John the Baptist

The name of the prophet heralding the coming of the messiah reminds me of Wales. My sister in law lives there and she has a friend who goes by John Rockclimber and John Shop. People in town go by names like that. They are distinguished by their vocation or avocation. John the Baptist is the subject of today's gospel and sadly, Matthew's verses tell of his cruel cruel death. What did John do to deserve this end? but insist that Herod shouldn't sleep with his brother's wife. John was what I'd call an activist. He was on the front lines, baptizing and pointing to the One he believed was the messiah. .. There is a tapestry of John that I came upon in St. John the Baptist's Catholic Church in Napa last fall. Click on the picture and enlarge it and see John's hands. Gaze on his face and then his hands. What do they say to you? This image struck me powerfully! Until I'd seen this artist's vision of the man, I'd been kind of afraid of John the Baptist. His ascetic lifestyle, living in the desert, eating locusts and honey, preaching the coming of the kingdom weirded me out...... but where would we be without him? This tapestry reflects what I believe John would want us to remember about him... He was very very clear about what was true and how important it was to preach it.