Baptism of the Lord, B January 10, 2021
Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette
“I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice.” Who doesn’t want that? Those who believe that Biden was lawfully elected want the victory of justice in having him peacefully take office. Those who believe the election was stolen want the victory of justice in having it overturned or redone. And both sides want the justice of proper punishments for those that they believe broke the law or violated the principles of our nation and the common good.
The desire is good and human. God would not inspire Isaiah to speak of justice three times in this one short passage if he did not intend to stir up that desire. But what is justice? It is “to give everyone his or her rightful due.” Not as some abstract, impersonal force. It requires a person to act justly towards other people, to form the habit, the virtue of treating others as they ought to be treated. And there’s the problem, how do others deserve to be treated? Which side is the right side?
Ask the one who made us all, the Trinity. “Let us make man in our image.” Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all reveal themselves in this moment, and they do so to inaugurate that mission of Justice prophesied by Isaiah and remembered by St. Peter: “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power. He went about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”
And which side was Jesus on? Ask St. Peter who was there the entire time. “God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.” God is on the side of humanity against the devil. That battle cuts across every division of nation, race, and political party. For God the victory of justice doesn’t start with laws and elections and court battles, it starts with the human soul. Jesus is victorious in bringing justice precisely by being brutally executed after a faulty election rigged by rich and powerful leaders.
After he comes back from the dead, he doesn’t even waste his breath talking about that illegal vote for Barabbas. He tells his apostles to go out and start where he started: with baptism. He sends them out to do what he did, to preach, teach, heal, serve, and then be killed. His Church for the first few hundred years remained illegal and persecuted. When the Roman Empire finally became Christian, it wasn’t because a bunch of Christians overthrew a faulty government. It was because, while the world was busy tearing itself apart, Christians were evangelizing person to person, home to home. It wasn’t some powerful, clever Christian politicians who changed society. It was God himself who gave a vision to Constantine promising victory if he honored the cross. Still, by the time Constantine made Christianity legal, a significant percentage of the population was already Christian. Their faithfulness caused political change, not the other way around.
And even after Christianity became the official religion of the empire, the battle for justice continued. Political success does not mean missionary success. Every time the two are confused, corruption grows like a cancer, often turning some leaders of the Church into the biggest obstacles to real justice. By relying on force or manipulation, they forget what Isaiah said the Messiah does not do: “not crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard in the street. A bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench.”
As we gaze with horror and confusion at our country’s turmoil, we are right to yearn for the victory of justice. Yet, we must learn both from our past and from the model of Christ himself how that victory is won and who that victory is against. Yes, we must continue to fight for the unborn, for the immigrant, for fair wages, for accessible healthcare, for an end to racism, for religious freedom, for more effective court systems, and for a better education for our children. But none of those things, none of them, are what Jesus came for. They are, at best, by-products of his mission.
He came for souls. Isaiah summed up the Messiah’s establishment of justice: “the coastlands will wait for his teaching.” We’re not talking about having a bible study at the point – though that’s not a bad idea. We’re talking about proclaiming the Gospel to the whole world. Almost 70% of the world does not know Jesus and some of them live here.
They need the Gospel of salvation from sin and victory over death, not the gospel of a better America. I love our country. My brothers are veterans. But God shows no partiality. The illegal immigrant who spends his life evangelizing is far more pleasing to God than the comfortable citizen who never introduces another person to Jesus. We are right to love our country. We are right to mourn when evil policies prevail. But our first response cannot be political. It must be evangelical. When God looks upon Jesus, he does not say “you are my beloved Israelite,” but “my beloved son.”
This, then, is the victory of Justice: that every person be treated as a son or daughter of God. This means that they learn the truth. The truth about the election is not meaningless, but it is not the truth that saves. If you are in a position to directly prove some injustice, then do so. But don’t waste your credibility and energy fighting for this or that theory about what happened over there somewhere because you may not have any credibility left to “heal those oppressed by the devil” in their sin.
I’ve spent the past two months preaching again and again on the importance of prayer, scripture, going to confession and Mass, and giving to the poor and I urge you to these once again. I want us to remember who we are and to grow in holiness and unity. But we cannot stay turned inward. We must evangelize. Today marks the beginning of Christ’s public mission. Let it mark also the renewal of our public mission. Let the fragility of our country motivate us to proclaim the good news of the true home that cannot be destroyed. Be humble. Speak of Jesus. Pray with people in person. Love and forgive your enemies.
The victory of justice is not founded on the belief in our country or any other – good as it they may be. It is founded on the belief that God really has torn open the heavens and come down to give each and every person the chance to hear those blessed words “you are my beloved son; with you I am well pleased.”