, dass auch wir von Gott auserwählt und vorherbestimmt sind, seine Barmherzigkeit durch seinen Sohn Jesus Christus kennenzulernen. Durch den eingeborenen Sohn sind auch wir auserwählte Söhne und Töchter. Die Mutter Kirche will, dass wir uns als von Gott berufene verstehen, welche durch den Empfang der Sakramente der Taufe und Firmung dazu bestimmt sind, für die Menschen unserer Zeit Vorläufer Jesu zu sein so wie es Johannes der Täufer zu seiner Zeit war.

„Siehe, ich sende meinen Boten her vor Deinem Angesicht, damit er den Weg vor dir bereite.“ Daher beten wir: „Rüttle auf, o Herr, unsere Herzen, Deinem Eingeborenen die Wege zu bereiten…“

Die Frage, wie wir dieses Aufrütteln erreichen, ist in gewisser Weise eine moralische Frage. Es ist eine Einladung, nicht nur heiligmässig zu leben, sondern als Jünger Johannes des Täufers dem Herrn den Weg bereiten durch unsere Hingabe, unsere Worte, unser immerwährendes Gebet. Also dadurch, dass wir den falschen Vergnügen dieser Welt entsagen und uns darum bemühen, durch unser Beispiel dem Herrn den Weg zu bereiten, unserem Herrn, der in Herrlichkeit wieder kommen wird. Unsere Aufgabe als Vorläufer ist der Schlüssel, wie wir im dritten Kapitel des zweiten Petrusbriefes (in Vers 11-12) lesen:

 „Wenn sich das alles in dieser Weise auflöst: wie heilig und fromm müsst ihr dann leben, den Tag Gottes erwarten und seine Ankunft beschleunigen!“

Der Heilige Johannes der Täufer hat die Ankunft des Tages des Herrn beschleunigt. Indem er das gemacht hat, geriet er in Widerspruch zu seiner Zeit. Draussen in der Wüste war er ein Anziehungspunkt für die Menschen, die auf der Suche waren nach dem Messias. Die Menschen guten Willens sind ihm nachgefolgt, um sein Wort zu hören und die Taufe als Zeichen der Umkehr zu empfangen. Johannes hat die guten Menschen darauf vorbereitet, den Gesalbten, Christus, zu empfangen. Er hat seine Berufung gelebt draussen in der Wüste, fern ab der bewohnten Welt und dann aber auch, wie wir im Evangelium von heute gehört haben, auch im Gefängnis. Im Gefängnis hat er seine Sendung vollendet und sein Leben hingegeben als Opfer für die Wahrheit d.h. für Jesus selbst. Wenn wir berufen sind zu Jüngern Jesu nach dem Vorbild des Johannes, dann müssen wir bereit sein, dasselbe zu tun.

Natürlich, ich muss unterscheiden. Ich habe praktisch die Berufung des Eremiten beschrieben und nicht alle hier sind dazu berufen, sich in die Wüste zurückzuziehen. Eltern zum Beispiel können sich nicht einfach den Pflichten entziehen, die sie ihren Kindern gegenüber haben. Wer arbeitet, der schuldet dem Arbeitgeber die Leistung, zu der er sich vertraglich verpflichtet hat. Der Heilige Franz von Sales war ganz klar in der Unterscheidung unserer Pflichte je nach Lebensstand in dem wir uns befinden.

Aber es schadet sicher keinem von uns, wenn wir uns das Beispiel Johannes des Täufers vor Augen halten und uns stets darum bemühen, immer weniger Materialisten zu sein und dafür die Tugenden zu pflegen. In einer Zeit, in der so viele Unterhaltungsangebote unsere Zeit stehlen, schadet es keinem, weniger nachsichtig mit seinen Leidenschaften und Vorlieben zu sein und dafür sich mehr der guten Lektüre und der Betrachtung des Wortes Gottes zu widmen, im Katechismus zu lesen und das persönliche Gebet zu pflegen. Auf diese Art und Weise können und müssen wir dem Herrn den Weg bereiten, „…damit wir, bei deiner Ankunft, Dir (O Herr) mit geläutertem Herzen zu dienen vermögen…“

Gelobt sei Jesus Christus!

PROPERANTES ADVENTUM DIEI DEI