Vivir sin temor

Mc 6, 14-29

En aquel tiempo, como la fama de Jesús se había extendido tanto, llegó a oídos del rey Herodes el rumor de que Juan el Bautista había resucitado y sus poderes actuaban en Jesús. Otros decían que era Elías; y otros, que era un profeta, comparable a los antiguos. Pero Herodes insistía: “Es Juan, a quien yo le corté la cabeza, y que ha resucitado”.

Herodes había mandado apresar a Juan y lo había metido y encadenado en la cárcel. Herodes se había casado con Herodías, esposa de su hermano Filipo, y Juan le decía: “No te está permitido tener por mujer a la esposa de tu hermano”. Por eso Herodes lo mandó encarcelar.

Herodías sentía por ello gran rencor contra Juan y quería quitarle la vida; pero no sabía cómo, porque Herodes miraba con respeto a Juan, pues sabía que era un hombre recto y santo, y lo tenía custodiado. Cuando lo oía hablar, quedaba desconcertado, pero le gustaba escucharlo.

La ocasión llegó cuando Herodes dio un banquete a su corte, a sus oficiales y a la gente principal de Galilea, con motivo de su cumpleaños. La hija de Herodías bailó durante la fiesta y su baile les gustó mucho a Herodes y a sus invitados. El rey le dijo entonces a la joven: “Pídeme lo que quieras y yo te lo daré”. Y le juró varias veces: “Te daré lo que me pidas, aunque sea la mitad de mi reino”.

Ella fue a preguntarle a su madre: “¿Qué le pido?” Su madre le contestó: “La cabeza de Juan el Bautista”. Volvió ella inmediatamente junto al rey y le dijo: “Quiero que me des ahora mismo, en una charola, la cabeza de Juan el Bautista”.

El rey se puso muy triste, pero debido a su juramento y a los convidados, no quiso desairar a la joven, y enseguida mandó a un verdugo que trajera la cabeza de Juan. El verdugo fue, lo decapitó en la cárcel, trajo la cabeza en una charola, se la entregó a la joven y ella se la entregó a su madre.

Al enterarse de esto, los discípulos de Juan fueron a recoger el cadáver y lo sepultaron.

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GospelMK 6:14-29

King Herod heard about Jesus, for his fame had become widespread,
and people were saying,
"John the Baptist has been raised from the dead;
That is why mighty powers are at work in him."
Others were saying, "He is Elijah";
still others, "He is a prophet like any of the prophets."
But when Herod learned of it, he said,
"It is John whom I beheaded. He has been raised up."

Herod was the one who had John arrested and bound in prison
on account of Herodias, 
the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.
John had said to Herod,
"It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife."
Herodias harbored a grudge against him
and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.
Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,
and kept him in custody.
When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,
yet he liked to listen to him.
Herodias had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,
gave a banquet for his courtiers, his military officers,
and the leading men of Galilee.
His own daughter came in and performed a dance
that delighted Herod and his guests.
The king said to the girl,
"Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you." 
He even swore many things to her,
"I will grant you whatever you ask of me,
even to half of my kingdom."

She went out and said to her mother,
"What shall I ask for?"
Her mother replied, "The head of John the Baptist."
The girl hurried back to the king's presence and made her request,
"I want you to give me at once on a platter
the head of John the Baptist."
The king was deeply distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests
he did not wish to break his word to her.
So he promptly dispatched an executioner
with orders to bring back his head.
He went off and beheaded him in the prison.
He brought in the head on a platter
and gave it to the girl.
The girl in turn gave it to her mother.
When his disciples heard about it,
they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

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Meditacion:

Bien amigos luego de mis vacaciones, regresan estas reflexiones.

Dios me concedio la gracia de encontrarme con algunas personas muy interesantes y charlar sobre Dios para darlo a conocer un poquito mas; tambien celebre el matrimonio de una pareja de amigos muy queridos asi que fue un viaje muy bonito.

Y hoy nos encontramos con el evangelio que relata la muerte de Juan el bautista.

Y si lo leemos bien, veremos que Herodes era un hombre lleno de temores y uno de sus mas grandes temores era al que diran los demas.

Y es tan grande este temor que lo lleva a matar a un profeta que incluso El, sin entenderlo mucho, lo respetaba y le gustaba escuchar.

Ese temor a quedar mal que muchas veces tambien nosotros sentimos... no proclamamos nuestra fe por el que diran, no nos mostramos firmes en nuestras actitudes, marcando el limite moral ante la injusticia, ante la pobreza, ante lo inmoral por el que diran.

Ese temor nos tiene agarrados y, en cierta manera, tambien "matamos" nuevamente a Dios en nuestro corazon.

Hace unos dias charlaba con un amigo en un shopping de Cajica, al norte de Bogota y le decia que la aventura de descubrir a Jesus en mi vida era la mejor aventura que me habia pasado en mi vida; parte de esa aventura es asumir a Dios diariamente, mostrarlo sin temor, comprometerse en el camino de elevacion personal que cada uno tiene.

Entonces para resumir amigos.... No vivamos con temor de asumir nuestro camino espiritual, Jesus nos acompana en cada segundo de nuestra vida,

“Jesús, Señor y Salvador mío, concédeme preferir siempre la vida que tú me ofreces, la vida de la fe, la esperanza y la caridad basada en la verdad y la misericordia.” Amen

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Good friends after my vacation, return these thoughts.

God granted me the grace to meet some very interesting people and talk about God to make him know a little more; also celebrate the marriage of a couple of very dear friends so it was a very nice trip.

And today we find the Gospel that relates the death of John the Baptist.

And if we read it well, we will see that Herod was a man full of fears and one of his greatest fears was what others would say.

And this fear is so great that it leads him to kill a prophet that even He, without understanding it very much, respected him and liked to listen.

That fear to be wrong that often we also feel ... we do not proclaim our faith by what they say, we do not show firm in our attitudes, marking the moral limit before the injustice, before the poverty, before the immoral thing by which they will say .

That fear has us gripped and, in a certain way, we also "kill" God again in our hearts.

A few days ago I was chatting with a friend in a mall in Cajica, north of Bogota, and I told him that the adventure of discovering Jesus in my life was the best adventure I had ever had in my life; part of that adventure is to assume God daily, to show it without fear, to commit oneself to the path of personal elevation that each one has.

So to summarize friends ... Do not live with fear of assuming our spiritual path, Jesus accompanies us in every second of our life,

"Jesus, Lord and my Savior, grant me always to prefer the life you offer me, the life of faith, hope and charity based on truth and mercy." Amen