John the Baptist twice says, “I do not know him…” Jesus was his second cousin, but it may have been that, because they lived in different places, they just did not see each other through the years. On another level, John had met him while still in his mother’s womb. We recall the story of the Visitation in which Mary greeted her cousin Elizabeth, and the Infant in her womb leaped for joy. It is the presence of the Spirit, before his birth and during his ministry at the Jordan, who led John, despite not knowing Jesus on the human level, to acknowledge him as the Lamb of God and to announce that Jesus is the Son of God. John saw the “Spirit come down and remain”; he knew then that Jesus would baptize, not just with water as he did, but with the Holy Spirit.
The presence of the Holy Spirit makes a difference in our lives as well. Many, or most, of us were baptized as infants, a time when the Holy Spirit first took hold of us. Now, we have completed our celebration of the birth anew of Jesus at Christmas and his epiphany to the world through various people and events. The Holy Spirit leads us beyond the warm sentiments of the holidays to proclaim Jesus as the Son of God, who calls for our fidelity and mandates that we make him known to others. How we make Jesus known depends on our openness to the Holy Spirit and our initiative in the circumstances of our lives. If we have not yet begun, we are invited to do so on this Second Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Sister Gemma Pepera, CSFN
