A meditation preached on June 24, 2026 at Hawthorn School for Girls on the solemnity of John the Baptist. From the very womb of his elderly mother, John was inundated by the Holy Spirit so as to prepare the manifestation of Jesus to the people.  He grew and lived in the desert.  He was preparing himself for his mission through solitude and prayer. Isaiah 40, 1-5: A voice of one crying in the desert. Prepare the way for the Lord.

All the prophets before him anticipated the Messiah; John actually points Him out directly (“Behold the Lamb of God”)

That can sometimes be your life, a voice crying out in the desert of secularism, immoral conduct, ideologies that go against nature, and the dignity of man. It ends up with strange fabrications, rejection of God, and distortion of the faith. As Saint Josemaria said: “We certainly need to convert anew, to be more fully loyal and more deeply humble, so that our selfishness decreases and Christ can grow in us. For illum oportet crescere, me autem minui, “he must increase and I must decrease.” (Christ is Passing By, no. 58)