On the day of our Baptism, we receive the life of Christ Jesus.

 

 

Second Sunday of OT  A  2023

 

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.

 

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 lifetime.  80 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.

 

Today’s first Scripture reading emphasizes that God has first recognized us.  From the first Scripture reading from the prophet Isaiah:  “I, the Lord, have called you.  I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you as a covenant of the people; a light for the nations.”

 

God has first loved us.

 

On the day of my First Communion, the day of Confirmation, the day I was ordained a priest 54 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.

 

 

 Today’s Gospel speaks of recognition, faith-filled recognition -- recognizing the presence of Jesus in our midst.  John the Baptist affirms his recognition of Jesus:  “I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.”  At what level do you recognize Jesus in our lives?  Do we call Jesus by name?  In what situations do we recognize Jesus?  My hunch is that in some situations we recognize Jesus and in other situations we do not recognize His presence.

 

Do we recognize the presence of Jesus in the mystery of the Eucharist we are now celebrating?   Will we recognize the presence of Jesus at our family dinner table today?  Do we recognize the presence of Jesus in whatever I am stressed out about today?  Do I recognize the presence of Jesus in the poor and the immigrants who need my help?

 

As we pray over today’s Gospel, we prayerfully ask how we recognize Jesus who is always present to us, and how do we, like John the Baptist, enable others to recognize Christ?

 

Indeed we are missioned to be John the Baptist in pointing out the presence of Christ to others.  Parents, it is your profound responsibility to help your children recognize the presence of Christ in good times and in bad.  As parishioners, we are missioned to reveal the presence of Christ to each other and to our community and in our world.  We ask for the grace to be John the Baptist for others.

 

Have a Blessed Day.