We are Witnesses

Above the altar of the hospital chapel of Saint Anthony’s Monastery in Isenheim in France, there is a painting of the crucifixion. The altarpiece was painted in the sixteenth century by an artist named Matthias Grünewald. In the painting appears John the Baptist. It is anachronistic, since the gospels tell us that John was murdered by Herod before Jesus himself was executed. Nevertheless the artist has placed John the Baptist at the foot of the cross. Holding open a book at his side showing a lamb bearing a cross, John points a long, bony finger towards Jesus.

Prophets! Once again, our Scripture readings point us towards prophets. Last week we heard the prophets call us to confession of our sins, repentance, and transformation of life. Last week, in John the Baptizer’s call in the Gospel according to Mark, we heard especially clearly our need to confess our corporate sins, and to work toward real amendment of life. This week, our Scriptures send us a different message. While transformation of life is always on God’s agenda for us, this week, this Gaudete Sunday bearing the pink candle of joy, we hear the prophets proclaim, point to, and witness to the wonders that God is working among us. Are we ready to hear that message?

Can you hear the joyful note in the voice of the prophet in our reading from the book of Isaiah? Here the prophet excitedly proclaims good news to those returning from exile in Babylon. Even though Jerusalem is in ruins, the prophet reminds the people of what God has already done for them, and yet again restates God’s promises. Can you hear that good news? Anointed by God, the prophet promises consolation for those who mourn, freedom for those in prison, voices to praise God, the will and the means to rebuild Jerusalem, and assurance that their relationship with God will last forever. Just as we might, the people joyfully respond to what they hear: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,” they say, “my whole being shall exult in my God….”

Even our psalm echoes that note of joy. Here too, the people are envisioned as having just returned from exile. Joyfully, the psalmist hears them declare, “Then was our mouth filled with laughter and our tongue with shouts of joy.” Agreeing with their neighbors’ judgment that “The Lord has done great things for them,” the returning exiles witness to God’s deeds as they shout, “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are glad indeed.”

What do you hear and see in the depiction of John the Baptizer in the Gospel according to John? For sure, not John the accuser calling for confession and repentance. Instead, like the John depicted in the Isenheim altarpiece, we see and hear a witness pointing to Jesus. This gospel, the fourth and latest gospel, is a gospel of signs, of signs of the true identity of Jesus and of his oneness with God. We see those signs of Jesus’ identity most clearly, according to the evangelist, in Jesus’ “I am” statements: “I am the light of the world, I am the true bread,” etc. In this reading, the Jesus who will provide all these signs has not yet begun his public ministry but is as yet hidden among the people. In a sense, John the Baptizer is the first sign of Jesus in his “I am not statements.” As he denies that he is the Messiah, Elijah, i.e., the Messiah’s forerunner, and the Prophet, John points towards Jesus’ coming. In so doing, he prepares others to recognize Jesus and to understand who Jesus might be. He is, as he tells us, Jesus’ forerunner, the first witness to Jesus’ true identity.

Did you hear a call to witness in our reading from Paul’s first letter to the Christians in Thessaloniki? Does Paul call those early followers of the Way to point their fingers at Jesus and proclaim his true identity to their neighbors? Directly, no, since the Thessalonians were probably more worried about surviving Roman persecution or lasting until Jesus’ return, an event they believed was imminent. Even so, if you were listening carefully, you might have heard a call to indirect witness to Jesus’ identity embedded in Paul’s letter.

What do we make of these ancient calls to proclamation and witness? Are we called to be God’s witnesses? Or is the role of witness reserved for Isaiah, the psalmist, John the Baptizer, the writer of the fourth gospel, Paul, the Thessalonian Christians, the creator of the Isenheim altarpiece, and a few assorted saints? If you receive our e-news or attend an evening Eucharist, you know that many other people, those whose lives are commemorated in Holy Women, Holy Men, have been – and are – called to point to Jesus and to his impact on their lives.

My brothers and sisters, we too are called to be witnesses. In the Gospel according to Luke, Jesus applied to himself the self-description of the prophet Isaiah – and rightly so. But these words also apply to us. Say to yourself, “The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me.” Believe it: we too are called to speak God’s consoling word – among our family and friends, in hospitals and nursing homes, as we distribute diapers, and as we serve our Loaves and Fishes friends. We too are called to rebuild the broken places in our world – when a family is burned out of their home, when the land is despoiled, when we liberate concentration camps or welcome refugees, and when we reassure those around us, whoever they are, that God’s covenant includes all of us, and that all of us are God’s beloved children.

Like John the Baptizer, we too are called to be a sign of the coming of Jesus. It’s possible, isn’t it, that someone might say of us, “There was a woman sent from God whose name was N,” or “There was a man sent from God whose name was N.” And when someone asks you, “Who are you,” you too can answer, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord.’” It indeed may feel like a wilderness out there, yet we too are called to take John’s role and point to Jesus. We too are called to remind others that Jesus is coming – even in the midst of this frenzied “holiday” season.

And how do we, as Jesus’ twenty-first century followers actually do that? Are we called to tell others that “the Lord has anointed me?” Are we called to remind others that one is coming after us whose sandals we are not worthy to untie? For some, the answer to those questions would indeed be “yes.” However, our reading from the letter to the Thessalonian Christians gives us another answer. Perhaps we can proclaim Jesus, we can point to the reality of his impact on us, in the way that we live. Perhaps this is our witness: to show forth God’s praise, “not only with our lips but with our lives.”

And how are we to do that? Actually, Paul’s counsels are quite clear. We are to be joyful, not “happy clappy” joyful, but, rather confident in God’s promises and God’s love. We are to “pray without ceasing.” This does not mean saying “Our Father” or “Hail, Mary” every spare minute. It does mean understanding our relationship with God as the very ground of our being and seeking to be in touch with God wherever we are. A practice you might adopt to foster a deeper sense of your life as grounded in God is to do a nightly recast of your day: take just a few minutes to ask yourself, “Where was God in this day for me?” We are to be thankful, for all that God has given us, for those elements in our day or life that made us feel loved and affirmed, but also for those times in which we felt tired, ashamed, angry, and unloved. God is in those moments as well, teaching us and supporting us. We are to trust that the Holy Spirit is at work in us, we are to listen to the prophets among us, most especially when they tell us what we don’t want to hear, and we are to carefully consider all that we see, hear, and do. In short, as William Brosend tells us, we witness best to the reality of Christ when we live lives that are joyous, prayerful, Eucharistic, Spirit-filled, prophetic, and tested. As we live out our calling as followers of Jesus, each of our lives will look different. Even so, all of us can trust that God will empower our witness, because, “The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.”

Are you ready to be like John the Baptizer in the Isenheim altarpiece? Are you ready to be a witness for Jesus? Then, as you prepare to welcome him as a tiny baby, hear the prayer of another witness:

Winter God, in the darkest time of year
you brought in starlight,
angel song, and baby cries.
Stay with me as I journey to new birth
and celebrate this time of saints,
psalms, and prayer.
In the silence and stillness,
Fashion my prayer into a carol of praise
and focus my life so that I may act as a
Herald of Christ, the child of peace
and the prophet of justice. Amen.1

1. Based on Larry J.Peacock, Openings, (Woodstock, VT: Skylight Paths, 2014), 351.