JOHN, THE VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS

II SUNDAY OF ADVENT - Luke 3:1-6

In order to write his gospel, Luke searched carefully (Lk 1:3), so that he would transmit the truth and not some fairy tales. For us to understand that he is narrating something that truly happened, he gives us the narratives historical setting. Presenting John the Baptist and his prophetic ministry, he tells us that John started his preaching “in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign” (Lk 3:1). Tiberius was the Roman emperor, as his rule was exercised in Judea by the governor Pontius Pilate, while Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, was the tetrarch of Galilee, and his half-brother Philip “tetrarch of the lands of Ituraea and Trachonitis”. Luke gives us also the names of the religious authorities: Annas and Caiaphas. They would play a big role in Jesus’ passion and death. With this kind of introduction to the ministry of John, which immediately preceded the ministry of Jesus, Luke makes it clear that he is not giving us myths, but historical facts. If we read the Bible attentively, we can easily discover that history has played a major role in God’s revelation, since he always presented himself as the one who is always present and always acts in history. Our faith has an essential historical dimension because our God is present and active in human history and this reaches its summit in the incarnation.

After the historical introduction, Luke presents John the Baptist, as the voice from the wilderness, which cries out as a lonely voice that finally reaches the ears and hearts of many. John is the prophet of the desert, whose life was a protest against the status quo of the religious institution and the religious life in Judea. His message was a call to repentance for all those who were ready to listen. At the same time, his words were full of hope, because he announced that the coming of the Lord was at hand.

John’s message is repeated today. It comes as a protest and a denunciation, being thus a call to repentance: “Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.” If we do so, then “all mankind shall see the salvation of God.”