Sunday, January 10, 2021

 

THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD

10 JANUARY 2021

 

          John baptizes people as a sign of repentance.  Sinners emerge dripping wet from his baptism, promising to make changes in their lives.  However, John the Baptist points to one mightier than he who will baptize not with water, but with the Holy Spirit.  Jesus comes to John to be baptized, not because he is a sinner in need of repentance.  He submits to baptism to express his solidarity with sinful humanity.  When Jesus emerges dripping wet from the Jordan River, the Holy Spirit hovers over him.  As Isaiah had promised on the first Sunday of Advent, the Father rends the heavens and announces the identity of Jesus.  Instead of being identified as the son of a carpenter in Nazareth, Jesus is his beloved Son, with whom he is well pleased.

            We too have emerged from the waters of baptism dripping wet.  Although we were born into individual human families, we have become beloved sons and daughters in the family of Jesus Christ.  The Holy Spirit burned away original sin for those baptized as infants.  The Holy Spirit burned away all personal sins for those baptized as adults.  Today’s Scripture readings invite us to reflect on our identity with Jesus Christ as beloved sons and daughters on this last day of the Christmas Season.  They remind us of three realities which we might take for granted.

            First, we are reminded that God is the giver of all life.  When the prophet Isaiah invites us to come to the water, we realize that those baptized into the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit see all life as a precious gift of God.  Dripping wet from our baptism, we can recognize all life, in all its complexity and beauty and power as God’s gift.  Not only do we express continual thanks for the life given to us, but we are also called to respect all life as a gift from God to be protected and honored from the moment of conception through natural death.

            Second, we emerge dripping wet from the waters of baptism to look for all that is new.  Jesus Christ embodies the reality of the Kingdom of God.  That is the essence of the Mystery of the Incarnation celebrated during this Christmas Season.  Especially these days, we are tempted to look back in anger and cynicism and point fingers at each other, blaming others for the messes we are in.  The Incarnate Word of God is constantly showing us glimpses of that Kingdom, of all that is new, keeping us from despair and being discouraged.  Grounded in his real presence in the Eucharist, we will see those glimpses if we keep our eyes and ears open.

            Finally, we emerge from the waters of baptism to realize that we are not alone.   We belong to a community of brothers and sisters.  All of us have water dripping from our brows.  The first letter of Saint John reminds us that we love each other when we love God and keep his commandments.  As we leave the Christmas Season, we can more easily see that all of us have much more in common than what divides us.  Aware of our membership in this community, we can have honest disagreements about theological and political issues.  But we can also treat one another with greater respect, entering into honest dialogues instead of putting each other down.

            Saint John reminds us that Jesus Christ came through water and blood.  Water identifies his purity, while blood speaks of his sufferings.  Through the waters of baptism, we are united with him in a bond of love.  Through the Eucharist, we are nourished to imitate that love.  Dripping wet from our baptism, the Holy Spirit continually guides and purifies us to become who we are:  the Body of Christ in this messy and confusing world.

No comments:

Post a Comment