Today we are celebrating the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (because tomorrow – the date of the feast, June 24 – is the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, not celebrated on a specific date, but on the Friday after the second Sunday after Pentecost which is June 24…so….
Anyway.
You probably already know that there are only three birthdays celebrated during the liturgical year: Jesus (December 25), Mary (September 8) and John – today.
The feast coincides with the summer solstice, so of course it’s a time of celebration of the season as well, as ancient European traditions, many involving fire on the eve of the feast.
And although the Gospel of the day is, of course, the narrative of the announcement of John’s birth to his father in the Temple, the feast nonetheless puts us in mind of what John, as an adult, said of his role in salvation history:
He must increase; I must decrease.
(John 3:30)
In various other places (can’t remember where – sorry) I have read the observation which I’ll share with you – we celebrate the coming of John, the Forerunner, on days after the longest days in which time and seasons turn and after which, the light of day begins to fade, ever so gradually.
I must decrease…
The birth of Christ is celebrated in the days when, finally, after weeks of growing darkness, light gains the upper hand again..
He must increase…
It is not without meaning that the herald’s birth at this season came to pass when the earthly day is waning, and the Lord’s birth when it is waxing. This meaning John himself revealed with these words: “It is fitting for Christ that he should increase, and for me that I should decrease.” John became known to people, through his famous actions, earlier than Christ was, because he did not reveal his divine power before he had lived thirty years in human nature. So it seemed to the people that he was a prophet, and that John was Christ. But then Christ made himself known through great signs, and his fame waxed throughout all the world, that he was true God, who had previously seemed a prophet. Truly John’s fame was waning, because he was recognised as a prophet, and herald of the heavenly Prince, who a little while before was believed to be Christ by uncertain guesses. This waning is betokened by the waning day at the season of his birth, and the increasing day at the Saviour’s birth signifies his increasing power according to his human nature.’
Let’s get back to today’s Gospel. Here’s the recounting of the beginning of John’s life from the Loyola Kid Book of Bible Stories.
Remember how the book is organized. The stories are grouped according to how one would generally hear them proclaimed in the context of the liturgy. Generally. The stories are retold, with a couple of reflection questions at the end. Forgive the poor scan of the second (which is the last) page. I think you can make it out.
One of the aspects of John’s origin story that has always struck me is the fact that his father received the news of his conception and name while he was doing something very specific: his duty. Moreover, this obligation, was related to the liturgy. He had a role assisting in Temple worship, a context that was not a free-for-all of doing-what-the-Spirit-leads, but structured and considered a “given.”
Couple that experience with how Mary received her comparable news: in obscurity, in a backwater of the Roman Empire, given to a very ordinary young woman just living her ordinary life.
Yes, consider the two together and what do you hear: God meets us in the midst of ordinary life, as we are fulfilling our duties and offering our prayers and worship. Those things are not obstacles to authenticity, they’re not barriers to deep, “Spirit-filled” lives.
They are the way.
Charlotte was Both 
The sun comes up here in Indiana around 5:30. We have Daylight Savings time