"I am with you, to deliver you". These words of God to Jeremiah reveal the meaning of martyrdom and every martyr's source of hope. If God were not with them, the martyrs could not have suffered so much and persevered in faith.

All the Gospels record something of the ministry of John the Baptist, a ministry of baptising calling people to repentance. In John's Gospel, however, there is a greater stress on John's role as a witness than on his ministry of baptism. The evangelist seems to have seen this witness as the Baptist's essential role.

A martyr is someone who is prepared to die for the faith which he or she holds. To be a martyr is to give one's life as a witness for the truth. Thus, John the Baptist was a witness and a martyr. His whole life was spent in preparing the way for the Messiah, and this work of preparation led to his death. Thus he was a martyr for Christ, a Christian martyr.

The story of John the Baptist's death is a glorious example of faithful witness, at the same time his death alerts us to the hatred and persecution which can come our way while witnessing to the truth.