Readings:
Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7
Psalm 29:1-2, 3-4, 3, 9-10
Acts 10:34-38
Matthew 3:13-17
Down comes the tree
Today is the official conclusion of the Christmas season. For many, it may be a rather sad time. Gone are the brilliant lights that added warmth and light-heartedness to our lives; gone are the pleasant aromas of holly and pine; gone are the greetings of love and peace and joy. It is time to go back to ordinary life. However, we don’t go back the same as we were before. We now have new gifts to enjoy, new clothes to wear. We may have made New Year resolutions that call for change. While in some ways today may be an end, it is also a beginning.
On this celebration of the Baptism of Jesus, the gospel account describes extraordinary occurrences. The heavens open and the Spirit of God descends like a dove; a voice from heaven identifies Jesus as “Beloved Son.” Most commentators agree that this episode inaugurated the public ministry of Jesus. John’s baptism was a devotional ritual that symbolized repentance and a willingness to reform. He realized that Jesus had no need for this kind of baptism, and initially he objected when Jesus came to him. However, Jesus insisted that it was important “to fulfill all righteousness.” John prepared the way (see Mal 3:1); he represented the preparation for the great messianic event. Jesus made this connection with John and these messianic expectations, and then, under the power of the Spirit, moved into his own ministry.
The words attributed to God in the gospel account call to mind the words of the prophet Isaiah found in the first reading. There, we encounter a mysterious figure known as ‘the servant of the Lord,’ a person chosen by God and filled with God’s spirit. He was attentive to those who were somehow broken in body or in spirit. To them, he brought comfort and established justice so that they would be able to flourish. This individual came to represent the compassion of God. The gospel writer reached back into this Isaian passage in his description of the baptism of Jesus so that Jesus might be identified with this ‘servant of the Lord.’ These words would also have laid bare the character of Jesus’ messianic ministry. He would bring justice, but he would accomplish this with gentleness rather than through the strength of arms. He would be particularly sensitive to the weak and vulnerable, and his example would be “a light for the nations” to follow. His manner of ministry would radically challenge the character of strength exercised by so many governments and movements promoted by society then and now.
The dove that hovered over the water is reminiscent of the dove sent out by Noah after the waters of the flood began to recede. These waters were not merely floodwaters. They represented the primeval waters of chaos. In the ancient myths, only the mighty creator god could control them. Traces of this myth can still be detected in the Noah account. When the dove returned with an olive leaf in its mouth, Noah knew that chaos had been subdued, the danger was over, and he and his family would soon be able to begin life on earth again. In its own way, this is a creation story. Though the dove in the gospel account symbolizes the Spirit of God, the similarity of meaning here is striking. Like Noah, Jesus came out of the water ready to begin a new phase of his life. Here too, the dove alerts us to new phases in the history – the reign of God inaugurated by Jesus himself, and the continuation of that reign as we further it in our own lives today.
The Trinitarian character of this feast is obvious in the words found in the gospel. At the baptism of Jesus, the Spirit descended like a dove, and the voice from heaven identified Jesus as “my beloved Son,” This feast is an apt time for us to consider our own baptism, the time when we too, were identified as beloved children of God. Baptism is the most precious gift we have received, and it is given without qualification. Even Gentiles like Cornelius, or you, or I have been welcomed into the community of the baptized, for “God shows no partiality.” As we did with our Christmas gifts, we must now make use of the treasures of our baptism. We have been clothed in the Spirit. It is now time for us to put on these new clothes and live new lives in the Spirit.
Just as Jesus’ baptism inaugurated his ministry, so our baptism calls us to ministry as well. There are many ways that we can continue the ministry begun by Jesus. We too can comfort and protect the “bruised reed” and the “smoldering wick.” We can establish justice in our homes, our communities, and our workplaces. We can be eyes for those who are blind, whether their blindness is physical, emotional, or spiritual. There are many ways that we can help people to live freely. We are not helpless to change the world of which we are a part. Finally, we can act as beacons of light to those who struggle in the darkness of fear, ignorance, or despair. If we live in this way, God’s words can also apply to us: ‘This is my beloved son [my beloved daughter], with whom I am well pleased.’
Dianne Bergant, CSA