Baptism of the Lord

To All the Parishioners of the Epiphany of the Lord 

The Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord 
January 12, 2025 

The joy that flowed from the celebration of holy Christmas is fulfilled today in the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. Having reached adulthood, Jesus began his public ministry by going to the River Jordan to receive from John a baptism of penance and conversion. Yet the One who is without sin put himself among sinners to have himself baptized, to make this act of penance. What happened at the moment when Jesus had himself baptized by John? In the face of this act of humble love by the Son of God, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit showed himself in the form of a dove, while a voice from on high expressed the pleasure of the Father who acknowledged his Only-Begotten, his beloved Son. This was a real manifestation of the Blessed Trinity, that bears witness to the divinity of Jesus, of his being the promised Messiah, the One whom God sent to set his People free in order to save them (Isaiah 40:2). (Pope Benedict XVI, Homily, January 2013) 

Dear parishioners, the Christmas season, celebrating the self-revelation of God through Jesus, comes to an end with the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord. Christmas is the feast of God’s self-revelation to the Jews, and Epiphany celebrates God’s self-revelation to the Gentiles. At his Baptism in the Jordan, Christ reveals himself to repentant sinners. The liturgical season of Christmas comes to a conclusion this Sunday with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord, which is the first of the three Sacraments of Initiation for our life. 

Having reached adulthood, Jesus began his public ministry by going to the River Jordan to receive from John a baptism of penance and conversion. What might seem paradoxical in our eyes actually happened. Did Jesus need penance and conversion? Of course not. Yet the One who is without sin put himself among sinners to have himself baptized, to make this act of penance. 

Jesus’ baptism by John was a mystical experience that Jesus felt deep within his soul at the crucial turning point of his life. How to understand this? 

Jesus’ baptism by John was a very important event in the life of Jesus. First, it was a moment of decision. It marked the end of Jesus’ private life, which had prepared him for his public ministry. Second, it was a moment of identification with his people in their God-ward movement initiated by John the Baptist (quality of a good leader). Third, it was a moment of approval. Jesus might have been waiting for a signal of approval from his Heavenly Father, and during his baptism Jesus got this approval of himself as the Father’s “beloved Son.” Fourth, it was a moment of conviction. At this baptism, Jesus received certainties (assurances) from Heaven about his identity and the nature of his mission: i) He was the “Chosen One” and the “beloved Son of God”; ii) his mission of saving mankind would be fulfilled, not by conquering the Romans, but by becoming the “suffering servant” of God, i.e., by the cross. Fifth, it was a moment of equipment. When He descended on Jesus in the form of a dove (symbol of gentleness), the Holy Spirit equipped Jesus with the power of healing, and that of preaching the “Good News” that God is a loving Father, who wants to save all human beings from their sins through His Son Jesus, in contrast to the “axe” and “fire” preaching of John the Baptist about an angry God’s judgment on sinners. 

Nevertheless, the baptism of Jesus reminds us of our identity. Jesus’ baptism reminds us of who we are and Whose we are. By Baptism we become the adoptive sons and daughters of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus, members of his Church, heirs of Heaven and temples of the Holy Spirit. We become incorporated into the Church, the Body of Christ, and made sharers in the priesthood of Christ (Catechism of the Catholic Church #1279). Hence, “Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit and the door which gives access to the other Sacraments” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1213). Most of us dipped the fingers of our right hand into the holy water font and blessed ourselves when we came into Church today. 

Dear parishioners, Jesus’ baptism reminds us of our mission: i) to experience the presence of God within us, to acknowledge our own dignity as God’s children and to appreciate the Divine Presence in others by honoring them, loving them and serving them in all humility; ii) to live as the children of God in thought, word and action so that our Heavenly Father may say to each one of us what He said to Jesus: “You are My beloved son/daughter with whom I am well pleased.” It means that we are to let His thoughts direct our thoughts, His mind control our mind, His concerns be our concerns. In the Church we all share the same intimate connection with Christ; we are all brothers and sisters in Christ; iii) to lead a holy and transparent Christian life and not to desecrate our bodies (the temples of the Holy Spirit and members of Jesus’ Body) by impurity, injustice, intolerance, jealousy or hatred; iv) to accept both the good and the bad experiences of life as the gifts of a loving Heavenly Father for our growth in holiness; v) to grow daily in intimacy with God by personal and family prayers, by reading the Word of God, by participating in the Holy Mass, and by frequenting the Sacrament of Reconciliation; and vi) to be co-creators with God in building up the “Kingdom of God” on earth, a Kingdom of compassion, justice and love, and to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. In other words, He has called us to help others to see, through the love that we show and the help that we give, that God loves them, that He also invites them to be His sons and daughters and that He wants to be their helper and strength through all the troubles that life in this world can bring. 

However, this is also a day for us to renew our Baptismal promises, consecrating ourselves to the Holy Trinity and “rejecting Satan and all his empty promises,” which our profane world is constantly offering us through its mass-media of communication. Let us ask Our Lord today to make us faithful to our Baptismal promises. Let us thank Him for the privilege of being joined to His mission of preaching the “Good News” by our transparent Christian lives of love, mercy, service and forgiveness. 

Dear friends, at our Baptism through symbol and ritual, we are welcomed into a community. A community of contradictions we are not perfect. It is a sinful community, always in need of God’s grace and favor. But it is made up of people striving to make it a community of love. In an age that can be inhuman, there is compassion. Let us celebrate the feast of the Baptism of the Lord in a worthy and in a befitting manner. Let us remember the day of our baptism. 

I wish everyone a happy feast of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus! 

Fraternally, 
Fr. John Peter Lazaar SAC 
Pastor, Epiphany of the Lord