Nothing Compares to Eternity

The historical novel entitled “The Robe” (by Lloyd C. Douglas) explores the aftermath of the crucifixion of Jesus through the experiences of the Roman military official Marcellus Gallio. In one scene, a woman named Miriam tells Marcellus the story of Zacchaeus, the tax collector whose life was changed after he had spent an hour visiting with Jesus. “But what had happened?” Marcellus asks. “Nobody knows,” Miriam replies. “Maybe He didn’t say anything at all. Perhaps He looked him squarely in the eyes until Zacchaeus saw reflected there the image of the person he was meant to be.”

Jesus has come to look us squarely in the eyes until we see, reflected there, the image of the person we were meant to be.

An astrophysicist reflecting on the age of our Universe once quipped, “sure, thirteen billion years is a long time, but it’s nothing compared to eternity.”

In today’s Gospel lesson, John the Baptist captures the image of the person Jesus was meant to be…