Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
The solemnities of the nativities of Jesus & John the Baptist serve as bookends in the liturgical year. The Solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord is observed at the time of the winter solstice, while the birth of his forerunner is observed six months earlier at the time of the summer solstice.
Our various memorials, feasts, solemnities, and seasons are richly rooted in our natural world. The sun begins to increase at the Nativity of the Lord. The sun begins to decrease at the Nativity of the Baptist. “He must increase, while I must decrease.”- John 3:30-35
Christmas is a "light" feast; the same is true for John’s nativity. The centuries long custom of "St. John's Fire" has found a home once again in some parishes and was renewed with bonfires at St. Paul’s Englewood and at St. Helen’s back in the ‘90s. St. John's Fire symbolizes Christ our Light; John, too, was a lamp that burned and flamed. In a similar way, we the baptized should likewise “go, light the world on fire.”
St. Ignatius Loyola finished all correspondence to his companions with the expression ite inflammate omnia—“go, set the world on fire.” Maybe it was just a rah-rah expression, the kind of thing a football coach says when he tells the team to go out on the field and “kick butt.” But Ignatius was a serious man who chose his words very carefully.
(On a humorous note, at the Jesuit HQ in Rome, there is a prominent statue of Ignatius Loyola with the words “Ite Inflammate Omnia” [set the world on fire] on its pedestal. To the left, behind the statue, sits a prominent fire extinguisher.)
Author Jim Manney writes, ‘“Set the world on fire’ is a curious expression. Fire destroys; the world is already on fire with hatred, resentment, greed, lust, and other passions that consume individuals and whole societies. But fire purifies too; in the Bible, flames burn up the weeds and the refiner’s fire purifies gold. Jesus wanted everyone to be set afire with passion and zeal for the Kingdom of God.”
That’s the kind of fire that’s worth spreading. But keep the fire extinguisher out of sight.
—Timothy J. Cronin