Everything God does emanates from His infinite wisdom. He founded the earth and the heavens, created man in His image and likeness and, after original sin, He promised Redemption through the Messiah.
Countless prophecies pointed to this Anointed One of God. Jeremiah, for example, indicated that He would be of the seed of David (cf. Jer 23:5); Micah, that he would be born in Bethlehem (cf. Mi 5:1); Isaiah, that a Virgin would conceive and give birth to a Child, who would be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (cf. Is 7:14; 9:5).
Even the approximate date of Christ’s coming was foretold by Daniel, coinciding with the beginning of Jesus’ public life on the occasion of His Baptism in the Jordan (cf. Dn 9:24-25). Thanks to these and many other predictions, those who knew the Sacred Scriptures certainly could not claim ignorance about the Saviour’s coming.
In fact, Herod asked the chief priests and the scribes where the Messiah would be born, to which they replied: “In Bethlehem of Judea” (Mt 2:5), confirming their knowledge of the prophecies. In this way, the very ones who ought to have welcomed the awaited One of the Nations became accomplices in the first persecution of Jesus, which culminated in the massacre of the innocents.
Simeon, for his part, prophesied that this Child would be a “sign which shall be contradicted,” both for the fall and the “rising of many in Israel” (Lk 2:34). In fact, in order to construct a new edifice, it is always essential to clear the ground and remove all debris before laying the foundations.
And this is precisely what happened. In Our Lord’s time, religion was tainted by the obstinacy of the old Pharisees. It was necessary to break with their false traditions and to re-establish the Temple, desecrated as it was even by peddlers and money changers.
At the beginning of the Redeemer’s public life, Providence sent the last of the prophets, the forerunner “whose name was John” (Jn 1:6). The Baptist was not the Light, but he came to bear witness to it. Divine Wisdom was thus providing yet another opportunity to recognize Jesus as the Saviour of the nations. However, those supposedly wise in the things of this world became the greatest opponents of the new grace: “He came to His own home, and His own people received Him not” (Jn 1:11).
The Pharisees and their followers were expecting a human and even worldly Messiah, who would fulfil their own selfish desires. They did not realize that Providence’s plan surpassed any pragmatic calculation: the true Messiah would found, under the aegis of the Paraclete, a Church on the firm rock of Peter, supported by the pillars of the Apostles.
Now, as St. Paul teaches, these are followed by the prophets and those who have the mission to teach (cf. 1 Cor 12:28), among whom are certainly the founders of religious institutes, whose prophetic and doctrinal mission is always capable of renewing the springtime graces of the Church’s foundation. And because they participate in sustaining the Mystical Bride of Christ, their images are symbolically placed in the niches of St. Peter’s Basilica.
The Messiah came to this world to redeem humanity and found one single Church. But His presence and action are perpetuated over the course of the centuries by the founders, who more especially participate in His redemptive mission and succeed in building up other souls. In each historical period, they are the reflection of the Light that “came to His own.” It is up to us to recognize them… ◊
