To Guide Our Feet

Sunday at Mass, we celebrated the Solemnity of the Nativity of John the Baptist. The Gospel reading was from Luke Chapter 1:

When the time came for Elizabeth, she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the merciful Lord had done a wonderful thing for her and they rejoiced with her. When on the eighth day they came to attend the circumcision of the child, they wanted to name him Zechariah after his father.

But his mother said, "Not so; he shall be called John."

They said to her, "No one in your family has that name;" and they asked the father by means of signs for the name he wanted to give.

Zechariah asked for a writing tablet and wrote on it, "His name is John," and they were very surprised.

Immediately Zechariah could speak again and his first words were in praise of God.

A holy fear came on all in the neighborhood, and throughout the Hills of Judea the people talked about these events. All who heard of it pondered in their minds and wondered, "What will this child be?" For they understood that the hand of the Lord was with him.

Then Zechariah his father, filled with the holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:

"Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

for he has visited and brought redemption to his people.

He has raised up a horn for our salvation within the house of David his servant, even as he promised through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old:

salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,
to show mercy to our fathers and to be mindful of his holy covenant
and of the oath he swore to Abraham our father,

and to grant us that,
rescued from the hand of enemies,

without fear we might worship him
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High,

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,

to give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,

because of the tender mercy of our God

by which the daybreak from on high will visit us
to shine on those who sit in darkness and death's shadow,

to guide our feet into the path of peace."

As the child grew up, he was seen to be strong in the Spirit; he lived in the desert till the day when he appeared openly in Israel.

(The image above of the Nativity of John the Baptist is by the Florentine painter and portraitist Jacopo Pontormo, 1494 - 1557)