Dom Prior Gregory, Sunday 2 A, 15 January 2023

Today we hear the fulfilment of the prophecy of the priest Zechariah that the little child,
his son John, would bring knowledge of salvation to Israel. John proclaims Jesus ‘Lamb of
God’, Son of God, the one on whom the Spirit abides as a permanent possession. John
himself echoed his father’s prophecy, since the purpose of his ministry was to make the
Messiah known to Israel.
The salvation for which the world had waited so long is not given in some partial and
fleeting way as it was, for instance, in the time of the Judges when, from time to time, the
land had rest for forty years. Now the Saviour is given as a covenant to the nations: people
everywhere will call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. Salvation
is not given to a few tribes, nor merely to a single nation: God’s gift of salvation reaches to
the ends of the earth. The true Lamb of God takes away the sins of the world. When his
hour comes he sheds his blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant so that sins may
be forgiven.
The coming of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove reminds us of the covenant God
made with Noah: the wrath of God would not again destroy mankind from the face of the
earth. God’s power is now revealed in a new and eternal covenant of love.. The Son of
God did indeed exist before the Baptist: he has now taken our human nature and the
eternal Son of God is made man for us in Jesus Christ who is given as a covenant to the
nations. The Son of God, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, being now both true
God and true man, is the unbreakable bond that binds the human race to God eternally.
The power of our Saviour was proclaimed in the Gospel at Mass on Friday. The episode
of the paralytic being lowered through a hole made in the roof of the house where Jesus
was teaching has its picturesque and amusing side. That sure helps to engrave it on our
hearts. Jesus immediately perceived the strength of the faith of these four healthy men and
their disabled friend: it was for them that he had come, for such people as these he would
suffer. At once he announced: Your sins are forgiven. The scribes objected that Jesus was
taking on himself a divine prerogative, so Jesus worked the miracle of healing to show that
he did indeed have the authority to forgive sins. Arise and walk. He healed so that we may
know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins. We see in this incident the
wisdom of our divine teacher presenting us with a way to faith through words confirmed
by deeds which are intrinsically bound together. The miracle bears out the doctrine and the
reality, the spiritual transformation, is signified by the words: Your sins are forgiven.
On this Peace Sunday it is our great joy to give thanks for the gift of faith by which we
know Our Lord Jesus Christ, who has sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of
sins. Our Bishop, Philip, is encouraging us to pray ever more fervently to the Holy Spirit
for our dioceses and for peace in the world. Peace must always begin in our own hearts
and in our homes. Peace is the fruit of conversion. It is dependent on asking, granting and
receiving forgiveness. It needs the words of courtesy, please, I am sorry, and thank you to
be on our lips often. It needs us to be ready to serve one another. This is how we attain to
the unity of mind and heart for which we pray. We need the grace of the Eucharist and of
regular confession. Let us open our hearts to the joy of the Holy Spirit.