John the Baptist,
who featured so prominently
in our Advent liturgies,
returns to us today as we embark
on what the Church calls “Ordinary Time.”
Only now the word he speaks to us
is not “prepare the way of the Lord,”
but “behold the Lamb of God
who takes away the sin of the world.”
The time of preparation has passed
and we are told to cast our eyes
upon the savior
for whom we have
been preparing.
who featured so prominently
in our Advent liturgies,
returns to us today as we embark
on what the Church calls “Ordinary Time.”
Only now the word he speaks to us
is not “prepare the way of the Lord,”
but “behold the Lamb of God
who takes away the sin of the world.”
The time of preparation has passed
and we are told to cast our eyes
upon the savior
for whom we have
been preparing.
But the life of a Christian
doesn’t really divide up neatly
into preparing and beholding,
as if, after a period of preparation
we are now ready to behold.
For what we are bidden to behold
is a mystery so profound
and a love so immense
that our minds fail in comprehension.
We are called to behold the Lamb
who bears not simply our sins,
but the sin of the entire world,
the servant to whom God says,
“I will make you a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach
to the ends of the earth.”
In beholding, we find ourselves
pitifully unprepared,
totally incapable of receiving
the one whom we behold,
not simply because of our sins
but because of the surpassing greatness of his love.
doesn’t really divide up neatly
into preparing and beholding,
as if, after a period of preparation
we are now ready to behold.
For what we are bidden to behold
is a mystery so profound
and a love so immense
that our minds fail in comprehension.
We are called to behold the Lamb
who bears not simply our sins,
but the sin of the entire world,
the servant to whom God says,
“I will make you a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach
to the ends of the earth.”
In beholding, we find ourselves
pitifully unprepared,
totally incapable of receiving
the one whom we behold,
not simply because of our sins
but because of the surpassing greatness of his love.
Think of how the words of John the Baptist
feature in our liturgy each week.
Before communion we are invited
to behold the Lamb of God,
to behold the one who takes away
the sin of the world.
And how do we respond?
“Lord, I am not worthy…”
I am not worthy even though
I have confessed my sins
and acclaimed your glory.
I am not worthy even though
I have listened to your word
and professed my faith in response.
I am not worthy even though
I have offered my prayers
and gifts at your altar
and cried out to the Lamb
for mercy and peace.
I am not worthy even though
I have spent the entire liturgy
preparing for this moment,
because when now confronted
with the reality
of the mystery of God’s love
present body and blood,
soul and divinity,
in the power of the Spirit,
all my preparation seems as nothing.
I am not worthy to have you
enter under my roof
not because I am sinful,
but because your love is so great
that the house of my soul cannot contain it.
feature in our liturgy each week.
Before communion we are invited
to behold the Lamb of God,
to behold the one who takes away
the sin of the world.
And how do we respond?
“Lord, I am not worthy…”
I am not worthy even though
I have confessed my sins
and acclaimed your glory.
I am not worthy even though
I have listened to your word
and professed my faith in response.
I am not worthy even though
I have offered my prayers
and gifts at your altar
and cried out to the Lamb
for mercy and peace.
I am not worthy even though
I have spent the entire liturgy
preparing for this moment,
because when now confronted
with the reality
of the mystery of God’s love
present body and blood,
soul and divinity,
in the power of the Spirit,
all my preparation seems as nothing.
I am not worthy to have you
enter under my roof
not because I am sinful,
but because your love is so great
that the house of my soul cannot contain it.
We might be tempted to think
that what is called for
is more preparation,
more work to be done
before we can receive him,
more earnest effort on our part
to enlarge the house of our soul.
But this is not the word
Christ speaks to us at that moment.
Rather, he says “blessed are those
who are called to the supper of the Lamb.”
Blessed are those called to feast on the one
who takes away the sin of the world.
Blessed are those to whom he says “come,”
to whom he speaks the word that is healing
for our cramped, little souls.
that what is called for
is more preparation,
more work to be done
before we can receive him,
more earnest effort on our part
to enlarge the house of our soul.
But this is not the word
Christ speaks to us at that moment.
Rather, he says “blessed are those
who are called to the supper of the Lamb.”
Blessed are those called to feast on the one
who takes away the sin of the world.
Blessed are those to whom he says “come,”
to whom he speaks the word that is healing
for our cramped, little souls.
For when Christ enters us sacramentally
the walls of our souls are pressed outward
by a love exceeding every human love,
the love that encompasses all,
the love that takes away the sin of the world.
The book of Sirach (24:21) says,
“He who eats of me will hunger still,
he who drinks of me will thirst for more.”
The supper of the Lamb,
expanding our souls,
only makes us hungrier—
hungrier to love him
and hungrier to love as he loves:
loving the enemy and the sinful,
loving the outcast and the stranger,
loving scandalously and without measure.
the walls of our souls are pressed outward
by a love exceeding every human love,
the love that encompasses all,
the love that takes away the sin of the world.
The book of Sirach (24:21) says,
“He who eats of me will hunger still,
he who drinks of me will thirst for more.”
The supper of the Lamb,
expanding our souls,
only makes us hungrier—
hungrier to love him
and hungrier to love as he loves:
loving the enemy and the sinful,
loving the outcast and the stranger,
loving scandalously and without measure.
The life of a Christian
doesn’t divide up neatly
into preparing and beholding,
but there is a kind of rhythm to it.
We prepare,
we behold,
we receive,
and in receiving we are drawn into
a more rigorous kind of preparing,
a more perceptive sort of beholding,
a more profound way of receiving.
We confess our sins, knowing that,
despite our firm resolution of amendment,
we must still strive not to sin again.
We hear God’s word, knowing that,
because we see still dimly, as in a mirror,
we must always listen to it anew.
We receive God’s grace, knowing that,
if God’s Spirit is to lodge in us,
then the house of our soul
will once again have to be enlarged.
doesn’t divide up neatly
into preparing and beholding,
but there is a kind of rhythm to it.
We prepare,
we behold,
we receive,
and in receiving we are drawn into
a more rigorous kind of preparing,
a more perceptive sort of beholding,
a more profound way of receiving.
We confess our sins, knowing that,
despite our firm resolution of amendment,
we must still strive not to sin again.
We hear God’s word, knowing that,
because we see still dimly, as in a mirror,
we must always listen to it anew.
We receive God’s grace, knowing that,
if God’s Spirit is to lodge in us,
then the house of our soul
will once again have to be enlarged.
Becoming a Christian is not
a one-and-done affair
in which, having prepared,
we now behold and receive.
The life of a Christian is not a straight line
but a kind of forward-moving spiral,
in which preparing, beholding, and receiving
are recurring moments along the way
of our pilgrimage into the mystery of divine love.
Thanks be to God that Jesus,
the pioneer and perfecter of our faith
joins us on that spiraling journey
to the supper of the Lamb.
Lamb of God,
who takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us and grant us your peace.
a one-and-done affair
in which, having prepared,
we now behold and receive.
The life of a Christian is not a straight line
but a kind of forward-moving spiral,
in which preparing, beholding, and receiving
are recurring moments along the way
of our pilgrimage into the mystery of divine love.
Thanks be to God that Jesus,
the pioneer and perfecter of our faith
joins us on that spiraling journey
to the supper of the Lamb.
Lamb of God,
who takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us and grant us your peace.
