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Reading from the book of Leviticus. The
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Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Si, saying,
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"You shall count off 7 weeks of years,
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7* 7 years, which is 49 years. Then you
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shall blow the trumpet on the 10th day
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of the seventh month. On the day of
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atonement, you shall blow the trumpet
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throughout the land. You shall declare
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the 50th year holy and proclaim liberty
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to all who live in the land. It shall be
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a jubilee for you. Each of you may
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return to his own property and return to
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his family. The 50th year shall be a
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jubilee for you. You shall not sow or
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reap what grows of itself, nor gather
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the grapes of the undressed vine, for it
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is a jubilee year holy to you, but you
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may eat the produce of the fow ground.
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In that jubilee year, everyone may
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return to his own property. If you sell
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to your fellow countrymen or buy
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anything from him, you shall not defraud
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his brother according to the number of
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your brothers. Years after the jubilee,
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your fellow countrymen will set the
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purchase price for you. And according to
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the number of years of harvest, he will
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set the selling price. The more years
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remain after the jubilee, the higher the
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price of the land. The fewer the years,
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the lower its price. for he sells to you
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according to the number of harvests. Do
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not harm one another among brothers, but
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fear your God. I am the Lord your God.
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Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
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Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
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Christ according to St. Matthew. Glory
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to you, Lord. At that time, the news
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about Jesus reached the ears of Herod
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the governor. He said to his servants,
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"This is John the Baptist risen from the
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dead, and that is why miraculous powers
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are at work in him." Indeed, Herod had
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John arrested, bound, and imprisoned
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because of Herodiius, his brother
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Philip's wife. For John had said to
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Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have
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her as your wife." Herod wanted to kill
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John. But he was afraid of the people
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who regarded him as a prophet. On
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Herod's birthday, Herodiius's daughter
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danced before everyone and pleased Herod
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so much that he swore to give her
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whatever she asked. Prompted by her
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mother, she said, "Give me here on a
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platter the head of John the Baptist."
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The king was sad, but because of the
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oath he had sworn before the guests, he
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ordered her request to be granted. He
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ordered John's head to be cut off in the
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prison. Then the head was brought on a
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platter and given to the girl who took
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it to her mother. John's disciples went
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to get the body and buried it. Then they
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went and told Jesus everything. Word of
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salvation. Glory to you, Lord.
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Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
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imagine a society where every 50 years
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all debts are canceled, all slaves are
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freed, and all property returns to its
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original owners. It seems too utopian to
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be real, doesn't it? An impossible dream
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of social justice. Yet, this is exactly
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what God commands in our first reading
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today, the Jubilee Year. And it is in
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this context of divine liberation that
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we must understand the dramatic contrast
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presented in the gospel where we witness
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not the freedom but the imprisonment and
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execution of John the Baptist. Leviticus
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transports us to a world where justice
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is not just an ideal but a divine
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command. You shall proclaim liberty
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throughout the land to all its
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inhabitants. What a revolutionary
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declaration. God is establishing a
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system that prevents the excessive
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accumulation of wealth and power, that
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protects the vulnerable, that offers
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hope to the hopeless. The Jubilee year
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was not just an economic policy. It was
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a profound theological statement about
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the nature of God and his vision for
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humanity. It was a constant reminder
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that the earth belongs to the Lord, that
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we are all pilgrims and strangers in
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this world, that no one has the right to
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perpetually oppress their fellow man.
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Consider the radical beauty of this
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vision. Imagine a young man who due to
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circumstances beyond his control.
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Perhaps a drought, a disease, or a
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failed harvest was forced to sell his
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ancestral land and even become a surf to
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survive. Under the normal system, he and
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his family could remain in this
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condition for generations. But the
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Jubilee offers hope. Every 50 years,
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there is a new opportunity, a new
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beginning, a restoration. This is the
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heart of God. A God who not only loves
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justice but institutes it into his law.
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A God who understands that human
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structures left to themselves tend to
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create inequality and oppression.
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Therefore, he establishes a divine
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mechanism of correction, a periodic
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reset that restores balance and renews
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hope. But there is something even deeper
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here. The Jubilee points to a
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fundamental spiritual truth. We are all
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captives in need of deliverance. We are
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all debtors in need of forgiveness. We
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are all exiles in need of restoration.
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The physical jubilee is a shadow of the
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spiritual jubilee that God desires to
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accomplish in our lives. This is why
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centuries later, Jesus would begin his
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public ministry by reading the words of
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Isaiah. The spirit of the Lord is upon
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me because he has anointed me to preach
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good news to the poor. He has sent me to
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proclaim liberty to the captives, to
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proclaim the acceptable year of the
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Lord. Jesus was proclaiming the ultimate
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jubilee, the spiritual liberation that
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the physical jubilee only prefigured.
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Now let us turn to the gospel. And what
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a dramatic contrast we find. Instead of
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liberation, we see imprisonment. Instead
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of justice, we see royal capriciousness.
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Instead of hope, we see despair. The
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story of John the Baptist's death is a
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study in how human power when not
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subject to God's will can become
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destructive and oppressive. Herod
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Antipus, the tetrarch of Galilee, had
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married Herodiius, the wife of his
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brother Philillip. According to Jewish
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law, this was adultery and incest. John
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the Baptist, true to his prophetic
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calling, courageously confronted Herod.
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It is not lawful for you to have her as
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your wife. Here we see the stark
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contrast between two types of authority.
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God's authority manifested in the
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Jubilee which liberates and restores and
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corrupt human authority represented by
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Herod which oppresses and destroys. John
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the Baptist represents those who choose
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the former even at the cost of their
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lives. Herodiius personifies wounded
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pride and revenge. She cannot tolerate
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being confronted with the truth about
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her situation. And so she manipulates
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circumstances to get what she wants.
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Jon's head on a platter. What a horrific
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image of perverted justice. And Herod,
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Herod is tragically a divided man. Mark
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tells us that he respected John, knowing
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him to be a righteous and holy man, and
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he protected him. When he heard him, he
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was greatly perplexed. Yet he loved to
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listen to him. What a moving description
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of a heart in conflict. Herod recognizes
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the truth in John but lacks the courage
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to fully embrace it. This is a situation
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many of us can relate to. How often do
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we hear God's voice through scripture,
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through our conscience, through godly
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counselors, and are greatly perplexed
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but lack the courage to act? How often
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do we know what is right but allow fear,
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pride, or social pressure to prevent us
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from doing what we should? Herod's
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birthday party becomes the setting for
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an avoidable tragedy. Herodiius's
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daughter dances for the guests, and
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Herod, in a moment of bravado and
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perhaps intoxicated by the wine and
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festive atmosphere, makes a reckless
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oath. Ask me for anything you wish and I
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will give it to you, even half my
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kingdom. What a pivotal moment. Herod
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could have used his power for good, to
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promote justice, to protect the
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innocent. Instead, his recklessness
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opens the door to evil. And when the
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young woman, instructed by her mother,
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asks for the head of John the Baptist,
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Herod finds himself bound by his own
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oath. The king was greatly grieved,
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Matthew tells us. But even in his grief,
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he chooses to preserve his reputation
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before the guests rather than do what is
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right. He fears the opinion of men more
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than the judgment of God. My dear
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brothers and sisters, what powerful
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lessons these readings offer us. First,
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they remind us that God is a God of
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liberation. Just as he instituted the
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Jubilee to free the physically
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oppressed, he sent Jesus to free us
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spiritually. Each of us can experience
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our own personal jubilee where our
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spiritual debts are canceled, our
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bondage to sin is broken, and our
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inheritance as children of God is
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restored. Second, they challenge us to
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examine how we use any authority or
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influence we may have. We are called to
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be like the Jubilee, agents of
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liberation, justice, and restoration. or
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do we risk being like Herod, using our
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power to oppress or at best being
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paralyzed by moral cowardice. Third,
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they inspire us with the example of John
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the Baptist. Here was a man who chose to
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speak the truth and die rather than to
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commit and live. He understood that some
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things are more important than physical
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life. Integrity, faithfulness to God,
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witnessing to the truth. What a
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challenge this poses to us in our daily
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lives. We constantly face moments where
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we must choose between what is
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convenient and what is right, between
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what is popular and what is true. John
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the Baptist shows us that it is possible
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to live and die with integrity even in
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the face of the fiercest opposition.
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Finally, these readings invite us to
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reflect on our own need for liberation.
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What are the prisons in our lives from
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which we need to be freed? Perhaps they
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are addictions that control us, toxic
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relationships that diminish us, or
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negative thought patterns that limit us.
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The jubilee that God offers is not just
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historical. It is present and personal.
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And what are the prisons that we may be
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imposing on others, perhaps through our
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judgmental attitudes, our refusal to
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forgive, or our reluctance to offer
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second chances. The spirit of Jubilee
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calls us to be agents of liberation in
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the lives of others. Just as God has
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been in our own. Dear friends, today we
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are faced with a clear choice. We can
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choose the path of jubilee, liberation,
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justice, restoration, integrity, or we
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can settle for Herod's path. Moral
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compromise, cowardice, and oppression.
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May we have the courage of John the
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Baptist to speak the truth even when it
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is difficult. May we have God's wisdom
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to use whatever authority we have to
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liberate and not to oppress. And may we
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personally experience the divine jubilee
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where our chains are broken, our debts
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are forgiven, and our heavenly
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inheritance is restored. For this is the
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gospel we proclaim that in Jesus Christ
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the ultimate jubilee has been
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proclaimed. Freedom is available,
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restoration is possible, hope is real.
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May the Lord bless us and keep us. May
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he make his face shine upon us and grant
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us his peace today, tomorrow, and
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St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
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battle. Be our protection against the
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wickedness and snares of the devil. May
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God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do
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thou, O prince of the heavenly host, by
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the power of God, cast into hell Satan
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and all the evil spirits who prowl
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throughout the world seeking the ruin of
