Here is the text of the reflection I shared with the community which was gathered in prayer this weekend to celebrate the Baptism of the Lord - the official end of the Christmas Season.
In preparation for this weekend’s homily, I checked out the baptismal register. There were twenty-three baptisms celebrated here at this font during the year 2013. One of them was an adult who was baptised at the Easter Vigil, and the others were all children of various ages whose parents had brought them to us and asked for them to begin a new life in Christ.
In a sense, it might seem somewhat strange that as we mark the end of the Christmas season today, we also celebrate the Sacrament of new beginnings, but then again, in Christ, all things are made new, so it is fitting that we should celebrate today both an ending and a beginning. Have you ever noticed that moments of endings and beginnings are among the most significant in our lives? They are often the times that we remember in detail because they signify both a letting go of that which has been and an anticipation of that which is yet to be. Such moments of change can also be among the most difficult for some people to accept.
The gospel we have just heard speaks of the moment when Jesus and John met on the shores of the Jordan river. At this point in time, Jesus had not yet begun his public ministry, but we are led to believe that John knew at least something about him. When Jesus appeared at the river and asked to be baptised, John expressed his own unworthiness: I need to be baptised by you, and yet you come to me? Whether John had already come to witness something about Jesus which caused this reaction or not, the truth is that whenever we are asked to do something that is outside our own comfort zone, the natural instinct is to respond with caution. Perhaps John already knew the story about how angels had appeared both to his mother and to Jesus’ mother, and about how the stories of their births had been heralded in ways that were much different from the ordinary run of the mill. His meekness in the face of Jesus’ request should remind us all that it is not us, but Jesus who invites us to gather at the font; it is not us, but Jesus who welcomes newcomers into his family of faith; it is not us, but Jesus who calls us all into service out of love for those who are our brothers and sisters. This is why Jesus encourages John: Let it be so for now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.
When a child of God is welcomed at the font, and has water poured over his or her head, it is Jesus who welcomes him or her, with the words that we hear at the end of the gospel today: This is my son, this is my daughter, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased. With human ears, we can’t hear this greeting, but we know in faith that this welcome is called out from the heavens for all those who are baptised. This song of faith is not the first record of such joyful words. Long before Jesus' encounter with John on the shores of the Jordan, the prophet Isaiah had foretold similar greetings of joy and pride. Today’s first reading reminds us that the Lord celebrates the moment of baptism with words that have echoed throughout the centuries: Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights.
Each of us here today is a servant of the Lord. Each of us who has been presented at the font and arisen to a new life is lifted high in celebration by our God who has chosen us. Any of us who has ever held a newborn child knows the joy of gazing upon such innocence, yet our joy is nothing compared to the joy that God has when he sees the birth of his children. Every day of our lives, he offers us the food of the Eucharist to strengthen and sustain our spirits. Every day of our lives, the message he sent to the people of Israel is proclaimed for us. This is a message of peace which we find as we come to know him, and to realize that he has known and loved us from the moment of our conception, from the moment when we were first immersed in the waters of Baptism, from the moment when we received the gifts of the Spirit on the day of Confirmation, just as God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Strengthened by this power, Jesus went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed. Strengthened by this power, all of us who have been baptised and anointed with the gifts of the Spirit can also bear witness to the goodness of God through the love that we share with our brothers and sisters in faith.
A new beginning
In preparation for this weekend’s homily, I checked out the baptismal register. There were twenty-three baptisms celebrated here at this font during the year 2013. One of them was an adult who was baptised at the Easter Vigil, and the others were all children of various ages whose parents had brought them to us and asked for them to begin a new life in Christ.
In a sense, it might seem somewhat strange that as we mark the end of the Christmas season today, we also celebrate the Sacrament of new beginnings, but then again, in Christ, all things are made new, so it is fitting that we should celebrate today both an ending and a beginning. Have you ever noticed that moments of endings and beginnings are among the most significant in our lives? They are often the times that we remember in detail because they signify both a letting go of that which has been and an anticipation of that which is yet to be. Such moments of change can also be among the most difficult for some people to accept.
The gospel we have just heard speaks of the moment when Jesus and John met on the shores of the Jordan river. At this point in time, Jesus had not yet begun his public ministry, but we are led to believe that John knew at least something about him. When Jesus appeared at the river and asked to be baptised, John expressed his own unworthiness: I need to be baptised by you, and yet you come to me? Whether John had already come to witness something about Jesus which caused this reaction or not, the truth is that whenever we are asked to do something that is outside our own comfort zone, the natural instinct is to respond with caution. Perhaps John already knew the story about how angels had appeared both to his mother and to Jesus’ mother, and about how the stories of their births had been heralded in ways that were much different from the ordinary run of the mill. His meekness in the face of Jesus’ request should remind us all that it is not us, but Jesus who invites us to gather at the font; it is not us, but Jesus who welcomes newcomers into his family of faith; it is not us, but Jesus who calls us all into service out of love for those who are our brothers and sisters. This is why Jesus encourages John: Let it be so for now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.
When a child of God is welcomed at the font, and has water poured over his or her head, it is Jesus who welcomes him or her, with the words that we hear at the end of the gospel today: This is my son, this is my daughter, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased. With human ears, we can’t hear this greeting, but we know in faith that this welcome is called out from the heavens for all those who are baptised. This song of faith is not the first record of such joyful words. Long before Jesus' encounter with John on the shores of the Jordan, the prophet Isaiah had foretold similar greetings of joy and pride. Today’s first reading reminds us that the Lord celebrates the moment of baptism with words that have echoed throughout the centuries: Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights.
Each of us here today is a servant of the Lord. Each of us who has been presented at the font and arisen to a new life is lifted high in celebration by our God who has chosen us. Any of us who has ever held a newborn child knows the joy of gazing upon such innocence, yet our joy is nothing compared to the joy that God has when he sees the birth of his children. Every day of our lives, he offers us the food of the Eucharist to strengthen and sustain our spirits. Every day of our lives, the message he sent to the people of Israel is proclaimed for us. This is a message of peace which we find as we come to know him, and to realize that he has known and loved us from the moment of our conception, from the moment when we were first immersed in the waters of Baptism, from the moment when we received the gifts of the Spirit on the day of Confirmation, just as God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Strengthened by this power, Jesus went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed. Strengthened by this power, all of us who have been baptised and anointed with the gifts of the Spirit can also bear witness to the goodness of God through the love that we share with our brothers and sisters in faith.
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