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Today identity politics is central to a community, a society or a country’s self-definition and aspiration. It may be good to explore the identity of Jesus as the Lamb of God because Who He is has implications for us all.
Firstly, the title itself gives us a good reason to be grateful for our identity as Catholics. It reveals how Sacred Scripture is intimately linked to the Liturgy. Most possibly, the label predates our Gospel passage today, meaning that the early Church was already worshipping Jesus as the Lord and exalting Him as the Lamb of God long before Sacred Scripture came to be written. Thus, when the Evangelist composed his Gospel, he could have borrowed the title from the then existing Liturgy.
One of the consequences of the Incarnation is that Catholic practices are, in principle, profoundly sacramental. By definition, any sacramental expression has to be “rite-dependent” so that through the essential elements of both form and matter, the validity of a sacrament can be guaranteed. Hence, the rite, which is an external articulation of a hidden reality, must be regulated through symbolic action using fixed formularies and tangible materials. The one who performs the rite cannot say whatever he wants or use whatever he pleases. An illustration can be gleaned from the way we define our national breakfast—Nasi Lemak. People debate over what ingredients should go into making a good Nasi Lemak. Never mind the diversity-inclusive culinary world that tries to fusion the food. For example, to be a bit more “atas”, how about Nasi Lemak with Foie Gras instead of Otak Otak? A connoisseur or an aficionado will tell you that a Nasi Lemak should have a determined set of ingredients for it to be a Nasi Lemak.
The same can be said of sacramental rituals. They are regulated to ensure that what we receive is genuine, the “real McCoy”. Hence, water and the Trinitarian formula are necessary for Baptism’s validity. Bread and Wine with the Institution Narrative are necessary for transubstantiation into the Body and Blood of Christ. Laying on of hands and Chrism with the formula, “Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit” for Confirmation. And so forth. Why am I bringing up the examples of “Nasi Lemak” and what goes into it and then the essential elements of “form and matter” for the validity of the Sacraments?
Due to the highly regulated nature of the sacramental system, much of what we do in our Liturgy feels disconnected or even alien from Sacred Scripture and sadly this may have given rise to the idea that Catholic practices are therefore, unscriptural. Both the recitation of the Agnus Dei in the Eucharist and the inclusion of the Lamb of God in John’s Gospel highlight that the dichotomy between Sacred Scripture and the Liturgy is a false divide. Our liturgy is steeped in Sacred Scripture[1] to the point that we no longer think of it.[2] In the Eucharist, we breathe Sacred Scripture. Like the activity of walking. Unless one is in physiotherapy after an accident or a brain injury, one walks without second thoughts and this brings us to the second point.
The Lamb of God is a title that describes who He is supposed to be—a scapegoat. Submitting Himself to be baptised was an act of self-oblation as the only sacrifice that can take away the sin of the world. He was sacrificed on our behalf as He personally took upon Himself the burden of our sin. The challenge for each one of us is this question: “Why is the world still stuck in sin? Has He not taken away the sin of the world?”.
The answer is found in the way we have been shaped since the Fall. Somehow or rather, when everyone is scolded, there is a feeling that one’s personal culpability is lessened. It means that when everyone is sinful, then no one will feel personally responsible for sin. An interesting facet about humanity is that even if one were conscious of his or her sin, somehow, one’s sin is not as grave as others’. In general, when a sin is named, we tend to think in terms of others who are more sinful. It is not “self-righteousness” per se as it is a tendency to hide behind the general.
The grace is to visualise or imagine Him bearing the burden of “my” sins, not anybody else’s, but mine. Rather than hiding behind “our” sin, admitting that it is my sins that have nailed Him to the Cross should generally cause me to be ashamed. All the Saints have this sense of their unworthiness arising from their acute knowledge of their personal sinfulness.
The point is that the combination of both the lack of personal responsibility and our improper disposition to the Sacraments are perfect conditions for sin to fester in the world. Each one of us contributes to the sickness of sin in the world because we have placed obstacles for the Sacraments to work. Coupled with the lack of personal responsibility for our actions, the world remains trapped in sin.
So, the Lamb of God died for every sin of mine. If through the Sacrament of Baptism, I have been inserted or grafted into His Body, it follows that I have a personal duty to live according to His teachings. I am obliged to cooperate with His grace in the remedy of my life. As the 2nd Reading suggests, I am a light to the nations. It sounds arrogant but it is not. I carry the torch of sanctification so that the world may be brightened by my light and my holiness.
Repeat this to yourself and it will sound different from saying “we carry the torch”. This is the truth of discipleship, plain and pure. Tell yourself this: I have not been baptised merely. Instead, I have been grafted into the Church, the Body of Christ to continue His work in the world. Even though I am broken, I am still a member of the Church founded by Christ. I might not be as “scripturally” literate as I should be but still, I belong to the Lamb of God and I rejoice in my affiliation with Him.
In conclusion, the Church is older than written scripture. Some might think that it is Sacred Scripture that gave birth to the Church but it is the other way around as seen in how John adopted the liturgical title of Jesus as the Lamb of God into his Gospel. This title is not only salvific but it also gives me my identity as son or daughter of the Church He founded. In a world afflicted by identity politics, maybe Catholic is the one identity I ought to forge because it gives me a holy reason to be a good Christian. Therefore, in gratitude for my baptism and for my identity, I pledge to undertake my mission be a light of Christ in the world. Amen.
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[1] The entire Mass can be traced to Sacred Scripture because many of the words spoken by the priests and the people are direct quotations from particular biblical texts.
[2] While it might be good to be more aware of how scriptural our liturgy is, the validity and efficacy of a Sacrament is not dependent on our awareness of it. Instead, the Sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which grace is dispensed to us. It does not mean that they are magic because the fruits of the Sacraments do depend on the disposition of the one who receives them.
