Who is Jesus Christ and who am I?

With this Sunday, we begin the Ordinary Time of the Church Year.  In the Liturgical cycle of year A, we focus on the Gospel of Matthew.  But you will notice today’s Gospel is from the Gospel of John.  The second Sunday of the Church Year is always  from John’s Gospel.  At the beginning of the Ordinary Time, the Church in beginning with John’s Gospel wants to orient us with a brief vision of the broader mission of Jesus.  The ultimate mission of Jesus is his passion and resurrection which is symbolized in Jesus as the Lamb of God.  We are also given a moment for us to reflect on the meaning of our own baptism and what it means to be baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus.

As I mentioned, the Church begins with John’s Gospel to orient us to the broader mission of Jesus, the ultimate destiny of his passion-resurrection and also to challenge us to live out in daily discipleship the meaning of being baptized into Jesus’ death and resurrection.

I would invite you to reflect and meditate on two questions:

                                Who is Jesus?

                                Who am I?

Who is Jesus Christ?  In the Gospel, John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”

Jesus is the Lamb of God.  From one perspective, it doesn’t seem too flattering to be called a lamb -- a timid animal that others use for food and Pendelton shirts.  But the lamb has much more meaning.  In Jesus’ time, the lamb was used for religious sacrifice. 

You may recall in the Old Testament that Abraham was asked to sacrifice his only son Isaac.  In that account, Isaac said to his dad: “Behold, the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”  Abraham said, “God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.”

This Old Testament prefigures Jesus becoming the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world by offering his life in sacrifice on the cross.

Then John in the last part of this Gospel account says:  “Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.”  Jesus is the presence of God in the world.  He is the presence of God among us.  Who is Jesus?  He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  He is the Son of God.  He is not just the man from Galilee; he is the very God from heaven.

WHO AM I?    To answer that question, we need to remember our baptism.  Remember your baptism.    It was such an important moment in your journey of faith.

For me, my mom and dad, presumably with my older brother and sister brought me to Our Lady of Good Counsel on April 12, 1942 along with my godparents.  I was less than three weeks old.  Father Nolan who was the associate priest at Our Lady of Good Counsel at the time baptized me in a simple ceremony on Sunday afternoon.  As it happens, my mom and dad, the priest who baptized me, my god parents, and my older brother and sister are all deceased. But the grace and the meaning of my baptism is what still enlivens my spirit to this day.

In the waters of baptism, I received the life of Christ Jesus.  The words spoken to Jesus from his heavenly Father on the day of his baptism were also spoken to me by God the Father:  “You are my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.  In baptism, I became God’s beloved; I was welcomed into the Church;  I became a member of the Community of the Baptized; and I was given a sharing in the mission of Jesus to witness to the love of Jesus to one and all.

My first encounter with Jesus was at God’s initiative.  I was the recipient of the unconditional love of Jesus long before reaching the age of reason.  I was created by God, for God.  Understanding the grace and the truth of my baptism and realizing its meaning takes a long time, even a life time.  74 years later, I am still seeking to experience more fully the love of God that has continuously been given to me since the moment of my baptism.

On the day of my First Communion, the day of Confirmation, the day I was ordained a priest 48 years ago, each time I celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation, each time I celebrate the Eucharist, I deepen the life of Christ Jesus that I first received on April 12, 1942 on the day of my baptism.

It was my parents who made the decision for me to be baptized but with each sacrament I celebrate it is I who confirm the commitment to my discipleship of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Who am I?  I am a child of God.  I am God’s beloved son.  I am a member of the community of the baptized as a Catholic.  I am missioned to proclaim and witness God’s love in the community in which I live.

I am also an ordained priest that further identifies the mission that I was given at baptism, but I would be quick to say we share much in common as respond to the question WHO AM I?

The identity we all share in baptism is huge.  We are God’s beloved; we are brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus; and we all given the mission to witness to the mission of Jesus, to witness to the love of God in the world.

As we remember the baptism of Jesus, may we also remember our own baptism.  Even more important, as a community of the baptized, may we missioned to witness to the love of Jesus in all that we say and do.