When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea… From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” St. Matthew suggests that what got Jesus out of his ordinary life in Nazareth and into ministry was news of the arrest of John the Baptist. He certainly picked up John’s theme of the call to repentance. Often in life we have a vague sense that things need to change but don’t act on that until some dramatic moment forces a decision on our part. Which of the many problems in this world — war? climate change? disrespect for life? gun violence? — moves you into action?
