Homily Two on the Beheading of John the Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord
By Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov
(Delivered in 1962)
By Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov
(Delivered in 1962)
In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit!
Dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, today the Church of Christ, and we with it, remember with sorrow a sad event from our sacred history – the beheading of the greatest Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord, John. This tragic event is conveyed to us by the Gospel read today in the following words: "At that time, Herod the King heard about the fame of Jesus, for his name had become known. He said, 'John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; that is why these powers are at work in him.' But others said, 'It is Elijah.' And others said, 'It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.' But when Herod heard of it he said, 'John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.' For Herod had sent and seized John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; because he had married her. For John said to Herod, 'It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.' And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he was much perplexed; and yet he heard him gladly. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and the leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias' daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, 'Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will grant it.' And he vowed to her, 'Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.' And she went out, and said to her mother, 'What shall I ask?' And she said, 'The head of John the baptizer.' And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and asked, saying, 'I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.' And the king was exceedingly sorry; but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard and gave orders to bring his head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb" (Mark 6:17–29).
As you see, today's Gospel reproduces before us the mournful picture of the death of the greatest Prophet, recognized by the Savior Himself as the greatest of all those born of women. Everything in this picture bears the imprint of something terrible, indescribable. This brilliant feast, this noisy applause of the feasters, this dance full of madness - and then suddenly this head, steaming with warm blood, brought on a platter, given by the executioner to the young girl, who, in turn, gives it to her mother. This hellish mixture of hatred and mad joy, dancing and murder, blood and lust - all this makes the heart tremble and fills it with horror.
Reading in the Holy Scriptures about the lives of great witnesses, lamps of God, one involuntarily becomes perplexed and asks: why for others living on earth the Lord has prepared peace, enjoyment of all kinds of blessings, consolation in sorrows, and they die a natural, peaceful death, but to the lot of these faithful and steadfast chosen ones of God falls such a terrible life, full of torment and persecution, and - very often - such a terrible end?
Look at the death they die: the Holy Prophet Isaiah was sawn in half, the Holy Prophet Jeremiah was stoned in a pit, Saint Zechariah was killed near the altar of the Temple, the Holy Protomartyr Stephen was also stoned, the Holy Apostle James was beheaded, the Holy Apostle Peter was crucified on a cross, the Holy Apostle Paul was beheaded with a sword, and almost all the Holy Apostles, with the exception, perhaps, of the Holy Apostle John the Theologian, accepted a martyr's death. Inscrutable are Your ways, O Lord! Why have You prepared such an end for them?
But among all these martyrdoms, the death of John the Baptist is the most terrible. Imagine Herod's palace, shimmering with lights, where a feast is taking place, and beneath it lies a gloomy dungeon with no way out to the light and freedom. There, the Prophet languishes. And in the middle of the night, the heavy footsteps of a coarse and ruthless warrior are heard descending, the door opens... a dull sound of a sword falling heavily – and it is all over. Was he caught in sleep? Did he pray? Did he utter any last words? We know nothing, and in response to all our questions, there is only grave silence.
In this way, the life of the greatest Prophet of God, who was filled with the Holy Spirit while still in his mother's womb, who lived thirty years in severe exploits in the desert and was deemed worthy to baptize the Savior of the world, the Only Begotten Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, was cut short at the age of thirty-three. And if one has no other hope than that which is in this corruptible world, then, at the sight of such deaths, one can come to complete disappointment in life and say to oneself: why try to live piously when everything around is only vanity?
But for believers this event cannot be unresolved, cannot lead them to disappointment in life, if only they have bright hope for the future and look at this world as a place of their exile.
At the time when the banqueters gazed with horror at the head of the Baptist lying on the platter, the Baptist himself was already standing in heavenly glory before the host of the righteous and was announcing to them the event that they had been expecting since the ages. At the same moment as he was beheaded, he joined the ranks of the righteous and entered into eternal blessedness and eternal glory, ascended to where he himself would feel boundless love and eternally enjoy true, never-ending life.
The righteous do not die, death has no power over them, they live forever with the Lord. Not a single good deed done by a person for the sake of God will remain without a reward, especially the greatest merits and labors of John the Baptist wove him many crowns and awards in Heaven.
Only thanks to such selfless martyrdoms could the Christian Church be born and grow. When we look at some huge building, we certainly know that at its base there is a foundation on which it stands unshakably, although no one can see the foundation itself. So it is with the Church. If we now see in the world the Christian Church, where believers find shelter and peace from all earthly sorrows, believe, hope and rejoice, it is only thanks to such courageous, selfless deaths, which no one can count.
And if Saint John the Baptist is no longer on earth, his voice, in spite of everything, will sound and denounce the lawless at all times. And now his high example has wounded and touched our hearts, and, surely, there will be found blameless souls who, despising the temptations of this world, will become unshakable witnesses of truth and justice.
Besides all this, it is necessary to believe that the death of Saint John the Baptist was the result of a special dispensation of Divine Providence and was allowed for a great and beneficial purpose for the human race. The glorious beheading of the Forerunner was a certain Divine providence. The time of the Savior's departure from this world was already approaching. The work for which He was sent had already been accomplished, and those who were expecting Him on earth were drawn to Him. But not only those living on earth were expecting the Savior of the world, but also the dead, of whom there were incomparably more. And so, to announce to them the imminent coming of the Savior to them, John the Forerunner was chosen, who announced the coming of the Lord to the inhabitants of the earth. Herod and Herodias appeared only as instruments for the fulfillment of the incomprehensible Divine will, although their guilt is not diminished by this.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, remembering this event today – the beheading of the glorious Prophet, let us try to extract from it edification for ourselves for the salvation of our souls. Namely: we must firmly remember what harm excessive intoxication with wine brings, how dangerous it is to give thoughtless oaths and what sin can come from this. If, through our rashness or momentary passion, we have given an oath, the fulfillment of which may serve not for the benefit of our neighbors, but to their detriment, then it is better for us not to fulfill it, it is better for us to appear careless before others than to cause harm to someone out of false shame.
Let us now pray to the Baptist of the Lord, that he, the loving one, would raise his prayer for us before the Throne of God and strengthen us, so that we would always be firm witnesses of the truth and justice of God and spend our earthly life in repentance and pleasing the Lord and thus attain eternal life, where there is no illness, no sorrow, no sighing. Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
