OMELIE / Omelie EN

19 gen 2020

19/01/2020 – 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - year A 

19/01/2020 – 2^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - year A 

Reading 1 IS 49,3.5-6 * Psalm 39 *Reading 2 1COR 1,1-3 * Gospel JN 1,29-34

Today John the Baptist reminds us we are sinners. Christmas Time in fact is over, and the liturgy lingers to meditate on the introduction made of Jesus by the Precursor. The latter remembers the moment in which he himself has baptised him, and he gives testimony talking again about Him while he can see Him approaching. The most important thing he wants to highlight is the presence of the Holy Spirit upon Him, a presence that shows His divine essence and at the same time makes divine too those who welcome Him! In fact Jesus, dwelling of the Spirit, baptises exactly in the Holy Spirit, so He soaks in life, in the reality of love and in God’s holiness, all those who let themselves be intimately approached by Him. First of all however, before talking about this new gift, John talks about another preparatory gift.

Jesus, first of all, “takes away the sin of the world”. This task is really necessary! I too, starting filling with oil or wine or with another precious liquid a bottle or any other container, first of all empty it and clean it properly from any other thing or impurity. Otherwise, I might not be able to enjoy fully the new content, nay, I would spoil it! Jesus “takes away the sin of the world” in order to be able to donate the Spirit afterwards. How will He manage to take away the sin?

In order to answer this question, John refers to an image very typical of the biblical culture: He is “the Lamb of God”! This image reminds us of a page by the prophet Isaiah that tells about the Servant of God, who, with the offering of his life like “a lamb that is led to the slaughter”, “he bore the sin of many”!

The image of the lamb reminds us also of what happens during Easter, celebrated eating the lamb sacrificed to God: by eating the lamb the people reaches the communion with God and each one is in communion with one another.

Jesus is then introduced by John already as He who gives Himself up for our peace, for our communion with the Father and among us, because He takes away from our life what is keeping it away from God and the brethren, sin. Later He will be able to fill our hearts and our bodies with the gift of the Spirit!

Sin! In our world rich and overflowing this word is not acceptable any more. Or it is scary, it has become a taboo. Who is talking about sin is accused to judge other people’s conscience. We are forgetting the prophets' task. Nathan had said to David’s face that he has committed sin: why on earth you cannot say the same today to whom fill with injustice the tribunals, to whom support and perform abortions, to whom are doing dress rehearsals of marriage without having prepared themselves for love, to whom   would like to educate children and young adults only through information, to whom trick their clients, to whom throw away bread when the world is full of people starving, and so on…?

Who is telling you that a certain behaviour is a sin, should be thanked: he is helping to decide, he is warning against ruining your own life and damaging other people. And, above all, who is talking about sin is keeping up the hope for forgiveness. This can be done only by whom believes in God, in the God of Jesus, the lamb who takes away sin! Who is not talking about sin is then able to talk about responsibility, but he does not know the possibility to be forgiven.

John introduces Jesus with the desire for everyone to meet Him: He is the lamb who takes away the sins of the world! Only he who admits he is a sinner will come closer, who acknowledges he has disobeyed or ignored God the Father. To be a sinner is a condition that links all men from every people. Everyone’s sin however is dividing us, is keeping us separated. The blood of the lamb has to unite us, and the Pascal feast celebrated by eating His flesh: we will be able in this way to receive from Him the Spirit as well, which, from being men, get us to become sons and daughters able to carry God's love!