Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Pope John Paul II chose that as the theme for the Church’s celebration of the new millennium. As the epistle to the Hebrews reminds us, we live in the midst of the world populated by strangers, by those who are imprisoned, by people struggling with marriage, by the greedy. We are plunged into the middle of this world and must bring faith into the mix. As the story of John the Baptist in the gospel demonstrates believers are also caught up in the world of politics, where holding onto one’s values can be an ongoing challenge, even a threat. What makes it possible to remain faithful in the midst of a hostile world is the blessed assurance is that “Jesus Christ is the same.” Jesus is a sure rock on which we can anchor ourselves. As an old spiritual puts it, “Be not dismayed whatever betide, God will take care of you.”
