Reflecting on the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist

Today we reflect on the events around the beheading of St. John the Baptist, looking at them through both Scripture and human behaviour.

Herod had a strange relationship with John.

He feared him, yet he loved to listen to him because John was a righteous and holy man.

But when John spoke the truth about his wrong actions, he had him arrested and finally killed (Cognitive dissonance: the inner conflict between what we know is right and what we choose to do). We often do the same: we admire a preacher when the message favours us, but when the same truth challenges our lifestyle, we resent him.

Herodias, on the other hand, wanted her marriage to Herod at all costs.

She could not bear the truth John spoke, so she projected her guilt onto him and plotted his death.

She waited for the right moment, Herod’s birthday, to carry out her plan. By using her daughter Salome, she turned her into an object of manipulation and sexual display, just to achieve her selfish desire. Sadly, Herod fell into this trap because he lacked an internal locus of control. Instead of standing by what he knew was right, he gave in to pressure from the people around him.

The Lesson about opportunities

This teaches us something important about opportunities. Herod’s birthday could have been a moment of grace, to forgive John, to change his ways, and to reconcile with God. But instead, he wasted the opportunity and used it to commit evil.

Friends, the devil is also an opportunist (1 Peter 5:8). But so are we, every opportunity for evil can also become an opportunity for good. The saints show us this clearly. Think of the Martyrs of Uganda, St. Maximilian Kolbe, Martyrs of Nigeria etc. They had the chance to save themselves by choosing compromise or silence, but instead they stood firm for God’s glory.

So today I invite you:

Choose well!

Use every opportunity for good!

God is the rewarder of good deeds, and He will never forget your faithfulness.

Please read and pray with Psalm 51 & Proverbs 29.

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