We begin our new year with a question: “Who are you?” This question posed by the priests and Levites from Jerusalem was addressed to John the Baptist but we should take it personally. Who are you? We tend to define ourselves by our relationships. I’m this one’s wife, son, uncle, niece. Or we define ourselves by what we do: I’m a doctor, lawyer, Indian chief. But neither of those sorts of responses get to our core, our essence. That the question is posed during the Christmas season provides at least the initial answer to that question. Who am I? A Child of God, made in God’s image and likeness, beloved and precious in God’s sight. How I relate and what I do all flows from this.
