Today is my "name day" (along with many other more important things). We sometimes feel so "familiar" with the gospel accounts of John the Baptist that we can forget the singular role he plays in the history of salvation. He is the prophet heralding the coming of the Messiah - in history, in the Sacred Scriptures, and in the "rhythm" of liturgical life.
"There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world" (John 1:6-9).
Here is an excerpt from the Preface to the Eucharistic Prayer in the Roman Rite, which sums up his ministry from his joyful testimony in his mother's womb to his birth, his prophetic testimony, his place in the "theophany" of Christ's baptism in the Jordan, and his martyrdom:
