Who Are You?

Thursday before Epiphany
Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Doctors of the Church

(Click Here for Readings)

Gospel of John 1:19-28

John answered them, "I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie."

Who are you?   I grew up before the widespread use of the cell phone and text messaging.  In my household, we used the standard old land line without voicemail or caller ID. My mom never liked us to talk on the phone hours and hours like so many other teenagers.  Proper etiquette dictated that we should never answer a call with, "Who is this?" or "Who are you?"  It was considered rude!  Much the same way the chief priests and Levites rudely ask John the Baptist in different ways "Who are you?"  I imagine John wanted to throw Jordan River rocks at these people to get them to leave him alone!  Yet, he made it very clear he was not the Christ, Elijah or the Prophet.  He was the forerunner of someone even greater.  A man coming after John who's sandal strap I am not worth to untie.  As the Prophet Isaiah said "Make straight the way of the Lord."  That was John's mission.

Untied Shoes  Have you ever been walking down the street and noticed your shoe's untied?  Or maybe someone else points it out to you? You're first reaction is annoyance.  You have to stop what you're doing and tie the shoe.  Sometimes you may be even lazy and think, "I will tie this later."  But a few minutes later you nearly trip and fall on top of yourself.   

What if the Holy Spirit untied your shoes in an effort to get your attention? Would you still be quickly annoyed? Maybe the Spirit is trying to convey a message you don't recognize.

What size sandal did Jesus wear?  Were his feet large or small?  What was it like to walk in the hot desert climate days and days on end?  His feet must have been sore and raw.  All the walking drained and fatigued him.  However, despite the discomfort he still understood the demands of ministry.  His sandals protected his feet from the harsh sand.  His outpouring of love and care for sinners protected them from spiritual dryness.

Who is the liar?  In the first letter of Saint John, we read:  

"Beloved:  Who is the liar?  Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ."   

Wow! When we deny Christ, we really do lie to ourselves!  We refuse to accept the idea of a loving God, a caring God, or a healing God. When we deny God, it's as if we are trapped in the parched dry desert without water.  We are literally dehydrating ourselves to a spiritual death.  We blame God for our horrible life.  We blame Christ for a miserable existence.  We think the Holy Spirit is no help.  All of this thinking is so wrong!  

In the New Year, we need to make an effort to turn our minds and hearts toward Jesus.  Ask him to tie our shoes for us!  Ask him to help us in our sufferings and hardships.  Let us not frown at Jesus asking, "Who are you?" but smile and tell him "I love you!"

-J.