Today’s Gospel Text: At
that time Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus; 2 and he said to his
servants, "This is John the Baptist, he has been raised from the dead;
that is why these powers are at work in him." 3 For
Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison, for the sake of
Hero'di-as, his brother Philip's wife; 4 because
John said to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." 5 And though he wanted to
put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet. 6 But when Herod's birthday
came, the daughter of Hero'di-as danced before the company, and pleased Herod, 7 so that he promised with
an oath to give her whatever she might ask. 8 Prompted
by her mother, she said, "Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a
platter." 9 And the king was sorry;
but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given; 10 he sent and had John
beheaded in the prison, 11 and his head was brought
on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. 12 And his disciples came and
took the body and buried it; and they went and told Jesus. Matt 14:1-12
Reflection: There are various kinds of knowledge and one of
them is the speculative type which we see in the statement of Herod, the
Tetrarch. But the motive for such speculative expressions are interesting:
"This is John the
Baptist, he has been raised from the dead; that is why these powers are at work
in him."
When
a man in authority speaks, then even the goats value it, no matter how foolish
the statements. We do not know how many of those servants, of his, believed in him
and his statement.
But
the most intriguing part of this statement is that Herod, who had John the
Baptist beheaded, seems to have had no remorse for what he had done.
Was
it a way of seeking legitimacy for his cruel action, in which he had John the
Baptist executed?
Hence, the most intriguing element we learn from this is this: the hardened conscience
of those who hold power, how easily they fall prey to the temptation of playing
God, by thinking that they are above board when it comes to matters of morality
and conscience.
We
may have one man under us or many but the obligation to live by our conscience
formed constantly in God’s word should be an essential part of our lives.
If
we still lack that wisdom to handle things, then we have God’s gift of the Holy
Spirit of wisdom, who can enable us to walk wisely, lest we abuse the power and
position that we hold on to.
Prayer: Lord,
help me to serve you humbly, respecting each one as creatures made in your
image and likeness.
DD = Dedicated
Discipleship: Come grow
in the Lord with us
