By Amalraj A csc –
Readings: Is 41: 13-20; Mt 11: 11-15
Both the cousins have high regard for each other. The kind of respect that John the Baptist had for Jesus is right from the time he was in the womb of his mother. John humbles himself to exalt Jesus saying, “I am not worthy to untie the straps of his sandals” (John 1:24). In today’s gospel, Jesus praises him as above everyone in the world. John lived a simple life with a lot of enthusiasm to prepare for the kingdom of God.
He never compromised the quality of his ministry. He was daring enough to call spade a spade, to the extent he was imprisoned and finally, beheaded. In our society, there are many people whose lives are inspiring us for their simplicity, holiness, and humility in the proclamation of the gospel.
All of them had to swim against the current of the world to live such a simple life. A few who continue to inspire us are St. Mother Teresa, St. Andre, and St. John Maria Vianney. None of these saints had a similar life experience but one thing that they had in common was the life challenges they faced. All the challenges that they had brought glory to God.
We cannot think about a life that is devoid of any challenge. The more we wish to follow Jesus closely, more challenges would come in our way. However, a number of saints have shown us that it is possible to live our lives by giving glory to Jesus in different ways. The promise we get is to be numbered among the saints in heaven and become one among the great personalities that Jesus mentions in the Gospel.