Faith

A church window depicts the visit of the Three Kings celebrated on the Feast of the Epiphany. OSV News photo/Crosiers

Friday, December 22, 2023Faith

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We must learn to be comfortable and content to make John's words our own: "I am not the Christ." The joy we experience at Christmas depends on it.

Jaymie Stuart
Wolfe

John the Baptist didn't mince words or pull punches. When enquiring minds asked him who he was, his answer could not have been more clear: "I am not the Christ." I imagine John's disciples must have been at least a little disappointed. Following an ascetical prophet, a desert-dweller whose message of repentance wasn't exactly aligned with winning friends, was a difficult and demanding way to live. But publicly announcing he was not the Messiah, not the one all Israel was hoping for, didn't make it any easier.
And yet, John had no delusions. He knew who he wasn't. He was not the one who would save us. He could not forgive sins. He was not the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. Nor had he come to initiate the eternal kingdom of God. John the Baptist was not sent to preach the good news to the poor, open the eyes of the blind, liberate captives, or usher in a year of the Lord's favor.
John did not try to be -- or pretend to be -- something more or other than God called him to be. He was satisfied to be "the voice of one crying out in the desert: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'" And in that, John demonstrates the most significant prerequisite to Christian discipleship: accepting that I can never be the savior I need.
We must learn to be comfortable and content to make John's words our own: "I am not the Christ."

The joy we experience at Christmas depends on it. We can accept the gift of God in Christ Jesus only when we stop trying to save ourselves -- and others. We can experience the rich grace of the Word-Made-Flesh only to the extent that we recognize our poverty. We can embrace God lying in the manger only if we let go of the bootstraps we keep trying to pull ourselves up by and realize that we are desperately inadequate. The whole point of Christ's coming is voiced in the Psalms: "I was helpless, so he saved me" (Ps 116:6).
One of the most beautiful ancient hymns of the church is the "Te Deum." Composed in the fourth century and often attributed to St. Ambrose, it begins with the words, "Te Deum laudamus: te Dominum confitemur." The translation contained in the Compendium of the Catechism is direct and to the point: "You are God: we praise you; You are God we acclaim you." The hymn begins with the simple acknowledgment that God is God and I am not. That is the threshold we all need to cross to experience salvation personally. And it is what St. Paul describes: "that at the name of Jesus every knee would bend . . . And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil 2:10a, 11).
In the 17th century, St. Francis de Sales voiced the same essential truth in a simple prayer of aspiration: "Jesus, be a Jesus for us." The fact is that no one else can be. Jesus isn't just a lead character in an inspirational tale. Everything about human life hinges on him. He is the center of all creation.
At Christmas, we celebrate that God has, in fact, come to save us and that Jesus has truly become "a Jesus" for us. That is why we will kneel during the Creed at all Christmas Masses. Taking our cue from lowly shepherds and wise men alike, we will worship God in Jesus Christ and humble our humanity before his. For it is on our knees that we can best begin to grasp the love that made God leap from heaven to earth, simply to be with us. Merry Christmas.

- Jaymie Stuart Wolfe is a Catholic convert, wife, and mother of eight. Inspired by the spirituality of St. Francis de Sales, she is an author, speaker, and musician, and provides freelance editorial services to numerous publishers and authors as the principal of One More Basket. Find Jaymie on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @YouFeedThem.