Bible Study:
Sirach 48, 1 to 11. Matthew 17, 10 to 13.
There are
certain names we Africans give to our children that indicate our belief in
re-incarnation. We have Yoruba names like Babtunde meaning “the father has come
back”, Yetunde or Yewande meaning “the mother is back”, Babajide “the father
has woken up again.’ As such reading through today’s scripture passages, one
might be tempted to assume that when Jesus Christ was speaking of John the
Baptist as the Elijah that is to come, he was referring to this idea of
re-incarnation. But that is not the case.
There is
really no such thing as re-incarnation. Every man is born to live once and die
once. We do not continue to live forever and we cannot return to life after we
have died and faced judgement. As the book of Hebrews put it, “…it is appointed
for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment.” Hebrews 9:27. As the catechism
teaches: “Death is the end of man's earthly pilgrimage, of the time of grace
and mercy which God offers him so as to work out his earthly life in keeping
with the divine plan, and to decide his ultimate destiny. When "the single
course of our earthly life" is completed, we shall not return to other
earthly lives. There is no "reincarnation" after death.” CCC No. 1013
So, what
is Jesus talking about in the case of John the Baptist? Amongst the prophets of
Old Testament times, none was as dramatic as Elijah. As the book of Sirach
describes in today’s first reading, Elijah arose like a fire. There was no one
in the whole of Israel who did not hear about him. He made such a great impact
that his fame was spoken of with fear, even kings trembled before him. Elijah
was the one who said there would be a famine and for three whole years, God
shut the heaven and rained not a single drop on earth and he was the one who
said, there would be rain and it rained again. At the end of his life, Elijah
did not really die a normal death and was not buried. As we read in 1 kings 2
verse 11, Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven.
In his
greatness, there was then a belief among the people that Elijah would return
again before the Messiah comes. This belief was so strong that the people were
convinced that unless Elijah comes back, the promised Messiah would never come.
John the Baptist was not a re-incarnation of Elijah rather his personality was
symbolic to the role and expectation of Elijah. John the Baptist was like Elijah
in every way, it was not the case that he carried Elijah’s face or had the same
genes with Elijah. So Jesus was saying that for those who believe Elijah has to
come before the Messiah arrives, the Messiah is already here and that Elijah
you are expecting is concretely represented in the person of John the Baptist.
In the end,
it is for us to know that Jesus by his birth and life came as a fulfilment of
all the promises, hopes, beliefs and expectation of the peoples of old. In Jesus,
we see a God who never fails. A God whose promises must surely come to pass.
Let us
Pray:
Lord
Jesus, deepen my faith in you and as I celebrate you this Christmas, may I never
doubt your promises in my life. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy Weekend and
happy Pilgrimage day to those going for the Marian Pilgrimage.
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