John 1:29 - 34
Have you ever asked “Why am I a
Catholic Christian?” Most of us would say, we were born into a
Catholic family. But every one of us probably knows many people who
were born into Catholic families who have left the Church, who don’t
consider themselves Catholics anymore. Some believe in nothing; some
have joined the Assembly of God across the river, which has a sizable
population of former Catholics; and some have drifted into other
religions, other denominations. So being born into a Catholic family
doesn’t cut it. Some of us would say that it’s because being a
Catholic is the best way to come into a relationship with Jesus --
but that assumes we want such a relationship, which in turn means
that somewhere along the line we decided that was better than not
having a relationship; we experienced the testimony of someone else.
I grew up in a Catholic family. My mom and dad were serious
Catholics. I think we all expect our mothers to be religious, but my
dad was as well, and that's been shown to be a predictor of whether
the children will remain in the church. He went to confession; he
sometimes went to Mass on weekdays in addition to Sundays. He was a
knight of Columbus; and he knew why he believed and could tell us
kids why. His testimony and a major effect on me. When I look back
on my life, I can see how every now and then someone would testify,
and I would be influenced.
Somewhere between grade school and
college most of us go through a transition between our childhood
faith and an adult faith. This is a very dangerous time, because
many never make the transition, or lose their faith. At that time
they especially need testimony. When I went to college I remember
one professor who was kind of famous because he had been one of the
scientists who worked on the development of the atom bomb. He was
brilliant and knew physics backward and forward. And he went to mass
daily. And during my internship one of my teachers was a
cardiologist -- and we all knew where to grab him for a consultation
-- outside the hospital chapel after morning mass. These people
testified to the importance of their Catholic faith..
So if you put all the accounts of
Jesus’ baptism together with this post-baptismal account in the
gospel of John, the sequence is like this: First, God himself
testifies -- This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.”
then Satan testifies, in a way, by trying to tempt Jesus away from
his mission; and finally, John testifies to his divinity as well as
his role in our salvation.
Each one of us is a Christian because
of someone else’s testimony. It may have been a parent or
grandparent, a teacher or a priest. It may have been a good friend.
But had they not testified, we would not be Christians. And if no
one testifies, there will soon be no Church.
It’s interesting that John tells us
twice, “I did not know him, but…” And we all say, “What do
you mean? He’s your cousin. '' But John did not know him as the
Lamb of God, as the Son of God, until the event of his baptism and
times afterward. And even when John was in prison, he wasn't sure;
he told his disciples to go and ask, “Are you the one who is to
come, or shall we look for another?” John identifies why we do not
testify -- we are not certain. But John still testified. Because if
no one testifies, there will be no church.
So we need to ask, how are we
testifying? Testifying means that we make known to others that Jesus
means something in my life. For Catholics we find Jesus in the
Church, his body extended through time and space. I think a lot of
us fall back on the idea that if we live good lives, if we are
generous, if we help our neighbor, we are testifying. But to testify
means that the person to whom we testify knows that Jesus is the
reason for our actions and that we find Him best in our Church. If
he does not know this, he won’t turn to Jesus, he won’t have a
chance to enter into that relationship which is his only hope of
fulfilling his humanity, of reaching his true goal in eternity.
We need to tell people that we
actually believe what Jesus teaches; that Jesus is the reason for the
good we do. It’s definitely hard in our culture. It’s hard to
say, “God Bless You” instead of “goodbye” when we leave a
friend. It’s hard to make the sign of the cross and say grace
before you eat in public. It's hard to offer to pray with someone who
is ill or in trouble. But we need to show that our faith is behind
our actions, because if no one testifies, there will be no church.
Last Friday we celebrated the feast of
Saint Anthony of the Desert, who lived about 300 years after the
birth of Christ. Anthony was a rich young man who heard the words
“If you would be perfect, go sell all your possessions, and give to
the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come and follow
me.” Anthony did that and went out in the desert by himself. But
his testimony was so effective that soon he was surrounded by others
who wanted to imitate him and learn from him.
And that’s what testimony is all
about. We have to live in a way that people will see us and want to
imitate us -- especially important for our children, our close
friends, our spouses. And we have to do it so that others see that
it is our faith that moves us, and our faith comes from our Catholic
identity. And it’s never easy, but the more we realize that we are
here to testify, the more we practice testifying, the easier it will
become and the more fruitful it will be. Because if no one
testifies, then there will be no church.
