Dear Parishioners,

Jesus the Lamb of God

The presentation of Jesus as ‘the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world’ makes allusions to the Easter lamb on the occasion of the liberation of Egypt and also to the customary sacrifices of lambs in the Temple of Jerusalem for the expiation of sins. To appreciate Jesus better as the Lamb of God, we must consider the situation of humanity before the coming of Jesus: the human race was under the slavery of sin; had no power to liberate itself; and could not hope for a better future. In short, humanity was dead. The advent of Jesus gave new hope to humanity; by his life, he renewed the vigor of humanity, and by his death, he gave new life to humanity and brought it back to its original splendor.

The Lamb of God renews the world

Jesus continues to liberate us even today, because the present world, is far from that which it ought to be. There is rampant exploitation, violence, marginalization; there is lack of dialogue, sensitivity and forgiveness in the family; consumerism has reached its peak; craze for money justifies every heinous act; God seems to have a minor role in society today. Who can liberate us from these fetters? Jesus is the answer! Jesus is the source of joy, victory, peace and hope. Jesus can renew us and He wants to do it. But we must give him a chance; we must give him space in society; we must give him space in our personal lives.

Be witnesses of Christian faith

John the Baptist testifies to Jesus saying, “Here is the Lamb of God”; He humbled himself before Jesus saying, “After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me”; He proves the presence of the Spirit coming upon Jesus saying, “I saw the Spirit descending and it remained on him”. Humility and commitment to the God-given tasks, made John the Baptist ‘the greatest born of woman’. Sharing his Jesus-experience made him a great witness of the Son of God. Preparing the way of the Lord made him the greatest precursor of Jesus.

The figure of John the Baptist reminds us of the nobility of our vocation and our obligation to be faithful to it. Like John, we must recognize the redeeming role of Jesus in history and especially in our personal lives; like John, we must accept the greatness of Jesus as one who has the power to save us from death; and like John we must become worthy witnesses of Jesus. The name “Christian” is not merely a name, but it is a way of life. The way of life of a Christian requires that one gives witness to Jesus through one’s words and actions. The healing, preaching and teaching ministry of Jesus is to be carried out today by his followers called Christians.