“Who are you?” This was the question the Jewish authorities asked John the Baptist, a question he had no difficulty answering. And, I wonder, if someone asked us a question that challenged our identity, both our natural identity and our spiritual identity, how would we answer? In our society, I think many people try to manufacture or invent an image or identity for themselves, leaving their spiritual identities deep in the recesses of their hearts.
The Jewish authorities questioned John
the Baptist so earnestly because they wanted to know if the Messiah had come,
if John claimed to be the Messiah or one of the great prophets who was expected
to return at the coming of the Messiah.
But John had no problem in knowing who he was & in proclaiming this
identity to others: he was the one preparing the way for the Messiah. John is the first of the New Testament
witnesses and martyrs.
Today we also celebrate the feast day
of two important church fathers and doctors of the Church from the 4th century:
St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzus.
They were both from Cappedocia, an inland area in present day Turkey
that was an important center of early Christianity. Gregory and Basil were not only two great
theologians and teachers in the early Church, they were great friends, so much
so that Gregory described them as “one soul in two bodies.” Like John the Baptist, Gregory and Basil were
true disciples of Jesus who were not afraid of proclaiming their identities
publicly & who ardently preached the truth of God. In 379, Gregory found himself in Constantinople,
where he had to defend the Trinitarian doctrine that was declared at the
Council of Nicaea to those who adhered to the heresy of Arianism. Gregory acquired the nickname “The
Theologian,” because his theological way of thinking came from his strong life
of prayer and his holiness. St. Basil
not only was instrumental in outlining the foundations of monasticism as it
evolved in the early Church and as it is still practiced in the monasteries today,
but Basil as a bishop was also known for his acts of charity and for his
development of the Church’s liturgy as the summit of all our Church’s
activity.
In John the Baptist, St. Basil the
Great, and Gregory Nazianzen, we have three great examples of faithful
discipleship, of identity rooted in their faith in God, of a strong willingness
to give witness to their faith & their spiritual identity to all
publicly. May they serve us as models as
we continue our journey of faith this Christmas season.
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