Catholic Caucus: Sunday Mass Readings, 01-13-19, FEAST, The Baptism of the Lord

https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2019-01-13

Christmas: January 13th
Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

MASS READINGS
January 13, 2019 (Readings on USCCB website)

COLLECT PRAYER
Almighty ever-living God, who, when Christ had been baptized in the River Jordan and as the Holy Spirit descended upon him, solemnly declared him your beloved Son, grant that your children by adoption, reborn of water and the Holy Spirit, may always be well pleasing to you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

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Kutia
Letter banket
Christ’s Diapers
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Activities for the Feast of the Baptism of Christ
Baptismal Day
Christmas and the Eucharist
Family and Friends of Jesus Scrapbook Album
Making a Baptismal Garment and Candle
On Celebrating Baptism
Receive the White Garment
Renewal of Baptismal Promises
Sacramental Life in the Home: Baptism
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Christmas Table Blessing 1
Christmas Table Blessing 2
Christmas Table Blessing 3
Christmas Table Blessing 4
Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Christmas Season (2nd Plan)
To Jordan’s Water
Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Christmas (1st Plan)
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Baptism Is Not a Formality | Pope Francis
Baptism Is the Starting Point of a Lifelong Path to Conversion | Pope Francis
Feast of the Baptism of the Lord | Pope Benedict XVI
» Enjoy our Liturgical Seasons series of e-books!

Old Calendar: Feast of the Holy Family ; Other Titles: Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord

Today the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Baptism of Our Lord. This brings to an end the season of Christmas. The Church recalls Our Lord’s second manifestation or epiphany which occurred on the occasion of His baptism in the Jordan. Jesus descended into the River to sanctify its waters and to give them the power to beget sons of God. The event takes on the importance of a second creation in which the entire Trinity intervenes.

In the Eastern Church this feast is called Theophany because at the baptism of Christ in the River Jordan God appeared in three persons. The baptism of John was a sort of sacramental preparatory for the Baptism of Christ. It moved men to sentiments of repentance and induced them to confess their sins. Christ did not need the baptism of John. Although He appeared in the “substance of our flesh” and was recognized “outwardly like unto ourselves”, He was absolutely sinless and impeccable. He conferred upon the water the power of the true Baptism which would remove all the sins of the world: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him Who takes away the sin of the world”.

Many of the incidents which accompanied Christ’s baptism are symbolical of what happened at our Baptism. At Christ’s baptism the Holy Spirit descended upon Him; at our Baptism the Trinity took its abode in our soul. At His baptism Christ was proclaimed the “Beloved Son” of the Father; at our Baptism we become the adopted sons of God. At Christ’s baptism the heavens were opened; at our Baptism heaven was opened to us. At His baptism Jesus prayed; after our Baptism we must pray to avoid actual sin.

— Excerpted from Msgr. Rudolph G. Bandas

Click here for commentary on the readings in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

Customs on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
In the Ukraine the faithful gather in the front of the church where a cross of ice is placed. Since there are no rivers near churches, a tub is filled with water and is placed in front of the ice cross. During special and very unique services the water is blessed and brought home. This is taken in before breakfast is eaten. The remains are kept during the year to keep the home safe from fire, lightening and sickness.

The priest visits his parishioners to bless their homes with the holy water that the New Year may be one of cooperation with the gift of God; His Son and the participation in the Life He has come to lead us in toward Salvation. The evening meal is very much a repeat of the Holy Supper except that there are no restrictions on meat and dairy products. It starts with Kutia, which has been saved from Christmas Eve.

Feast of the Baptism of Christ - Day Twenty
Today we celebrate the baptism of Christ in the Jordan. This is the second epiphany, or manifestation, of the Lord. The past, the present, and the future are made manifest in this epiphany.

The most holy one placed Himself among us, the unclean and sinners. The Son of God freely humbled Himself at the hand of the Baptist. By His baptism in the Jordan, Christ manifests His humility and dedicates Himself to the redemption of man. He takes upon Himself the sins of the whole world and buries them in the waters of the Jordan. — The Light of the World by Benedict Baur, O.S.B.

Day Twenty activity (Renewal of Baptismal Vows)
Day Twenty recipe (Christ’s Diapers)

The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
The mystery of Christ’s baptism in the Jordan by St John, the Precursor, proposes the contemplation of an already adult Jesus. This mystery is infinitely linked to the Solemnities of the Lord’s birth and the Epiphany that we have just celebrated, as in some ways it takes up and represents their significance to us.

At Christmas we have contemplated the human birth of the Word incarnate by the Virgin Mary. In the 4th century, the Fathers of the Church deepened the understanding of the faith with regard to the Christmas mystery in the light of Jesus’ Humanity. They spoke of the Incarnation of the Word already working like the ‘Christification’ of that humanity that he had assumed from His mother. Or put in simpler terms: Jesus is the Christ from the first instant of conception in Mary’s spotless womb because He Himself, with His Divine Power, consecrated, anointed and ‘Christified’ that human nature with which He became incarnate.

In the mystery of the Epiphany, we then meditated on Christ’s manifestation to all nations that was represented by the Magi, the wise men from the East, who came to adore the Child.

Now, in the mystery of Christ’s Baptism in the Jordan River, we again encounter and represent the truth of the Lord’s incarnation and His manifestation as the Christ. Jesus’ Baptism is in fact His definitive manifestation as the Messiah or Christ to Israel, and as the Son of the Father to the entire world. Here we find the dimension of the Epiphany which was His manifestation to all nations. The Father’s voice from heaven shows that Jesus of Nazareth is the eternal Son and the descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove shows the Trinitarian nature of the Christian God. The true and unique God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, shows Himself in Christ, through Him, with Him and in Him.

The Baptism in the Jordan returns to the great Christmas theme of ‘Christification,’ Jesus of Nazareth’s spiritual anointing, His presentation as the Anointed One par excellence, the Messiah or the One sent by the Father for the salvation of mankind. The Spirit that descended on Jesus shows and seals in an incontrovertible way the ‘Christification’ of Jesus’ humanity that the Word had already fulfilled from the first moment of His miraculous conception by Mary. Jesus, from the very beginning, was always the Lord’s Christ, He was always God. Yet, His one, true humanity, that which is perfect in every way, as the Gospel records, constantly grew in natural and supernatural perfection. ‘And Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature, and in favour with God and with men’ (Lk2:52). In Israel at 30 years of age, one reached full maturity and therefore could become a master. Jesus came of age and the Spirit, descending and remaining on Him, definitively consecrated His whole being as the Christ.

The same Spirit, that descended on the water of the River Jordan wafted over the waters during the first creation (Gen 1:2). Therefore, the Baptism in the Jordan presents yet another truth: that Jesus has started a new creation. He is the second man (1 Cor 15:47) or the last Adam (1 Cor 15:45), that comes to repair the first Adam’s guilt. He does this as the Lamb of God that takes away our sins. ‘Looking at the events in light of the Cross and Resurrection, the Christian people realised what happened: Jesus loaded the burden of all mankind’s guilt upon His shoulders; he bore it down into the depths of the Jordan. He inaugurated his public activity by stepping into the place of sinners’ (Joseph Ratzinger, Jesus of Nazareth, Bloomsbury 2007, p 18).

Excerpted from the Congregation for the Clergy

https://wau.org/meditations/

Meditation: Luke 3:15-16, 21-22

The Baptism of the Lord (Feast)

All were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ. (Luke 3:15)

The people who had come to hear John the Baptist were expecting something explosive. A prophet had arisen who would denounce all the enemies, all the “bad guys” who made life hard for everyone else. Maybe he was the Christ, the Messiah, come to cast out the Romans and their henchmen and restore Israel to its former glory.

But then came Jesus. A small-town carpenter who spent his time with the powerless and the sinful. The Spirit came upon him instead—not a fiery preacher calling out people’s sins, but a humble man preaching love of enemies. Surely people were caught off guard.

Jesus came “to open the eyes of the blind,” not to cast the bad guys into hell (Isaiah 42:7). He came “to bring out prisoners from confinement,” not to punish people for their sins (42:7). He came to take away our sins so that we could learn to love one another—good guy and bad guy alike.

When you hear this reading today, close your eyes and picture the scene. Picture John immersing Jesus into the Jordan River—a river that had received the sins of all who had come for baptism. Imagine Jesus accepting all of those sins and every sin that they represent.

For the next three years, Jesus will bear these sins, along with the sins of everyone else he comes into contact with. And still bearing those sins, he will teach us about his Father’s mercy, heal us from the wounds of sin, and deliver us from whatever hatred and bitterness is stored up in our hearts. Then he will take all that sin, hatred, and bitterness to the cross, where he will put it to death forever.

Today is the beginning of salvation for you and for everyone else, good guy and bad guy alike. So rejoice in this salvation and ask Jesus to help you love as he loves. Ask him to help you love everyone.

“Praise to you, Jesus, for taking all my sins!”

Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7
Psalm 29:1-4, 9-10
Acts 10:34-38

Interesting Baptism Facts

Pastor’s Column

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
January 13, 2019

All of us need a reminder once in a while just what a great gift baptism really is in our lives! Here are a few interesting things about your baptism that you may not have known:

The reason Catholics make the sign of the cross is that this is a reminder of our baptism. The priest or deacon makes the sign of the cross on the forehead of the one to be baptized, claiming the child or adult for Christ our Savior by invoking the Holy Trinity. As baptized Christians, we have the Holy Name of God (Father, Son and Spirit) written on our foreheads. We make the sign of the cross reverently as a prayer and a reminder of this very first cross placed there. This imparts great dignity to the baptized. We belong to God!

The Rite of Baptism and the Funeral Rite are both mirror images of each other. Pay attention at funerals and baptisms and notice how much they have in common. For example, the newly baptized baby or adult wears white to symbolize the washing away of sin and the gift of eternal life; the casket is covered with a white pall to symbolize the deceased’s entrance into eternal life. A baptismal font is often placed at the entrance of the church to show that baptism is the gate by which we enter the church; funeral liturgies usually begin at the entrance of the nave of the Church to symbolize the deceased’s entrance into life. The baptism candle is always lit from the fire of the large Paschal Candle which is renewed each year at the Easter Vigil and this same candle is prominently displayed at a funeral Mass; again, both symbolize eternal life. The immediate family usually accompanies the body or ashes into the church, just as the newly baptized was surrounded by his or her family.

Baptism confers the forgiveness of sin. A baby, obviously, has only original sin to be cleansed, but an adult who is baptized has all his or her sins washed clean. After Baptism, the church offers the Sacrament of Reconciliation which has the effect of “re-immersing” us in the cleansing waters of baptism so that we can be cleansed again.

Baptism is only performed once in a lifetime. For a baptism to be valid, we must use the words that our Lord commanded us to say: “Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19-20). The church accepts baptisms performed by all other Christian churches, provided the person was baptized with water and has used these words. In an emergency, anyone can validly baptize another person, provided they have used the proper words.

Baptism is a seed that is planted; it is not magic. The family and godparents of the newly baptized child or adult promise to educate the newly baptized member of the Church in the faith. The newly baptized are entering a community of believers; they are not a church of one. This is why, ideally, baptisms ought to be performed at Mass or when the community has gathered.

Father Gary

https://stpaulcenter.com/the-anointing-scott-hahn-reflects-on-the-feast-of-the-baptism-of-the-lord/

The Anointing: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
Download Audio File

Readings:
Isaiah 42:1–4, 6–7
Psalm 29:1–4, 9–10
Luke 3:15–16, 21–22

The Liturgy last week revealed the mystery of God’s plan—that in Jesus all peoples, symbolized by the Magi, have been made “co-heirs” to the blessings promised Israel. This week, we’re shown how we claim our inheritance.

Jesus doesn’t submit to John’s baptism as a sinner in need of purification. He humbles Himself to pass through Jordan’s waters in order to lead a new “exodus”—opening up the promised land of heaven so that all peoples can hear the words pronounced over Jesus today, words once reserved only for Israel and its king: that each of us is a beloved son or daughter of God (see Genesis 22:2; Exodus 4:22; Psalm 2:7).

Jesus is the chosen servant Isaiah prophesies in today’s First Reading, anointed with the Spirit to make things right and just on earth. God puts His Spirit upon Jesus to make Him “a covenant of the people,” the liberator of the captives, the light to the nations. Jesus, today’s Second Reading tells us, is the One long expected in Israel, “anointed . . . with the Holy Spirit and power.”

The word messiah means “one anointed” with God’s Spirit. King David was “the anointed of the God of Jacob” (see 2 Samuel 23:1–17; Psalm 18:51; 132:10, 17). The prophets taught Israel to await a royal offshoot of David, upon whom the Spirit would rest (see Isaiah 11:1–2; Daniel 9:25).

That’s why the crowds are so anxious at the start of today’s Gospel. But it isn’t John they’re looking for. God confirms with His own voice what the angel earlier told Mary: Jesus is the Son of the Most High, come to claim the throne of David forever (see Luke 1:32–33).

In the Baptism that He brings, the voice of God will hover over the waters as fiery flame, as we sing in today’s Psalm. He has sanctified the waters, made them a passageway to healing and freedom—a fountain of new birth and everlasting life.

Luke 3: 15-16, 21-22

The Word for Sunday: http://usccb.org/bible/readings/011319.cfm
This Sunday we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. As we now complete the hectic Christmas season, we find ourselves back in to some “normal” routine. However, around Church ministry there is little that is routine or normal. Here we see Jesus now as he begins his public ministry. He comes to the Jordan River where John is actively involved in his baptismal ministry and preaching up a storm. John calls people to repentance and to prepare them for the imminent coming of the Messiah - who is Jesus of Nazareth. In so doing he is inviting all to walk through a new door, to begin a new way of life and to embrace this Christ about to appear.

Truth is, though, the crowds around John likely did not take particular notice of Jesus. He like others joined in the masses yet once John saw him, his cousin after all, he knew of his importance. The Gospel writers and the early Christian communities more likely were tying events together once they realized the nature of Jesus and mission. Everything we read in the Gospels is by hindsight in light of the resurrection

So, Jesus comes to be baptized by John. Although he bears no personal sin, he enters the waters and there embraces our humanity in all with all its brokenness. Thereby he makes this sacrament the first one which leads to all the others and raises humanity to a new higher level before God. In this way, baptism becomes for all of us a door to enter. Unlike the church doors, there is a handle on this one. In fact it is wide open and prominently bears a sign that reads “Enter here one and all.”

In baptism we are grafted on to the vine of Christ’s life and love in the Mystical Body of the Church and become sons and daughters of God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The dysfunction of original sin is washed away and although the broken world into which all of us are born remains, we now stand in a new relationship with God. The grace of the Holy Spirit brings us into a new life as we are conformed to his likeness in this gift of divine love.

But there are many who were baptized into the Church but no longer attend. What happened? Why not? Some have said the generations of today are not joiners. They don’t join clubs and organizations like so many did in the past. They tend to live their lives more independently and they don’t see the need for long term commitment. There may always be something new and better so they cherish their freedom and individuality. Many chose to be married later in life if they chose marriage at all. I think there is much truth to that.

But for those baptized, we do not join a club or society or some kind of historical organization. And while it is assumed that once baptized, you’re forever now a Christian sacramentally, if we look upon our parish, our Church and the Christian faith as a kind of society or club like others, then it might be understandable that, at least for now, something better has come along.

But baptism brings us into a new relationship with God where we are graced and conformed more intimately into the life of Christ himself. Jesus was not just some wise teacher or dead prophet but he is Lord of heaven and earth. The door of baptism opens us to a lifetime of grace and growth and we are invited each day to live as worthy sons and daughters of that grace as adopted children of a living God who now live life with a new perspective.

So what may indeed be lacking in so many today and even among those who remain faithfully involved in the life of the Church is to see our faith as a personal relationship with God; that we are called to come to know Christ Jesus as Lord of our lives. If we look to the ritual of baptism we may find a good reminder of how we can live.

Traditionally, water is poured over the head of the baby or adult to be baptized as the words of baptism are said along with the name of the person being baptized. In an emergency situation, such as in a hospital with a premature baby, a priest or deacon may simply take water and quickly baptize the baby over the head with the proper words and name. I’ve done that a few times over the years.

My favorite, though, is for the person, even a child, to immerse themselves in the water, often kneel, as the baptismal words are said and water flows down over the person’s entire body. It may be more dramatic but certainly emphasizes the point of cleansing and the total commitment of that person to the new faith in Christ and the Christian way.

I think each method may provide for us a symbolic way to measure our commitment to Christ and his Church. Do we simply dip our finger in the faith and quickly cover ourselves with little thought to what Christ is asking of me as a result of my baptism? Is my Catholic faith just simply a box I check off and move on like I would track attendance at some event?

Do I stand for a moment and reflect on who Christ is and who I have become as a result of being washed in grace and made a child of God?

Or am I willing to jump in to my faith and give myself more totally to the Lord and his Church? When baptized I promised, often through the family into which I was born or maybe later in life, to reject sin and worldly ways and to embrace God as Lord of my life and expressed my commitment to the Catholic Church in the Christian faith.

We have walked through the door opened for us by Christ in the waters of baptism. At Christmas, God was born of Mary and entered our world. Now in baptism God’s grace is born in us and we become his adopted children.

Our second reading from Titus so beautifully reminds us: “When the kindness and generous love of God our Savior appeared . . . he saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit . . . so that we might become justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.” It is all a gift of divine love.

Almighty ever-living God,
who, when Christ had been baptized in the River Jordan
and as the Holy Spirit descended upon him,
solemnly declared him your beloved Son,
grant that your children by adoption,
reborn of water and the Holy Spirit,
may always be well pleasing to you.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

(Roman Missal)

https://www.regnumchristi.org/en/daily-meditation/

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
Father Shawn Aaron, LC

Luke 3:15-16, 21-22

Now the people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Messiah. John answered them all, saying, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. After all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

Introductory Prayer: Almighty and eternal God, you are high above us in the heavens, and yet you are so near to me. I know that you love me infinitely. I rest in your love; I find my strength and hope in you alone. Thank you for loving me despite my sinfulness and complete unworthiness. In return, I offer you my whole self, along with my intense desire to put you first in my life.

Petition: Jesus meek and humble of heart, make my heart more like yours.

One Mightier Than I Is Coming: John knows who he is not. Proper self-knowledge is an essential step on the path to sanctity. John is attracting the attention of the multitudes in Israel. Many people would be flattered or even intoxicated with this notoriety. Yet John is not grasping for power, nor does he seek to be someone he is not. He is preparing people’s hearts for the true Christ. The Evil One will continually try to get us to look to ourselves and our own talents in an attempt to distract our eyes from God and his plan for us. John gives us a shining example of the triumph of humble self-knowledge over the wiles of the devil. When we are totally oriented toward God, we give rise to the desire to eliminate from our personal life any lie, vanity, and inflated opinion of ourselves. We begin to live in the truth, giving all the gifts God has granted us their real value. We use them for the service of his Kingdom, without taking anything for ourselves, since everything is his.

I Am Not Worthy to Loosen the Thongs of His Sandals: There is no holiness without humility. Simply understood, humility means living in the truth. This humility is born of a proper understanding of our relationship to God. It has nothing to do with a lack of self-respect – Jesus was humble, yet with utter self-possession and strength! Humility is the awareness that even our greatest talents come from God and are meant for his glory. In the end though, even John’s humility will pale in comparison to the humility that Jesus models for us in his life. “The one who serves does not consider himself superior to the one served, however miserable his situation at the moment may be. Christ took the lowest place in the world — the cross — and by this radical humility he redeemed us and constantly comes to our aid” (Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI, God Is Love, 35). Once again, we see that Jesus asks of us only what he himself has been willing to embrace. He is the source of the strength I need to practice this humility in my daily life.

Jesus Was Also Baptized: By being baptized, Jesus associates himself with sinful humanity. He has taken our flesh in the Incarnation. Now he sets out on the path of taking our sins upon himself so that he might redeem us from them. If it was a scandal for the Jewish people that God would become a man, how much more scandalous was it that he would be baptized, a manifest sign of repentance for sins? So great is God’s love for us that even this act is not beneath him. It is one of many steps by which he will allow his love for us to lead him even to the ignominy of the cross. Have I truly contemplated how important I am to Jesus?

Conversation with Christ: Blessed Lord, you went to the extreme of the cross to prove your love for me. You have borne my pride, and with your love and humility, you have proven yourself stronger than my greatest sin. Give me the strength and courage to follow you down the path of self-giving and humble service to those around me. Free me from the shackles of pride.

Resolution: Today I will read and reflect upon the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 1262-1270.

https://catholicexchange.com/scripture-speaks-the-baptism-of-our-lord
Scripture Speaks The Baptism of Our Lord
Gayle Somers

At the Nativity, we celebrated Jesus’ birth in flesh and blood. On Sunday, we celebrate a second “birth” — His and ours.

Gospel (Read Lk 3:15-16, 21-22)
St. Luke tells us that John the Baptist raised many Messianic expectations when he preached a baptism of repentance at the Jordan River. Because of an Old Testament prophecy in the Book of Daniel, in which the angel Gabriel revealed a kind of “timetable” for the coming of the Messiah (see Dan 9), the people in Jesus’ day, knowing that the prophecy’s date had come due, were on high alert.

John’s charismatic presence and his clear prophetic vocation aroused suspicion that he might be the Lord’s “Anointed.” John corrected them: “I am baptizing you with water, but One mightier than I is coming.” Why was John baptizing “with water”? It was a long-standing element in Jewish purification rituals, for obvious reasons. Water cleanses and purifies; it also sustains life.

Going all the way back to the Flood, the Jews knew that water figured prominently in salvation history. By John’s day, going down into water and rising up out of it represented a sinner’s desire to turn from sin, be cleansed from its effects, and start fresh. When Jesus appeared one day at the Jordan, why then did He take His place in line and submit to John’s baptism? Why would God’s Son need to participate in a ritual like this?

In a most dramatic way, Jesus demonstrated that He did not come only to be human like us. That was accomplished in the Incarnation. No, He became flesh and blood so that He could step into the place of sinners and accomplish what John’s baptism only symbolized.

Water, all of its own, can’t wash away the ocean of human sin! That could only happen with the death of sin itself, represented in baptism by the penitent’s disappearance under the surface of the water. Sin’s consequences mean death; man’s rebellion against his Creator requires a just punishment. When that requirement is satisfied, the penitent is free.

Jesus got baptized as His first public act of identification with man’s sin and His first step to defeat it, releasing all those held captive by it. That, of course, would require Him to be submerged into death, into the grave, into the netherworld—the Cross. His victory over those would be accomplished by His Resurrection; here it is symbolized by the opening of heaven and the descent of the Holy Spirit. In the old order, death meant the end, a dissolution. In the new order that Jesus came to bring, death in the water of baptism means new life, a re-birth, a truly new and eternal start.

God spoke to Jesus on the day of His baptism: “You are My beloved Son; with You I am well-pleased.” All those re-born in the waters of baptism that Jesus has given to His Church receive this same expression of love and delight from our Father. Jesus makes it possible for all of us to be born again into the relationship God originally intended for man and woman, blurred and distorted now by sin.

His baptism is not only with water but with “the Holy Spirit and fire.” It wipes away sin and implants divine life in us. John the Baptist knew his baptism could not accomplish that. In humility, he acknowledges this: “I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of His sandals.” Still, God allowed him to participate in the first public act of the Messiah for Whom he worked so tirelessly to prepare. What a blessed day that must have been for him.

Possible response: Lord Jesus, thank You for being willing to identify with my sins and failures. Help me to live each day in the newness of life You have made possible in baptism.

First Reading (Read Isa 42:1-4, 6-7)
God, through the prophet, Isaiah, foretold that someday His “servant…My chosen one with Whom I am well-pleased” would appear within human history. The description of this Servant was fulfilled most wonderfully in Jesus, Who began His public ministry on the day of his Baptism. He was tender and caring with those on the fringes of Jewish society (the bruised reeds and the smoldering wicks), whether because of illness, poverty, or sin. He worked to be a light to the blind of all nations, not just the Jews. It was a quiet work, often done in out-of-the-way places, in homes, on the side of a hill, or from a boat.

It was most fitting that on the day of His Baptism, God used the words of this prophecy (“My chosen One with Whom I am well-pleased”) to confirm that Jesus was the long-expected Messiah, Who would “bring forth justice to the nations.” He came to set the prisoners free.

Possible response: Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Servant, Jesus, to rescue all of us from sin. Teach me to listen for His quiet voice today.

Psalm (read Ps 29:1-4, 9-10)
The psalmist calls us to “give the Lord glory and praise.” When we think about the work Jesus came to do for us, beginning with His Baptism, that’s exactly what we want to do. We know that because Jesus was willing to die for sinners, “The Lord will bless His people with peace.” See how the psalmist says, “The voice of the Lord is over the waters.” We know that at Creation, the Spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters as God spoke the earth and its inhabitants into being (see Gen 1:2). Our Gospel tells us that God spoke over the waters of Jesus’ Baptism; once again the Spirit moved “over the water,” this time to bring forth new life for man through Jesus, to be administered through our own baptism. This should move us to sing with the psalmist, “Give to the Lord the glory due His Name.

Possible response: The psalm is, itself, a response to our other readings. Read it again prayerfully to make it your own.

Second Reading (Read Acts 10:34-38)
Here we have an account of the sermon St. Peter preached to the Gentile, Cornelius, and “all those gathered in the house of Cornelius.” By a vision and with angelic direction, St. Peter was sent to this God-fearing non-Jew in order to begin to fulfill the long-standing prophecies that the Messiah would be a light to “all the nations.” St. Peter declares that “God shows no partiality.”

As St. Peter describes the ministry of Jesus to Cornelius and the others, we see that he locates the beginning of this work on the day we are celebrating liturgically today, the Baptism of the Lord, when “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.” As of that day, “He went about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”

Through baptism in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (all three of Whom are mentioned here), the Church has offered this same liberation for over 2000 years. God is still proclaiming “peace through Jesus.” He is still welcoming all those re-born in the waters of baptism as His beloved children with whom He is “well-pleased.”

Possible response: Heavenly Father, please help me to live as a child with whom You are “well-pleased,” trusting Your Son and accepting His gift of salvation.

https://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp?lang=en&d=1/13/2019
One Bread, One Body
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All Issues > Volume 35, Issue 1

<< Sunday, January 13, 2019 >> Baptism of Jesus

Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11
Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7
View Readings Psalm 104:1-4, 24-25, 27-30
Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
Similar Reflections

SPIRIT-FILLED AND SPIRIT-WILLED

“The Holy Spirit descended on Him in visible form like a dove.” —Luke 3:22

On this last day of the Christmas season, we can receive in a new way the outpouring of the Spirit. Like Jesus, we must go to our Jordan and meet our St. John the Baptizer. There’s a person and a place that the Lord has chosen to be instrumental in lavishing His Spirit on us (Ti 3:6). Like Jesus, we will have to deny and humble ourselves to be at the right place at the right time (Mt 3:15). We will struggle interiorly to “let it be done” to us (Lk 1:38).

Let’s resist our resistance to the Spirit. The Lord wants to give the Spirit to us much more than we want to receive Him. If we would only want the Spirit more than we want our own way! Jesus, the Baptizer in the Spirit (Mk 1:8), is so quiet and gentle, “not crying out, not shouting, not making His voice heard in the street” (Is 42:2). It’s so easy to brush Him off, stifle the Christmas Spirit, and miss the opportunity of a lifetime. Yet, if we want to, we can hear Jesus breathing on us the words: “Receive the Holy Spirit” (Jn 20:22). The Spirit descends quietly as a dove (Mt 3:16), noticeable only to those who want to notice.

“My point is that you should live in accord with the Spirit and you will not yield to the cravings of the flesh” (Gal 5:16).

Prayer: Father, today immerse me in the Spirit.
Promise: “He saved us through the baptism of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” —Ti 3:5
Praise: Praise You, Jesus, for not leaving us orphans. Thank You, Father, for baptizing us into Your family. Holy Spirit, rain down on us the gifts and graces we need for each day.

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