And now that the event comes to pass, now that Elizabeth and Zechariah experience that “with God nothing will be impossible” (Lk 1:37), their joy is great. Today’s Gospel reading (Lk 1:57-66, 80) announces the birth and then pauses on the moment of the bestowal of the child’s name. Elizabeth chooses a name that is foreign to her family’s tradition and says: “he shall be called John” (v. 60): a freely given and, by then, an unexpected gift, because John means “God has given grace”. And this child will be a herald, a witness to God’s grace for the poor who, with humble faith, await his salvation. (Angelus, 24 June 2018)

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