MARY, OUR MOTHER

Feast of the Beheading of
St. John the Baptist

Today I went to Mass as the Church celebrated the Feast of St. John the Baptist' entry into Eternity, a spiritual birthday which we all await. Yes, when we die and enter into Heaven, that's our New Birthday, where we will be clothed in a new body and our soul will glory in God for all Eternity.
Now on earth we can offer up all our sufferings and trials as John did. He said about Jesus, "He must increase, I must decrease." And he pointed the way to Jesus for his followers, who then became the Lord's disciples.
The priest at Mass said: "John didn't stop preaching about Jesus after he had his head chopped off. Immediately he descended into hell (as we say in the Apostles Creed) to proclaim Jesus' sacred Passion, Death and Resurrection to all those souls waiting below."
Who are these souls? Well, all the good people who lived before Christ including Adam & Eve, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Aaron, Miriam, etc., etc. The gates of Heaven were closed until Christ died on the Cross for our sins! Then He descended into hell to release the prisoners there and bring them into the Kingdom of His Heavenly Father.
I love and admire St. John the Baptist. Once someone called me by that name, but I'm so far from being like him, especially my sinfulness. John was sanctified at the Visitation by Jesus Present in Mary's womb. He leaped for joy at that moment. He lived in the desert eating locusts & honey, wearing the most course of clothes. He was a wild looking man, unkept and smelly, who had no friends but God and when his time came to call the people to repentance, he fearlessly went about shouting for repentance. He was happy to do God's Will.
I too want to do God's Will in my life. I pray for that grace every day! I too want to call people to repentance. That's why I love to preach a homily, or give a meditation and especially publish a Blog! And I live in the desert of my little room, smelly & unkept, ;-)) I even had a wild beard till about 6 weeks ago, like St. John, too!
I look forward to meeting John someday in Heaven! We do have something in common!!!
Deacon John G.