Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 1, 1-8
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;
he will prepare your way.
A voice of one crying out in the desert:
“Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.”
John the Baptist appeared in the desert
proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
People of the whole Judean countryside
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem
were going out to him
and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River
as they acknowledged their sins.
John was clothed in camel’s hair,
with a leather belt around his waist.
He fed on locusts and wild honey.
And this is what he proclaimed:
“One mightier than I is coming after me.
I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water;
he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
I am not worthy
1. Messenger. You and I are messengers in this time of Advent. We are here to announce to others that God is present in our lives. The year cannot end without this celebration in our lives; it is the message of hope that we must transmit to others. You and I received the call to be messengers when we received the sacrament of Baptism; we must show how hope lives within us because we are all heralds of hope. Please do not forget that.
2. Announce clearly. Today we are confronted with a society who is apathetic and indifferent. To share the message of God, we must shout loudly with our actions. We can’t play the victims or focus only on injustices; on the contrary, we should continue to fight until the end. We must speak out loud that God is Love, and that He cares for us and protects us with Fatherly love.
3. I am not worthy. Humility is a gift from God that must be present in our lives and should distinguish us as Christians. We must learn to build life from the roots, from the deep and the simple. Please stay away from the virus of ostentation; learn to do and disappear. Work for God’s glory, not your own, so that only God will be highlighted in everything we do.
Never forget that something good is on the way!
God bless you, be with you and protect you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
