Consider all the challenges children and youth face in our current age. They have all the struggles that people have always had with figuring out who we are and who we want to be, where and how we fit in cliques and awkwardness. All of that is acutely maximized by social media.

Smart phones, which almost all teenagers have, put the world at their fingertips. Some of that is good, bringing knowledge, information and different cultures into view, but also a great deal of stress that comes with heightened awareness of all the strife and struggles people face around the globe. A bus plunges into a ravine in Honduras. Rebels make gains in Myanmar. Ukraine. Israel. We are just beginning to grasp the deeply disturbing effect the lockdowns have had on education and mental health.

I could go on listing problems that affect our kids without taking sides on the issues, but we do take sides and they merit a lot of thought and discussion. But note the added stress that public debate of weighty issues place on young people. It’s quite a lot, and to be fair much of it looks dark. A bright light, then, is precious and influential.

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To help us grasp this opening passage of Mark’s Gospel, I’d like to take us to the particular spot. “Bethany Beyond the Jordan,” present-day Al Maghtas, is the place where John the Baptist was baptizing. It’s a little east of Jericho, far enough from the Judean countryside and Jerusalem to make a significant pilgrimage but close enough that many people can do it in two or three days.

And they did. Mark says “all,” which means a lot, and that they are streaming continuously for John’s baptism of repentance.

We live in a world that is drenched in sin. That is true today. It was true way back then, and as far back as humanity can remember. It tears away at us in every context and institution of our lives. We struggle with it as individuals, in our families, at work and in our communities. We are continually aware of how things could and should be better. It’s like we are slogging through a muddy bog and we just want to be cleansed of it. So please, someone, dump a bucket of clean water over me so I can start fresh. The deep-seated need is very real.

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