Sun 17 Jan 9:30am | 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Christmas has passed and a period of 'ordinary time' has begun. In today's Gospel, it is about twenty-eight years later that we now find ourselves - the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. The first disciples are invited to Come and See. How do we respond to this invitation? How do we hear this call in 2021?

“Look, there is the Lamb of God”. With these words from today's Gospel, John the Baptist fulfills his vocation which, as we heard during the Advent season, was to prepare a Way for the Lord, to lead people to the Messiah and, in those famous words of the Baptist, to “grow smaller so that he, Jesus, might grow greater”.

All three readings today issue a call to those who wish to lead God-centred lives.The first reading from the book of Samuel tells of Samuel responding to the call of God to be His servant - "Speak Lord, your servant is listening." St. Paul's epistle to the Corinthians is a passionate call for morality, and St. John's Gospel story tells how the baptism of Jesus was a decisive turning-point in His life, just as it was a transition for the disciples as they answered the invitation - "Come and See."

As we set out on a new year together as the community of the disciples of Jesus here at Corpus Christi Parish, let us take to heart John the Baptist’s words about Jesus:Look there is the Lamb of God – go to him, follow him and let him give you life.