St John the Baptist part 5: a patron of the Legion of Mary

This is the last part of this series, which has been made up from the last five weeks of allocutios for our Legion praesidium. Apart from this last post, the titles/themes of the other posts have been taken from the Preface of St John the Baptist in the Roman Missal. As is often the case, if you want a "quick guide" to understanding the meaning of a liturgical feast, look at the Preface for the feast. In the case of John the Baptist, the Preface gives a neat summary of how his role in the mystery of salvation is understood by the Church. This allocution tries to look at how St John the Baptist is a model for Legionaries, and, indeed, for all active Catholics.

Spiritual Reading: “I believe in You”, from Joseph Ratzinger Introduction to Christianity, pp.79-80

Christian faith is more than the option in favour of a spiritual ground to the world; its central formula is not “I believe in something”, but “I believe in you”. It is the encounter with the man Jesus, and in this encounter it experiences the meaning of the world as a person. In Jesus’ life from the Father, in the immediacy and intensity of his converse with him in prayer and, indeed face to face, he is God’s witness, through whom the intangible has become tangible, the distant has drawn near…. he is the presence of the eternal in the world. In his life, in the unconditional devotion of himself to men, the meaning of the world is present before us; it vouchsafes itself to us as love that loves even me and makes life worth living by this incomprehensible gift of a love free from any threat of fading away …

Of course, this does not do away with the need for reflection, as we have already seen earlier. “Are you really he?” This question was asked anxiously in a dark hour even by John the Baptist, the prophet who had directed his own disciples to the rabbi from Nazareth and recognized him as the greater, for whom he could only prepare the way. Are you really he? The believer will repeatedly experience the darkness in which the contradiction of unbelief surrounds him like a gloomy prison from which there is no escape, and the indifference of the world, which goes its way unchanged as if nothing had happened, seems only to mock his hope. We have to pose the question, “Are you really he?”, not only out of intellectual honesty and because of reason’s responsibility, but also in accordance with the interior law of love, which wants to know more and more him to whom it has given its Yes, so as to be able to love him more. Are you really he? Ultimately, all the reflections contained in this book are subordinate to this question and thus revolve around the basic form of the confession: “I believe in you, Jesus of Nazareth, as the meaning (logos) of the world and of my life”.

Allocutio

It was only in December 1949, some twenty eight years after the beginning of the Legion, that St John the Baptist was included among the patrons of the Legion. This followed some two years of debate and persuasion within the leadership of the Legion. Those opposed to including St John the Baptist as a patron were reluctant to allow a change to the Legion system that might open the way to endless changes or to the inclusion of every saint who ever lived as a patron of the Legion.[1]

In an essay entitled “The Legion is pure Christocentrism”, Frank Duff places the understanding of how the Legion has chosen its patrons in the context of the doctrine of the Mystical Body. That doctrine sees the Church as the continuation on earth of the work undertaken in his physical body by Jesus himself. Those elements that are to be found in Jesus earthly life are also to be found in the life of the Church. Apart from the Blessed Virgin and the angels, the choice of other patrons for a mission of the Mystical Body is determined by their association with the earthly mission of Jesus. It is this principle that allows the admission of St John the Baptist as a patron of the Legion.[2]

In adopting St John the Baptist as a patron, the Legion is suggesting to its members that, like John the Baptist, they should be:

- prophets who prepare the way for the Lord, through their weekly work obligation[3]

- people who have been marked out with a special favour, through their baptism, and called to prepare the way for a new heaven and a new earth

- people chosen to show the world its redeemer, through their participation in the Church’s mission of evangelization, in some or all of its different stages

- people with an unshakeable commitment to the mission of the Church, in all the difficult circumstances they might encounter.[4]

The Legion Handbook also suggests that St John the Baptist is a model for Legionaries in two more specific ways. He is formed in the school of Mary, during the time of the visitation of Elizabeth by Mary. As a beneficiary of this “first Visitation”, St John is also a patron of Legionary visitation in all the different forms that it takes. The Handbook sees St John the Baptist as the first to receive from Mary’s role as mediatrix.[5]

[1] cf Official Handbook of the Legion of Mary p.143; cf Frank Duff A Living Autobiography. This is the transcript of a series of videotaped interviews with Frank Duff, made in 1979-1980.
[2] cf Frank Duff, in “The Legion is pure Christocentrism” in Virgo Praedicanda pp.107-109. St Louis Marie de Montfort is recognised as an exception to this principle, being included as a patron of the Legion because of his inspiring the Marian charism of the Legion.
[3] cf Official Handbook of the Legion of Mary p.143.
[4] cf Official Handbook of the Legion of Mary p.143.
[5] cf Official Handbook of the Legion of Mary p.143.

St John the Baptist part 4: "found worthy of a martyr's death"

Spiritual Reading: St Mark’s account of the beheading of John the Baptist

And he called to him the twelve, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. And he said to them, "Where you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. And if any place will not receive you and they refuse to hear you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet for a testimony against them." So they went out and preached that men should repent. And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick and healed them.

King Herod heard of it; for Jesus' name had become known. Some said, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; that is why these powers are at work in him." But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." But when Herod heard of it he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised." For Herod had sent and seized John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; because he had married her. For John said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he was much perplexed; and yet he heard him gladly.

But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and the leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias' daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will grant it." And he vowed to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." And she went out, and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of John the baptizer." And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." And the king was exceedingly sorry; but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard and gave orders to bring his head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.

When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb. [1]

Allocutio

The duty of Christians to take part in the life of the Church impels them to act as witnesses of the Gospel and of the obligations that flow from it. This witness is a transmission of the faith in words and deeds. Witness is an act of justice that establishes the truth or makes it known

Martyrdom is the supreme witness given to the truth of the faith: it means bearing witness even unto death. The martyr bears witness to Christ who died and rose, to whom he is united by charity. He bears witness to the truth of the faith and of Christian doctrine. He endures death through an act of fortitude.[2]

From this definition of martyrdom in the Catechism we can identify a number of different elements the most fundamental of which are the elements of witness to the person of Christ and the fact that this witness leads to death of the person giving witness. After these two elements, however, there are a number of different ways in which martyrdom is manifested in the life of the Church.

In the case of John the Baptist, the direct witness that he gave that led to his death was a witness to fidelity in marriage. It was his condemnation of Herodias relationship with Herod that provoked the anger of Herodias, and led her to ask for his death. This is a witness to a particular teaching about Christian living, a particular point of Christian doctrine.

We can suggest a parallel between this witness to teaching about fidelity in marriage and the wedding feast at Cana, which in St John’s Gospel, foreshadows the events of the Last Supper and Calvary as the “wedding feast of the Lamb”. The witness to fidelity in marriage is therefore much more profoundly a witness to the person and mission of Jesus than at first appears.

This can be further developed if we see in the structure of St Mark’s account of the death of John the Baptist a foretelling of Jesus’ own passion and death.[3] This can be done by comparing the account of his death to the passion account in St Mark’s Gospel. John the Baptist’s martyrdom then follows integrally from his mission as the forerunner of Jesus:

Herod is wrong about John being raised up from the dead; Jesus will rise from the dead (Mk 16:6-8)

Herodias had to be devious about achieving John’s death, because of the respect that Herod had for him; the Chief priests will also have to be devious in bringing about Jesus death because of what the people might do (Mk 11:18, 14:1-2)

Herod has John beheaded even though he knows that he has done no wrong, under pressure from Herodias and his guests; Pilate will have Jesus put to death, though he knows he has done no wrong, and acting under pressure from the chief priests and the people (Mk 15:14)

John’s disciples lay his body in a tomb; a disciple of Jesus will lay his body in a tomb (Mk15:46)[4]

This understanding recognises, too, that all martyrdom is aligned towards and gains its meaning from the death of Jesus himself on the Cross.

[1] Mk 6:7-27; cf Mt 14:1-12 (in this shorter account it is Jesus’ own preaching that comes directly to the attention of Herod, rather than that of the twelve; in both accounts, however, it is essentially Jesus reputation that is involved.); St Luke records only the imprisonment of John the Baptist Lk 3:19-20.
[2] Catechism of the Catholic Church nn.2472-2473.
[3] cf The Collegeville Bible Commentary p.916.
[4] cf The Collegeville Bible Commentary p.916

St John the Baptist part 3: "chosen to show the world its Redeemer"

Spiritual Reading; Luke 1:68-79 - the canticle of Zechariah, included by the Church in Morning Prayer (Lauds) of the Liturgy of the Hours each day

"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
that we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all who hate us;
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath which he swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God, when the day shall dawn upon us from on high
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet intothe way of peace."

Allocutio

The suggestion that John the Baptist was “set apart” and “marked out with a special favour” contains in itself the concept of an individual and specific mission that is entrusted to him. If that mission is in the first instant a mission directed towards the physical flesh of Jesus Christ, it also becomes in turn a mission in the mystical body of Jesus Christ that is the Church. The mission of John the Baptist is representative of a mission that continues in and is, in some measure, constitutive of the Church.

The words of the canticle of Zechariah, the “Benedictus”, used each morning in the Liturgy of the Hours, express this mission of John the Baptist in its ecclesial form.

The words of the first part of the canticle[1] are focussed on God (the Father) and on the salvation that has come to us through his “visiting” of us in the person of the Son. The Baptist’s mission, like that of the Church, has its origin in the Father and the sending of the Son; and it has its purpose in pointing towards the Father through the Son. The mission of evangelisation in the Church, and indeed every aspect of the Church’s life and activity, needs to reflect the transparency towards the Lord that is part of John the Baptist’s charism:

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came for testimony, to
bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light….

He must increase, but I must decrease.[2]

The second part of the canticle[3] directs us towards John the Baptist himself. In so far as it describes the office of the Baptist in announcing the presence of Jesus and his saving work, and in introducing Jesus to others, it describes a mission that in the Church now would be termed that of “evangelisation”. Indeed, it is possible to draw a close parallel between the verses of this second part of the canticle of Zechariah and the way in which the Church understands different stages in the work of evangelisation[4]:

you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways

Christian witness, dialogue and presence in charity

Evangelization:
– is urged by charity, impregnating and transforming the whole temporal order, appropriating and renewing all cultures;
– bears witness amongst peoples of the new way of being and living which characterizes Christians;

(to give knowledge of salvation to his people) in the forgiveness of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God

Proclamation of the Gospel and the call to conversion

Evangelisation:
– proclaims explicitly the Gospel, through "first proclamation", calling to conversion

to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death

Catechumenate and Christian Initiation

Evangelisation:
– initiates into the faith and the Christian life, by means of "catechesis" and the "sacraments of Christian initiation", those who convert to Jesus Christ or those who take up again the path of following him, incorporating both into the Christian community


to guide our feet into the way of peace

Formation of the Christian communities through and by means of the sacraments and their ministers

Evangelisation:
– constantly nourishes the gift of communion amongst the faithful by means of continuous education in the faith (homilies and other forms of catechesis), the sacraments and the practice of charity

you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways

Evangelisation:

– continuously arouses mission, sending all the disciples of Christ to proclaim the Gospel, by word and deed throughout the whole world.


This specific mission of John the Baptist therefore continues in the work of the Church for the evangelisation of the world.

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, `After me comes a man who ranks before me, for he was before me.' I myself did not know him; but for this I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel." And John bore witness, "I saw the Spirit descend as a dove from heaven, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him; but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, `He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God." [5]

[1] Lke 1:68-75
[2] Jn 1:6-8, 3:30
[3] Lke 1:76-79
[4] The table that follows compares the verses of the canticle to the presentation of the stages of evangelisation in the General Directory for Catechesis nn.47-48.
[5] Jn 1:29-34

St John the Baptist part 2: one marked with a special favour

Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.[1]

.. for he will be great before the Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.[2]

John was ‘filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb’ by Christ himself, whom the Virgin Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit. Mary’s visitation to Elizabeth thus became a visit from God to his people… In John, the precursor, the Holy Spirit completes the work of ‘[making] ready a people prepared for the Lord’…. with John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit begins the restoration to man of ‘the divine likeness’, prefiguring what he would achieve with and in Christ. John’s baptism was for repentance; baptism in water and the Spirit will be a new birth.[3]

It is possible to understand the coming of Christ as foreseen from the first moment of creation; and, in the same way, the part that the Virgin Mary was going to play in the mystery of the Incarnation can also be understood as foreseen from the first moment of creation. This is summarised in the images of Christ as the “new Adam” and the Virgin Mary as the “new Eve”; Adam and Eve in the book of Genesis, Christ and the Virgin Mary in the New Testament. The story of the physical creation, the history of mankind and the history of God’s dealings with his people in the Old Testament can all then be understood as a “salvation history” focussed on and directed towards the coming of Christ. Within this vision, the part played by John the Baptist is also foreseen from the beginning of creation.

Pope Benedict XVI suggests that we should see in the event of the Baptism of Jesus by John an anticipation of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus going down into the water of the Jordan river is an anticipation of his death and descent into hell to liberate those held captive there[4]; the appearance of the Holy Spirit and the voice of the Father - “"Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased" - are an anticipation of his resurrection.[5] This is taken up by St Paul in his teaching on the sacrament of Baptism[6]. The reply of Jesus when the Baptist suggests that he should not baptise him - “"Let it be so now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfil all righteousness"[7] - is an indicator of this anticipation, in much the same way that Jesus' observation recorded in the fourth Gospel - “"O woman, what have you to do with me? My hour has not yet come"[8] - portrays the wedding feast at Cana as an anticipation of the moment of the passion.

In its turn the sign of the water of the river Jordan is anticipated throughout the Old Testament: the crossing of the river Jordan into the promised land, the water emerging from the rock when it was struck by Moses staff, the water of the Red Sea through which the Jews passed on their escape from Egypt, the water of the flood from which Noah was saved in the Ark. If the saving work of Christ and baptism are understood as a re-birth, as a new creation, it can be argued that the mission of John the Baptist is pre-figured in the water of the first verses of the Book of Genesis, water over which God’s spirit hovered. In this way, we can suggest the pivotal role of John the Baptist with respect to Jesus baptism is implicit from the first moment of creation.

Jesus’ Baptism, then, is understood as a repetition of the whole of history, which both recapitulates the past and anticipates the future … This struggle is the ‘conversion’ of being that brings it into a new condition, that prepares a new heaven and a new earth.[9]

It is this pre-destination of the vocation of John the Baptist from the beginning of creation, a pre-destination to be the end-point of the covenant of the Old Testament, that underpins the privileges attributed to him by the New Testament texts. He is greater than any other born of a woman and he is filled with the Holy Spirit even in his mother’s womb. This particular dignity of the vocation of John the Baptist is reflected in the liturgical celebration, not only of his death on the 29th August, but of his nativity on 24th June[10].


[1] Mt 11:11; cf Lke 7:28
[2] Lke 1:14-15
[3] Catechism of the Catholic Church nn.717-720.
[4] Pope Benedict points out that Eastern iconography frequently represents the Jordan by a cave or tomb representative of Hades. In the Eastern Liturgy, hymns celebrating the feast of the Epiphany are also used in the last days of Holy Week. See Jesus of Nazareth p.19.
[5] cf Pope Benedict XVI Jesus of Nazareth p.19.
[6] cf Rom. 6:3-4: “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.”
[7] Mt 3:15
[8] Jn 2:4, cf Jn 12:23 and Jn 13:1, Jn 17:1.
[9] Pope Benedict XVI Jesus of Nazareth p.20.
[10] Though it has not been defined by the teaching authority of the Church, and is not reflected in the liturgical texts for the solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist, the moment of the visitation of Elizabeth by Mary - when John leaps in his mothers womb - is seen by some writers as the moment of his redemption; the Baptist is born immaculate though he is not conceived immaculate. This is based on understanding the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as incompatible with the presence of sin.

St John the Baptist part 1: the Prophet who prepared the way for Jesus

If you have access to Jesus Christ, Word of the Father: The Saviour of the World Official Catechetical Text in Preparation for the Holy Year 2000, you might find it useful to read pp.22-23 before continuing reading this post.

In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight."

Now John wore a garment of camel's hair, and a leather girdle around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem and all Judea
and all the region about the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.[1]

This account of St Matthew has close parallels in the accounts of Mark and Luke; St Mark adds to the citation of Isaiah 40:3 an editing together of Malachi 3:1 and Exodus 23:20[2]; and St Luke places an account of the historical timing ending in the words “the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness” immediately before his account of the preaching of John the Baptist. The account of the evangelist John begins in the prologue to his Gospel[3], where John the Baptist is described as a “witness to the light”, and continues in the prose account of the Baptist’s ministry[4]. It is here that the evangelist cites the same passage from Isaiah as is cited by the synoptic Gospels[5].

In these accounts, the Baptist is portrayed as a prophet in the tradition of the Old Testament prophets:

(1) his calling, as presented in the account of St Luke, parallels the calling of the prophet Jeremiah:

The words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.

Now the word of the LORD came to me saying….[6]

(2) his clothing, and the description of his style of life, echo those of the prophet Elijah:

And they said to [the King], "There came a man to meet us, and said to us, `Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baalzebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone, but shall surely die.'" He said to them, "What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?" They answered him, "He wore a garment of haircloth, with a girdle of leather about his loins." And he said, "It is Elijah the Tishbite." [7]

So what does it mean to recognise the Baptist as a prophet? The prophet is one who:

(1) receives a specific calling, and a specific mission, from God

(2) that calling and mission stand in a tradition of God’s relationship with his people, a relationship that stretches from creation throughout the history of the Jewish people and which looks towards the New Covenant brought in Jesus Christ

(3) the mission calls the people to the integrity of the practice of their religion, and to the integrity of the living of their religion in every day life.

In the case of John the Baptist, this gains two quite singular characteristics. The first of these is that he is the last in the line of the prophets of the Old Testament; he marks the end of the dispensation of the Old Testament as far as prophecy is concerned. The second is the immediacy of his role with regard to the coming of Christ. The Baptist’s ministry very immediately points towards that of Christ, and gives way before it.[8]

The inmost personal relationship of the two is not accessible to us; we can only see the objectivity of the relation between the Old Covenant personally epitomized by the Baptist and pointing beyond him, and the kingdom of God beginning and approaching in Jesus. But in all the objectivity of commissioned representation, humanly subjective relations exist between the bearers of mission. They are here - in the objective, respectful mutual deference to one another - of an inaccessible tenderness. They are the two decisive rings which, welded together, make the chain of God’s historical plan of salvation unbreakable.[9]

[1] Mt. 3:1-6; cf Mk 1: 2-6, cf Lke 3:2-6.
[2] cf Pope Benedict XVI Jesus of Nazareth pp.14-15.
[3] cf Jn 1:6-8, 15.
[4] cf Jn 1:19ff.
[5] Jn 1:23.
[6] Jeremiah 1:1-4.
[7] 2 Kings 1:6-8; cf The Collegeville Bible Commentary pp.866, 906,
[8] cf Lke 7:28: I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." ; cf Mt 11:11-15.
[9] Hans Urs von Balthasar The Office of Peter and the Structure of the Church p.138. The translation used here, however, is that in Medard Kehl and Werner Loser (eds.) The von Balthasar Reader pp.208-209.