THROUGH UNTRUE
In today’s gospel reading, John the Baptist sent his disciples to Jesus with this question: “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” (Matthew 11:2).
This is surprising. John seemed to have known Jesus even before the latter was born. When his mother, Elizabeth, saw Mary who was pregnant with Jesus, she exclaimed: “Behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy” (Luke 1:44). At the Jordan River, John singled out Jesus and emphatically proclaimed: “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!” (John 1:29).
So, why did John ask Jesus: “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Like the Jews during his time, John longed for a messiah who would free the Jews from Roman domination and bring everlasting peace and justice to Israel. But it appeared that Jesus did not fit the bill. He did not come as a warrior king. Instead, he preached forgiveness and showed compassion to the least, the last, the lowly, and the lost. He came as a suffering servant who will lay down his life for all.
John must have been disappointed. He feared that everything he had done was a mistake.
This story somewhat consoles us who struggle daily to maintain our faith. John the Baptist, whom Jesus described as “the greatest among all men born of a woman” (Matthew 11:11) was himself afflicted with doubts and confusion. The suffering we endure due to unexpected trials is nothing compared to the “dark nights of the soul” that saints and other spiritual giants have experienced.
A contemporary example is Mother Teresa who made this startling confession in her biography “Come Be My Light:” “My darkness is so great that I really do not see – neither with my mind nor with my reason. The place of God in my soul is blank. There is no God in me. When the pain of longing is so great, I just long for God. But what I feel is, He does not want me. He is not there.” For almost 50 years, Mother Teresa lived in wretched emptiness and darkness that would have brought a lesser person to despair. What gave her the inner strength to carry on with her difficult apostolate, even when she felt deeply God’s absence? She once remarked: “My vocation is not to be successful but to be faithful.” She strongly believed that Jesus would never ask her not to feel afraid, abandoned, and rejected. He simply asked her to be faithful no matter what she felt.
That is precisely how Jesus answered the question of John: “Blessed is the one who takes no offense at me” (Matthew 11:6). Indeed, blessed are we who continue to have faith in Jesus, even if He does not fit our idea of justice, fair play, and love.
Come to think of it, many of us want a God who answers prayers according to our specifications. We want Him to soothe our guilt and wash away our sins; give us bread when we are hungry, heal us when we are sick, punish evildoers and protect the innocent. We want a useful god who is there at our beck and call. No wonder, many of us are disappointed.
When you are tempted to look for another god, remember Jesus’s question to His doubting apostles: “Will you also go away?” (John 6:66). Peter’s answer helps us resist the temptation to deny Him: “Lord, to whom else shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). The words of one contemporary song express it better:
“Anywhere you are
Is where I want to go.
You are my only address.
My heart follows wherever you go.
When I'm with you, I'm home.”