Recognising the Lamb

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

This is the  Lamb of God

                          It-Tieni Ħadd matul is-Sena A                              

Dan hu l-Ħaruf ta' Alla

Messalin A pp 256

Reading 1

ISaiah 49:3, 5-6

The LORD said to me: You are my servant, Israel, through whom I show my glory. Now the LORD has spoken who formed me as his servant from the womb, that Jacob may be brought back to him and Israel gathered to him; and I am made glorious in the sight of the LORD, and my God is now my strength! It is too little, the LORD says,  for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth. This is the Word of the Lord.

L-Ewwel Lezzjoni

Qari mill-Ktieb tal-Profeta Isaija.49, 3,5-6

Il-Mulej qalli: "Iżrael, inti l-qaddej tiegħi, bik jiena nkun imfaħħar." Issa tkellem il-Mulej, li minn ġuf ommi għamilni qaddej tiegħu, biex għandu nraġġa' lura lil Ġakobb, u biex Iżrael jinġabar miegħu mill-ġdid - għax jien kont imfaħħar f'għajnejn il-Mulej, u Alla tiegħi kien il-qawwa tiegħi –u Hu qalli: "Tkun ħaġa żgħira wisq għalik, li inti tkun il-qaddej tiegħi,biex tqajjem it-tribu' ta' Ġakobb, u traġġa lura l-fdal ta' Iżrael. Jien nagħmel minnek dawl għall-ġnus, biex is-salvazzjoni tiegħi sa truf l-art tinfirex." Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

 

Responsorial Psalm

PSALM 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10

I have waited, waited for the LORD,
and he stooped toward me and heard my cry.
And he put a new song into my mouth,
a hymn to our God.                                          R/
R/ Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

Sacrifice or offering you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”                             R/
R/ Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me,
to do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”                      R/
R/ Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O LORD, know.  R/

R/ Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

Salm Responsorjali  

(Salm 39(40)      

Ittamajt b'tama qawwija fil-Mulej;

hu niżel ħdejja u sama' l-għajta tiegħi.

Qegħedli fuq fommi għanja ġdida,

għanja ta' tifħir lil Alla tagħna.                            

R/   Hawn jien, Mulej, ġej nagħmel ir-rieda tiegħek

Int ma titgħaxxaqx b'sagrifiċċji u b'offerti;

imma widnejja int ftaħtli,

 ma tlabtnix vittmi tal-ħruq u tat-tpattija.

Imbagħad jien għedt:  "Hawn jien, ġej."              

R/   Hawn jien, Mulej, ġej nagħmel ir-rieda tiegħek

Fil-bidu tal-ktieb hemm miktub fuqi

li nagħmel ir-rieda tiegħek.

Alla tiegħi, dan jogħġobni:

il-liġi tiegħek ġewwa qalbi.                                

R/   Hawn jien, Mulej, ġej nagħmel ir-rieda tiegħek

Xandart il-ġustizzja f'ġemgħa kbira;

xufftejja ma żammejthomx magħluqa.

Mulej, dan inti tafu.                                          

R/   Hawn jien, Mulej, ġej nagħmel ir-rieda tiegħek

Reading 2

1 CORinthians 1:1-3

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy, with all those everywhere who call upon  the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the Word of the Lord.

It-Tieni Lezzjoni                                                                   

Bidu ta' l-Ewwel Ittra lill-Korintin 1,  1-3

Pawlu, li Alla ried isejjaħlu biex ikun appostlu ta' Kristu Ġesu', u Sosteni ħuna, lill-Knisja ta' Alla li qiegħda f'Korintu; lil dawk li tqaddsu fi Kristu Ġesu', imsejħa biex ikunu  qaddisin flimkien ma' dawk  kollha li f'kull pajjiż isejħu  l-isem ta' Ġesu' Kristu, is-Sid tagħhom u tagħna,  grazzja u sliem mingħand Alla  missierna u l-Mulej Ġesu' Kristu.  Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

 

Gospel                                      

JohN 1:29-34

John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.” John testified further, saying, “I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven and remain upon him. I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.” This is the Word of the Lord.

L-Evanġelju

Qari mill-Evanġelju skond San Ġwann 1, 29-34

 F'dak iż-żmien, Ġwanni, ra lil Ġesu' riesaq lejħ u qal: "Araw il-Ħaruf ta' Alla, li jneħħi d-dnub tad-dinja. Dan hu li għalih għedtilkom:  "Warajja ġej bniedem li hu aqwa minni, għax kien qabli."   Anqas jien stess ma kont nafu, imma jien għalhekk ġejt ngħammed bl-ilma, biex hu jkun mgħarraf lil Iżrael." U Ġwanni xehed għalih u qal:  "Jiena rajt l-Ispirtu nieżel mis-sema bħal ħammiema u joqgħod fuqu.  Tabilħaqq,  anqas jien  ma kont nafu; imma dak li bagħatni ngħammed bl-ilma, hu stess qalli: "Fuq min tara l-Ispirtu jinżel u joqgħod,  dak hu li jgħammed bl-Ispirtu s-Santu." "Dan rajtu b'għajnejja, u għalhekk xhedt, dan hu l-Iben ta' Alla." Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

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Commentary:

Recognizing Agnus Dei and other Martyrs -- 

A Biblical Reflection by Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB

In next Sunday's Gospel passage (John 1:29-34), the figure of John the Baptist appears once again almost as if to send us back to Advent...to look carefully at the evidence of the Baptizer and of Jesus, and to make some decisions about our own lives.  The evangelist John’s account of the Baptism of Jesus is very different from the other three evangelists, and the historical situation explains why.  John’s gospel text shows no knowledge of the tradition (Luke 1) about the kinship of Jesus and John the Baptist. In the Fourth Gospel, John's baptism is not connected with forgiveness of sins; its purpose is revelatory, that Jesus may be made known to Israel.  For John, a simple chronicle of events is never enough; the important thing is that events excite a personal testimony about Jesus.

The evangelist John is very intent on counteracting a movement that regarded John the Baptist as superior to Jesus.  He does not narrate the baptism event; instead, he puts the meaning of the baptism into John the Baptist's testimony.  He has the Baptizer publicly profess his raison d’être: "The reason why I came...was that he [Jesus] might be made known."

Recognizing Jesus

How did John the Baptist finally come to recognize Jesus?  He combined the stirrings of the one who sent him to baptize with his knowledge of what the prophets had said and his encounters with penitents and sceptics.  John realized that when he met someone whose speech and action showed that a special Spirit was at work, that's the one he should recognize as the one who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire.  Even for the Baptist, it took time and several sightings before he would recognize that the one the Spirit was resting on was Jesus of Nazareth.  His recognition did not come spontaneously, nor was it self-evident.  It came gradually because it was imbedded in such familiar surroundings.

Having established the true Christian view of the relationship between Jesus and the Baptizer, the writer of the Fourth Gospel concentrates on demonstrating that Jesus is, indeed, the Servant of God as foretold in Isaiah's Servant Songs.  Sunday's first reading [Isaiah 49:3, 5-6] is the second of Isaiah's four "Suffering Servant Songs."

The voice from heaven instructs the Baptizer that the one on whom the Spirit descends is the Chosen One; he is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.  The last sentence of Sunday's Gospel expresses the very conviction that we should all experience after hearing John the Baptist's "evidence."  Each of us should be inspired to say, "I have seen for myself...' This is God's chosen One!' (v 34)"  It is that conviction, rooted quietly yet firmly in our hearts, that will enable us to be ‘lumen gentium:’ a light to the nations.

The Lamb of God

In v 29 of this Sunday’s Gospel we read that when John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”  The expression “lamb of God” is loaded with meaning and it is good to be aware of the full implications of that word that we pray each time we celebrate mass.  The background for the title ‘lamb of God” may be the victorious apocalyptic lamb who would destroy evil in the world (Rev 5-7; 17:14); the paschal lamb, whose blood saved Israel (Exodus 12); and/or the suffering servant led like a lamb to the slaughter as a sin-offering (Isaiah 53:7, 10).

Sheep and lambs are symbolic in the New Testament not only of Christ but also of his followers; in these cases Jesus becomes the shepherd and they become his flock. Jesus searches for the lost sheep until he has found it, leaving all the "safe" sheep to look after themselves in the meanwhile.

Christ, as the victim who reveals God's love for us, is often symbolized by a lamb. For Christians, he is the "lamb" described in the Book of Isaiah: "harshly dealt with, he bore it humbly; he never opened his mouth: like a lamb that is led to the slaughterhouse, like a sheep that is dumb before its shearers, he never opened his mouth."

When Peter is entrusted with the flock of the Lord, Peter is told to "feed" his sheep and lambs. Jesus sends his followers out into the world with no weapons, no money, no power - "like sheep among wolves."  People who die for believing in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for not defending themselves by partaking in violence, imitate Christ. To be martyred is to be "like a lamb that is led to the slaughterhouse."  Lambs suffer violence; they do not inflict it. They are universal symbols of innocence.  Lambs have always been favourite animals for sacrifice.  When John the Baptist refers to Jesus as “the lamb of God”, he means that Jesus was the Messiah, the one who in his life and death would reveal the true nature of God.

The Real Meaning of Martyr

Baptism gives us the grace of giving witness, and sometimes that might lead to the ultimate witness of laying down our very lives because we are associated with and marked by Jesus Christ.  A martyr [Greek: a witness] is a person who, for the Christian faith, freely and patiently suffers death at the hands of a persecutor.  Martyrs choose to die rather than deny their faith by word or deed.  They suffer patiently after the example of Christ, they do not resist their persecutors.  True martyrs die for holy causes.  False martyrs die for the most unholy of causes.  The era of martyrdom is not something of the past.  It is still taking place all around us today.  In fact, the last century was one of incredible Christian martyrdom.

The early Christians, who bore witness to the truth of those facts upon which Christianity rests, were liable at any time to be given a choice between death and denial of their testimony.  Many of them, refusing to deny Christ, actually suffered death.

Martyrdom gives credibility to authentic Christian witnesses who do not seek power or gain, but give their own lives for Christ. They show to the world the power, weaponless and full of love for men, that is given to those who follow Christ to the point of the total donation of their existence. Thus Christians, from the dawn of Christianity until our own time, have undergone persecution on account of the Gospel, as Jesus proclaimed beforehand: If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you (John 15:20)."

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