The feast of the birth of John the Baptist

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Today we celebrate the solemn feast of the Birth of John the Baptist. In the gospel from Chapter 1 of Luke we hear that after eight days, it was time to circumcise the child and give him his name. Elizabeth says that he is to be called John and when people objected saying that it was not a family name, they ask Zechariah. He writes, ''His name is John.'' Thus they recognize that his name and his life was given by God. Zechariah is now able to speak and he praises God for choosing John to be a special person who will be great in the sight of the Lord, will be called the prophet of the Most High and will go before the Lord to prepare his ways. It is a great story and has a deep lesson for all of us. At our baptism and naming, we too were recognized as beloved daughters and sons of God and like John received the seeds of what would develop into our special calling.

 

We were each destined to have a unique personal vocation. My life situation tells me what I am now; a parent, a pupil at school, a widow or widower, a solo mother or a person with regular work or a position in the church. But my baptism tells me that I am much more than that. My personal vocation is to orient my life situation with my faith in Jesus. He is calling me to be a loving parent, a dedicated and honest worker, a compassionate and faithful friend, a missionary disciple. I am called to live the life I have seeing that it is a gift that I have received from God and that I will only feel fulfilled when I allow the teaching of Jesus to guide me in all I am and in all I do, remembering Mary's words, ''He that is Mighty has done great things for me.''