Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
A Finger and A Voice
Liturgical Cycle: A, B, C | Lectionary Cycle: I, II
Introduction
Mass during the Day
Greeting (See the First Reading of the Vigil)
Do not be afraid to speak, says the Lord,
for I am with you to protect you.
I am putting my words into your mouth.
Say whatever I command you.
May the Lord speak through us
and always be with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction by the Celebrant
Artists often depict John the Baptist with two symbols that strongly represent him. One is a mouth that shouts. It is the voice crying in the wilderness, calling people to conversion. It is a voice that could not be silenced, scolding the religious leaders and the common folk alike and urging people to change their ways. Without fear, he even faces King Herod and tells him to stop his adultery. He paid dearly for it, for it will cost him his head. Then, he is the finger pointing to the coming Messiah, and here too, he paid dearly, for his own disciples deserted him to follow Jesus. Still, he went ahead: the one he announced must become greater, he, John, only smaller. Yes, he was a great man. “The greatest prophet,” says Jesus.
Penitential Act
Christ still needs to be announced today.
Do we make him visible in our lives?
Are our ways leading to Christ?
Let us examine ourselves.
(pause)
Lord, the world today – and that includes us –
It still needs conversion.
But we lack the courage to change for the better:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, we need to reflect
on our Christian vocation,
but we are afraid of the silence needed
to listen to your challenging Word:
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord, we need prophets to speak in your name,
but we silence or ridicule them
when they point out our own inconsistencies:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Have mercy on us, Lord, convert us,
let us be people who prepare the way for you,
and when we have borne our witness,
help us to fade away to make room for you.
Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray to God
that we may prepare the way of the Lord
(pause)
Merciful God,
We celebrate today with joy
the birth of John the Baptist,
Your prophet who announced a new era
and prepared the way for your Son.
Help us to proclaim the message of Jesus
In the new language, our time demands.
Give us the courage to leave our old ways
and to open resolutely to today’s people
The new road to the future which you offer us
In Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord,
who lives with you and the Holy Spirit,
One God, forever and ever. R/ Amen.
First Reading
Servant of the Lord: Like the Servant of God in this song from Isaiah, John the Baptist is loved and called by God even before he is born. His task as a servant will be to lead people to God.
Passage not found: Isaiah 49:1-6
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 14c-15
R. (14) I praise you, for I am wonderfully made.
O LORD, you have probed me, you know me:
you know when I sit and when I stand;
you understand my thoughts from afar.
My journeys and my rest you scrutinize,
with all my ways you are familiar.
R. I praise you for I am wonderfully made.
Truly you have formed my inmost being;
you knit me in my mother’s womb.
I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made;
wonderful are your works.
R. I praise you, for I am wonderfully made.
My soul also you knew full well;
nor was my frame unknown to you
When I was made in secret,
when I was fashioned in the depths of the earth.
R. I praise you, for I am wonderfully made.
Second Reading
The Humble Forerunner: John’s task was to prepare people’s hearts for the coming Saviour and then humbly to fade away.
After that time, God removed him and raised up David as king, to whom he bore witness, saying, I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will do all I want him to do.
It is from the descendants of David that God has now raised up the promised Savior of Israel, Jesus.
Before he appeared, John proclaimed a baptism of repentance for all the people of Israel.
As John was finishing his life’s work, he said: ‘I am not what you think I am, for after me, another is coming, whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.’
Brothers, children of Abraham’s family, and you who also fear God, this message of salvation has been sent to you.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
You, child, will be called prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
What Will This Child Be? His birth from old parents and the wonders before and after his birth all speak of John as a man chosen by God for a very special mission.
7 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 they came to attend the child’s circumcision on the eighth day, they wanted to name him Zechariah after his father.
But his mother said:
“Not so; he shall be called John.”
They told her:
“But no one in your family has that name!”
and they gestured to his father to indicate the name he wanted to give him.
Zechariah asked for a writing tablet and wrote:
“His name is John.”
They were very surprised.
Immediately, Zechariah could speak again, and his first words were in praise of God.
A deep reverence fell on everyone in the neighborhood and across the hill country of Judea, as people talked about these events.
All who heard about it reflected and asked:
“What will this child be?”
Because they recognized that the Lord’s hand was with him.
As the child grew up, he became strong in spirit, and he lived in the desert until the day when he appeared openly in Israel.
Prayers of the Faithful
Let us pray to God our Father, who has placed guides on our road leading us home, and let us say: R/ Lord, lead us to you.
– For the Church of Jesus Christ, that the Spirit of Christ may inspire our leaders with prophetic zeal to lead our people to true Christian freedom, let us pray: R/ Lord, lead us to you.
– For those whose task is to guide, such as missionaries, priests, sisters, educators in the faith and leaders of nations, that in these often discouraging times they may continue hoping in God’s strength, let us pray: R/ Lord, lead us to you.
- For those who have not yet come to know Christ, may there be teachers and prophets to guide them on the path to the Lord; let us pray: R/ Lord, lead us to you.
– For the world of today, that it may not turn a deaf ear to the voices of the prophets who plead for peace and justice for all, let us pray: R/ Lord, lead us to you.
– For all of us here, that Christ may not be among us as someone we do not know, but that he may become recognisable in the humility of our weakness and poverty, let us pray: R/ Lord, lead us to you.
God, you know us as we are. You have formed and called us even before we were born. May we serve you in all humility and prepare the way for the deeper coming of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Prayer over the Gifts
Our God and Father,
you gave to John the Baptist the eyes of faith
needed to recognise and point out Jesus
as the long-promised Saviour.
Help us to recognise your Son
in these humble signs of bread and wine.
May Jesus become greater in us
and we, smaller,
that he may become visible in us
and that in this way we may build roads
that lead to you, our living God.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
On John the Baptist’s feast, we remember how he pointed people to Jesus, the Lord. Now we rejoice that Jesus our Lord is here with us, his people.
Introduction to the Lord’s Prayer
We too have been chosen by the Father
even before we were born.
We pray to him the prayer of his children,
as given us by Jesus, his beloved Son: R/ Our Father ...
Deliver Us
Deliver us, Lord, from every evil
and liberate us from our pride that keeps us
from showing the true face of your Son.
Make your Church attentive
to the voice of your Spirit
speaking through prophets in our day;
make us attentive to the signs of the times
and to the needs and aspirations of people.
Help us to prepare with joy and hope
for the full coming among us
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom ....
Invitation to Communion
This is Jesus, the Saviour,
announced by John the Baptist
as the Lamb of God
who takes away the sin of the world.
Happy are we to be invited
to the table of the Lord. R/ Lord, I am not worthy ....
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God,
Your Son has been with us again
And yet he is not fully recognisable
in our words and in our very being.
Change our hearts,
place on our lips words of faith and courage
and let our deeds speak without fear
the language of the gospel of Jesus Christ,
Your Son and our Lord forever. R/ Amen.
Blessing
Even before we were born
Every one of us has been called by God
to be saved by Christ.
Every one of us is called today
to prepare the way of the Lord
for the people we meet.
Every one of us is called today
to point out the presence of Jesus the Lord,
by the way we live his gospel.
May God bless you for this task:
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Go in peace and bear witness
to the Good News of the Lord. R/ Thanks be to God.
REFLECTIONS
Luke 1: 57-66,80
The mouth and the finger
The veneration of John the Baptist spread throughout the world during the 4th century. An extraordinary veneration developed in his honour. Many artists have used the Baptist and his life as a theme in their artwork throughout history. It shows him wearing camel skin clothing, a belt around his waist, and holding a cross-shaped stick.
He is the patron saint of numerous dioceses; shrines and churches are dedicated to him, beginning with the “mother of all” churches, St. John Lateran, founded by Constantine. The name John is perhaps the most common in the world. Many cities and countries were named after him.
But St. John the Baptist is not a saint often approached for a miracle or intercession. For a special grace, a blessing, a favour, we seek the intercession of other popular saints, but not the Baptist! Yet, he is so popular. How do we explain this?
Perhaps one of the reasons is certainly Jesus’ praise of the Baptist: “What did you go out to the desert to see? ... To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. Amen, I say to you, among those born of women, there has been none greater than John the Baptist” (Mt 11:7-11).
Since the beginning of the fourth century, the monks of the early Church – the desert fathers - have populated the Judean desert where the Baptist spent his life. They considered him one of them, a model of ascetic life, and they spread a special devotion to the Baptist.
As artists picture John the Baptist, there are two symbols that characterize him. One is a mouth that shouts. It is the voice crying in the wilderness, calling people to conversion. This voice cannot be silenced, scolding religious leaders and those who have turned away from God and urging people to change. Without fear, he challenged the King about his adulterous relationship. He paid for it dearly, and it cost him his head.
A second image is that of the finger of the Baptist pointing to the coming Messiah. Here too, he paid dearly because his own disciples deserted him. Still, he went ahead: the one whom he announced must become greater. The solemnity of the Nativity of the Baptist invites us to be courageous in proclaiming the Gospel and constantly pointing to Jesus. We are not the centre of the Mission but Christ himself.
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Nativity of John the Baptist
Luke 1:57-66, 80
Joy, Wonder, and Gratitude
Today, the Church celebrates with joy the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist—a birth that brought light and hope to the lives of Elizabeth and Zechariah. Their story is one of trust and surprise. They were elderly, long past the age of bearing children, and yet God’s promise broke through their sorrow. Their son’s birth reminds us that nothing is impossible with God (Lk 1:37). When we are discouraged or feel forgotten, let us remember: God is still at work, often beyond what we can understand.
The Gospel tells us of a small but significant moment—when Zechariah, still mute, writes: “His name is John.” With that act of faith, his tongue is loosed and he praises God. The name John means “God is gracious”—a name not chosen by family tradition but given by divine grace. This child would grow to become the forerunner of Christ, a prophet for the poor and humble, preparing the way of the Lord.
All those who witnessed this moment were filled with wonder, awe, and gratitude. These are the signs of a living faith—a faith that recognises God’s hand in small beginnings and hidden miracles.
Let us ask ourselves: Is my faith like that? Do I feel joy when I see God at work? Am I open to His surprises? Does my heart still marvel at the gift of life, at the grace of every new day?
Let us pray to the Blessed Virgin Mary, who believed in God’s promises, to help us rediscover a faith full of joy, wonder, surprise, and gratitude. May every family become a sanctuary of life, and may we, like John, be witnesses to God’s grace in the world.
Amen.