Now Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison. // Matthew 14:3
Saint John the Baptist is quite a mysterious figure in the Gospels. In today’s reading from Saint Matthew, we hear how a suggestive dance at Herod’s birthday party led to the beheading of Saint John the Baptist. The perplexing course of events ended with such an extreme act of violence.
While praying with this scripture passage, I was drawn to imagine Saint John the Baptist sitting alone in a cold, dark prison cell in the hours right before his death. What were John’s thoughts, feelings, and desires? Which virtues helped him maintain hope? I was so struck by his humility and was reminded of these phrases from the Litany of Humility prayer:
From the desire of being consulted, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being approved, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being humiliated, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being despised, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged, deliver me, O Jesus.
Saint John the Baptist was a victim of another man’s sin. This is something that many of us can all relate to. While we deserve to be understood, heard, and respected with dignity, we know that unfortunately this does not always happen in our fallen world.
We can let the witness of Saint John the Baptist and his example of humility help us navigate through the suffering in life. Although we live in a fallen world, let us pray together today that the Holy Spirit will continue to strengthen the virtues within us so that we might grow in holiness.
Grow in holiness. // Rose ColemanClick to tweet
Rose Coleman is an elementary school teacher with a heart for pilgrimage. She traveled the globe on a ship during college and spent some years in the convent as a religious sister. She was a contributing author to All She Had, Blessed Conversations: Rooted, and our children’s devotional prayer book called Rise Up. Find out more about her here.
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