“John tried to prevent him [Jesus]…Then he [Saint John the Baptist] allowed him”

This lesson is part 2 of 2, for part 1 click here

The second step in docility is to know our enemy, the evil one, who wants to prevent us from getting to heaven.  We pray in the Our Father, “lead us not into temptation and deliver us from the evil one” [1] The Sacrament of Baptism is the answer to this petition.  In the Rite of Baptism, we pray “Depart from him, unclean spirit, and give place to the Holy Spirit, the consoler…So live that you will indeed be a temple of God.” [2]
 
We also proclaim the following vows:
Priest: Do you renounce Satan? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do
Priest: And all of his works? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do
Priest: And all his empty promises?  Sponsor/Catechumen: I do
Priest: Do you believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth? 
Sponsor/Catechumen: I do believe. 
Priest: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, Who was born and Who suffered?
Sponsor/Catechumen: I do believe. 
Priest: Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting?
Sponsor/Catechumen: I do believe.
 
“Thanks to the Sacrament of Baptism you have been turned into a temple of the Holy Spirit, says Leo the Great.  Don’t ever let it happen, he exhorts us, that you drive away so noble a guest by your evil deeds, or ever again submit to the power of the demon:  for the price you were bought with is the blood of Christ.” [3]  Through our baptism Satan has to flee.  The Divine Trinity becomes the guests in our body, which through baptism is made a temple of God.  What a great honor, an honor we must cherish and never take for granted.  We have been given free will and can choose to “drive away” the divine life within us.  This is called mortal sin. Mortal sin is a “grave infraction of the law of God that destroys the divine life in the soul of the sinner, constituting a turn away from God.” [4]  It must be a primary concern of ours to never drive away this most noble guest.

How is it that we can destroy our enemy Satan? We can only destroy our enemy through Jesus Christ. Saint Maximus the Confessor says, “Here is the reason why God became a perfect man, changing nothing of human nature, except to take away sin (which was never natural anyway). His flesh was set before that voracious, gaping dragon as bait to provoke him: flesh that would be deadly for the dragon, for it would utterly destroy him by the power of the Godhead hidden within it. For human nature, however, his flesh was to be a remedy since the power of the Godhead in it would restore human nature to its original grace. Just as the devil had poisoned the tree of knowledge and spoiled our nature by its taste, so too, in presuming to devour the Lord’s flesh he himself is corrupted and is completely destroyed by the power of the Godhead hidden in it.” [5]

Saint Maximus describes for us what sounds like an epic cartoon between good and evil. God becomes flesh. The flesh is a bait or disguise to entice the dragon. The flesh doesn’t appear as God, but as a child in a manger, a mere man, and finally a corpus on a cross. Hidden deep within this “flesh” is the Godhead or divinity, which is deadly poison to the dragon. If a person wants to poison another, they do so by putting poison in something desirable. The enemy of Saint Benedict tried twice to poison him, once by placing poison in his wine, and a second time by placing poison in a cake. Satan desires to destroy and devour man “flesh”, therefore God becomes man, God becomes the bait. Satan takes the bait, devouring Jesus through crucifixion. However in devouring Jesus through the crucifixion, Satan is poisoned and defeated. It is the Godhead (divinity) within the flesh hanging on the Cross that kills Satan. For man, the Godhead is not poison, but rather a remedy or medicine. It is the God within the flesh hanging on the Cross that gives man life; this flesh is the fruit of the Tree of Life. It brings death to Satan and life to man. The very flesh that we receive in the Eucharist contains the saving medicine, and is given at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Search: Three Battles
 
The third step in docility is to remain faithful to our vows.  All those who are baptized, whether as an infant or an adult, must constantly be reminded and be faithful to the vows that were taken in Baptism.  When we dip our hand in holy water, we should remember the waters of our own baptism.  It is not enough to take vows; vows must be lived out.  It is not enough for a priest or a husband and wife to simply take vows; they must remain faithful.  We pray during this feast, “Keep us, your children born of water and the Spirit, faithful to our calling” [6]
 
How can we be faithful to our calling?  We must remember that we are children and thus be obedient to God, Our Father.  We must remember that we are a new creation, born of water, and thus live accordingly.  We must remember that we are born of Spirit, and thus must look for the activity and inspiration of the Holy Spirit to direct the thoughts and actions of our life.  “The Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses.” [7] Witness means martyr, the ultimate test of our docility is whether or not we are willing to die for Christ.

How did both Saints John the Baptist and Peter show the ultimate sign of docility?  Saint John the Baptist says to Jesus, “I ought to be baptized by you”.  “We should also add: and for you, for John is to be baptized in blood” [8].  Saint John shortly after baptizing Jesus was martyred for his faith.  He was completely open to the will of God.  Saint John first protested, Jesus insisted and Saint John remained docile even unto death.  During the Last Supper, when Jesus humbled himself to wash the feet of Saint Peter, Saint Peter first protested, Jesus insisted and Saint Peter remained docile.  Saint Peter responded to Jesus, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head.” [9] Saint Peter who would later be martyred being crucified upside down was truly washed clean by the blood of the lamb, the blood of martyrdom.  The blood would have literally started at his feet and then flowed down to his hands and finally his head.  We must be “washed clean like Peter, not only by the washing of his feet.” [10]  The faithful, in the example of St. John and St. Peter must not only accept baptism by water, but also be ready to accept baptism by blood if necessary
 
What is the most important day of your life?  “In Baptism we receive faith and grace.  The day we were baptized was the most important day of our lives.  Just as the parched land does not yield its fruit if it does not get water, so also we who were like dried sticks can produce fruits of life only if we receive freely the gentle and abundant rainfall of grace from on high (St. Ireanaeus).  Before we received baptism we were outside the locked gates of Paradise, unable to bring forth the slightest supernatural fruit.” [11]
 
Story – Clovis [12]
In the Fifth century, Clovis, the barbarian King of the Franks and first King of what would become France, married a Burgundian princess, St. Clotilda, who was a fervent Catholic.  She prayed for him and gave him good example.  Finally toward the end of the century, he accepted the Faith.  It is said that, during this instruction, when he heard of the Crucifixion, he cried out: “Oh, if only I had been there with my Franks!”  Clovis was converted from paganism and he and three thousand of his army were baptized on the same day.  How do both St. Clotilda and Clovis show the virtue of docility?  Clotilda is open by marrying, teaching, praying for and being a good example to her pagan husband.  Clovis is open to being taught a new faith and as a King humbling himself to receive Christ the King.  What is the fruit of their docility?  Clotilda is blessed with having her husband convert and unite with her in the truth faith.  Clovis by his kingly example encourages three thousand of his men to be baptized and join him in the true faith.  Through his obedience Catholic France, who is called the eldest daughter of the Church is born.
 
The virtue of docility is best seen in the analogy of clay and the potter.  It is God that gives this analogy to the prophet Jeremiah who speaks it to the people of Israel and to us.  “Then the word of the Lord came to me: ‘O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done?  Says the Lord.  Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.’” [13]
 
What are examples in our life of when we have practiced docility?  When have we been like clay in the hands of God, the potter?  What is the fruit that came from our decision to be docile?

[1] Matthew 6:13
[2] Rite of Baptism; Roman Ritual
[3] Fr. Francis Fernandez; In Conversation with God; Vol. 1; 51.1
[4] Catechism of the Catholic Church; Glossary; page 889
[5] Saint Maximus the Confessor; Office of Readings (Wednesday – from January 2 to Epiphnay)
[6] Opening Prayer in this Link to Liturgy packet
[7] Acts 1:8
[8] Spiritual Reading in this Link to Liturgy packet
[9] John 13:9
[10] Spiritual Reading in this Link to Liturgy packet
[11] Fr. Francis Fernandez; In Conversation with God; Vol. 1; 51.1
[12] Warren Carroll; 2000 Years of Christianity
[13] Jeremiah 18:5-6