disciples.  In any age, there are those who hear only what they want to hear.  In any age, there are those who will do anything in order to continue living a lie - even kill.

King Herod personifies those human beings who from the beginning of time until the end of time, choose to live a lie, rather than the truth.

From the depths of the dungeon, John's martyrdom is a testimony that every disciple of Jesus must never be afraid to proclaim the truth.   

Saint John the Baptist, a difficult personage of the Bible to understand and perhaps even to relate to, is very relevant for us today.

He is a great witness precisely because he is the link between the Old and New Testaments.  He is the last of the prophets who announces the coming of the Messiah.  He is the first of the disciples who proclaims his coming: "Behold, there is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world" (John 1: 29).

John the Baptist is still relevant for us because as in any age, our age has an urgent need for disciples like John the Baptist.

Our world has an urgent need for witnesses.

We must witness that our identity is centered on true spirituality, and that our morality derives from that spirituality. 

We must witness that our faith challenges many of the values of the dominant secular culture.

We must witness that our traditions have great meaning for us.

We must witness that challenging commitments offer firm principles by which we may live our lives.

We must witness that adherence to traditional morality often comes at a considerable personal cost: perhaps of losing family, friends, even jobs.

We must witness that what we have found in Christ Jesus is true, real and worth living out to the ultimate consequence.

We must witness that our seeking solely for lasting happiness as the meaning of life is an indictment of the falsehoods of past generations.

We must witness by striving for personal holiness, authenticity and integration.  Witness has no room for complacency, hypocrisy, or self-indulgence.

To be a witness in this way is not an easy task.  We may stumble and fall many times.  However, the Lord will magnify our frail efforts into enormous accomplishments for the fulfillment of his salvific plan.

Advent is a special time of the year.  Let us come closer to Christ so that we can become a witness like Saint John the Baptist.

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Father James Farfaglia is a contributing writer for Catholic Online and author of Get Serious! - A Survival Guide for Serious Catholics.  You can visit him on the web at www.fatherjames.org and listen to the audio podcast of this Sunday homily.