January 20, 2002

In today's Gospel, John does not believe what he sees but he sees what he believes. He catches sight of Jesus and recognizes him for who he really is and exclaims, "Look there!" Do we, week by week and day by day, look for, recognize, and praise God's chose one in our midst?

We have all seen the movie scene "She" has been struggling to keep the family together all these years, not knowing whether "He" is dead or alive. Wondering if he would ever come home, somehow believing everyday that, "Today will be the day." Just when things seem the bleakest, she looks up from hanging clothes on the line and sees someone in the distance. At first she does not recognize him, then she thinks her eyes deceive her, but suddenly she recognizes who it is and shouts, "Come quickly children, your father is home!"

This is the scene in Today's Gospel. John, and all the Jewish people, had been expecting, hoping, and praying preparing for the Messiah for a long time. So when John saw his cousin walking toward him, he suddenly recognized him for who he really was – the Savior they were hoping for. And, the first thing John did was to shout out with joy what he had seen for himself, that Jesus was God's Chosen One who takes away his sin and the sin of the whole world. Ultimately, preaching the good news means catching sight of the One we always believe we will see and exclaiming with joy, "Look there! The Lamb of God!"

While the rest of the world lives by the motto "Seeing is believing," our Christian motto might be "Believing is seeing." Like John, we are called to expect the unexpected, to see what we believe in and hope for, and to tell others of the saving love of God we see around us.

SO THE QUESTION: WHEN AND HOW HAVE YOU SEEN FOR YOURSELF THAT JESUS IS GOD'S CHOSEN ONE?

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