Homily

“The next day John again was standing.” This is how the Gospel we heard starts. The epiphanies, the manifestations of the Lord, are over; and yet John, the man who waited, who dreamed, who sought a new world, is still there on the banks of the Jordan. John goes deep in his path; he does not resign nor does he reduce Christmas to a vague feeling that leaves life as it is. The disciple is an earthly person, at home in every country and familiar with everyone. This is the meaning of “standing” on the bank of the river. John stood there to wait for a new world. Disciples, indeed, are also heavenly persons: they await the kingdom of God. They do not go away, do not flee and are not hopeless for they know that the kingdom will manifest itself where they live. John did not seek new sensations or a virtual world. He did not view the world with a cynical heart, as one without hope does. He continued to wait for the kingdom of God trying to change his heart and making it more attentive to God’s signs. And it was exactly when he was on the-river banks that he saw Jesus pass by. He fixed his gaze on him; he recognized him and pointed him out to others: “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” With the eyes of his heart, John scanned the signs of a new world. And behold he saw Jesus pass. His eyes, trained to seek God’s signs, recognized God’s envoy and said to the bystanders: “Look, here is the lamb of God!” He pointed to the meek one, whose humanity makes God’s face concrete. John pointed to the lamb that lets himself be led to the slaughter to defeat evil. He pointed to the one who satisfies the longing for happiness, for love, for healing, for peace, for the end of division.
For Andrew and John it is the Baptist who pointed out to the Lord, the one they really needed and could give meaning to their life. They began to follow him, though at a distance. We do not know whether Jesus immediately became aware of them; but it is certain that at one point he turned back and asked, “What are you looking for?” Here again God takes the initiative; Jesus turns and “sees” the two disciples. In the style of John the evangelist, the use of the verb “to see”? around which he seems to organize the whole scene? means that the relationships between several individuals take place in direct, immediate contact: John “watched Jesus;” then Jesus “turned and saw” the two disciples and invited them to “Come and see;” they followed after him and “saw where he was staying;” and finally the Teacher “looked at” Peter and gave him a new name, a new destiny.
“To see,” means to go down into another’s heart and at the same time to let oneself be scrutinized in one’s own; “to see” is to understand and be understood. It is true that the initiative comes from God, but in the heart of the two disciples there is not a vacuum or a calm and greedy satisfaction with things as they have always been. The two had not remained in Galilee, in their land or city, to be fishermen as they had always been. In their heart was the desire for a new life for themselves and for others. And this desire, this need, even if unexpressed, is taken up by Jesus’ question, “What are you looking for?” And they reply, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” The need for a “teacher” to follow and of a “house” in which to live is at the heart of their search. But this question also arises from men and women today in a very particular way: it is in fact rare to find “teachers” of life, it is difficult to find one who really loves you, it is increasingly frequent to feel uprooted and without a true community which receives and accompanies us.
Even our cities seem to be built in such a way as to make a life of solidarity and community difficult if not impossible. The utilitarian and consumerist mentality, the race toward individual or group well-being, defeat everyone, leave us deeply lonely, orphans, in rivalry with one another. There is an absence of “fathers,” “mothers,” “teachers,” points of reference, life models. In this sense we have all become poorer and more alone. To whom can we go in order to learn how to live? Who can show us, with words and above all with example, what it is worthwhile living for? One is not saved alone. Each of us needs help: Samuel was helped by Eli the priest; Andrew by the Baptist and Peter by his brother Andrew. We too need a priest, a brother, and a sister, someone to help us and accompany us in our religious and human journey.
To the request of the two disciples, Jesus responds, “Come and see.” The young prophet from Nazareth does not delay in explaining; in fact he does not have a doctrine to convey but a life to communicate. This is why he immediately proposes a concrete experience, we could say a friendship that can be touched and seen. The evangelist notes that the two “came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.” Without doubt, they stayed in Jesus’ house; but what really counted was the fact that the two disciples took root in Jesus’ company: they entered into communion with him, and were transformed. To remain with Jesus does not close off, block or restrict horizons; on the contrary, it pushes one to renounce one’s individualism, to overcome provincialism and one’s own narrow-mindedness in order to announce to everyone the fascinating discovery of the one who is infinitely greater than we are, the Messiah. The life of the two disciples changes. The encounter with Jesus creates a new brotherly bond between Andrew and Peter. “We have found the Messiah,” Andrew says with joy. He too begins to speak like John, showing that Jesus is present. The word must be communicated, otherwise it is lost. A light is not lit to be put under a bushel. Once we find it, it makes us say: I have found the future, meaning, hope. I found not only what I was looking for, but much more than I even desired! Let us ask the Lord to communicate his hope with passion to those seeking a future and salvation, and let us thank him because he continues to give us his company.