The 14th day of December in the year of Our Lord, 2025
Third Sunday of Advent
2 Now when John had heard in prison the works of Christ: sending two of his disciples he said to him: 3 Art thou he that art to come, or look we for another? 4 And Jesus making answer said to them: Go and relate to John what you have heard and seen. 5 The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor have the gospel preached to them.
6 And blessed is he that shall not be scandalized in me. 7 And when they went their way, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: What went you out into the desert to see? a reed shaken with the wind? 8 But what went you out to see? a man clothed in soft garments? Behold they that are clothed in soft garments, are in the houses of kings. 9 But what went you out to see? a prophet? yea I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 For this is he of whom it is written: Behold I send my angel before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee.
11 Amen I say to you, there hath not risen among them that are born of women a greater than John the Baptist: yet he that is the lesser in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
The Douay Rheims explains:
[6] “Scandalized in me”: That is, who shall not take occasion of scandal or offence from my humility, and the disgraceful death of the cross which I shall endure.
Even though our Lord speaks in metaphors here, it is one of the most stark and plain of His public statements. In fact, His audience would have been very aware of His meaning. Metaphors, similes and hypothetical questions have a long history in Jewish discourse. They are tools used to illustrate an important point. To this day, rabbis and Jewish intellectuals use these tools of logic and language to move both the mind and heart.
John the Baptist adopted extreme poverty, which is a physical sign of humility. But, he was boldly outspoken. He condemned the religious and political leaders of his time. That was what led to his imprisonment and execution. This was no reed shaken by the wind. He was strong. This was no elite or wealthy politician. This was a man who was born to die in proclaiming the Word of God. More than that, he was the messenger who would announce the Christ.
By Jesus’ words, He explained fully that He was the promised Messiah. He also explained that He would be arrested, imprisoned and executed. He knew that the majority of the Jews expected the Messiah to come in power and to establish an earthly kingdom. He was telling them that this would not be. But, salvation would be found in faith in His divinity even though all of this would happen. Saint John the Baptist spoke the truth even though all of the blessings that were expected to be bestowed on a righteous man were not given, but pain, hunger, suffering and death. His life was a foreshadowing of the one whom he proclaimed. Now, the faith of all would be shaken to the core, but those who endured until the end would be saved.
Judson Carroll is the author of several books, including his newest, A Daily Catholic Devotional, Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings January - June, 2026 It is Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FWJMD7CL
and
Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith. It is also Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNK
His podcast is The Uncensored Catholic https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-uncensored-catholic