The Catholic Calendar for Saturday, June 24, 2006
Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
Isaiah 49:1-6
Psalm 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 14c-15
Luke 1:57-66, 80

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

"What then will this child be?"

Herald of the Lord,
Prophet of the Truth,
Madman in the desert
eating locusts and wild honey.

He was the first to know
the good news after the sweet
Mother herself. And by his leaping
told his own mother.

A voice crying, in the wilderness
make a pathway for the Lord.
And when he faced Herodias,
the harlot wife of Herod,
a voice crying in the wilderness
of the big city, "Make straight
a pathway for God."

This day we celebrate the last of the Prophets and the cousin of the Lord. His mother Elizabeth was the recipient of the first act of charity that sprang from the conception of Jesus. He knew his cousin and knew God even while in the womb. He announced the coming of the savior with all that was in Him. And if we listen today, His voice can still be heard, echoing through the ages in the heart of the Church -- the Holy Mother whose voice springs from Jesus, from Mary, and from this, the last of the Prophets and the first of the true Martyrs of the Lord. Prophet and seer, he spoke the truth and thus gave witness to the Truth.

Most Holy Prophet,
Cousin and loyal friend of our Savior,
you saw the light before you could see,
and you told the world before you could speak.
Inspire us to speak without words and to tell of the
Glory you yourself saw.
May we too inherit a share of your prophetic spirit
and inspire the world to change, to grow
toward our Lord and God.

Amen

- JuandelaCruz
(sriddle415 at yahoo dot com)