20230109 BE A LIGHT AND HOPE TO ALL THE NATIONS
09 January 2023 Monday, The Baptism of the Lord
First reading |
Isaiah 42:1-4,6-7 © |
Here is my servant, in whom my soul delights
Thus says the Lord:
Here is my servant whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom my soul delights.
I have endowed him with my spirit
that he may bring true justice to the nations.
He does not cry out or shout aloud,
or make his voice heard in the streets.
He does not break the crushed reed,
nor quench the wavering flame.
Faithfully he brings true justice;
he will neither waver, nor be crushed
until true justice is established on earth,
for the islands are awaiting his law.
I, the Lord, have called you to serve the cause of right;
I have taken you by the hand and formed you;
I have appointed you as covenant of the people and light of the nations,
to open the eyes of the blind,
to free captives from prison,
and those who live in darkness from the dungeon.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 28(29):1-4,9-10 © |
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
O give the Lord, you sons of God,
give the Lord glory and power;
give the Lord the glory of his name.
Adore the Lord in his holy court.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The Lord’s voice resounding on the waters,
the Lord on the immensity of waters;
the voice of the Lord, full of power,
the voice of the Lord, full of splendour.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The God of glory thunders.
In his temple they all cry: ‘Glory!’
The Lord sat enthroned over the flood;
the Lord sits as king for ever.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
When a Feast of the Lord falls on a weekday, there is no reading after the Psalm and before the Gospel.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Mk9:8 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
The heavens opened and the Father’s voice resounded:
‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him.’
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 3:13-17 © |
'This is my Son, the Beloved'
Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John. John tried to dissuade him. ‘It is I who need baptism from you’ he said ‘and yet you come to me!’ But Jesus replied, ‘Leave it like this for the time being; it is fitting that we should, in this way, do all that righteousness demands.’ At this, John gave in to him.
As soon as Jesus was baptised he came up from the water, and suddenly the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And a voice spoke from heaven, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on him.’
BE A LIGHT AND HOPE TO ALL THE NATIONS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISA 42:1-4,6-7; ACTS 10:34-38; MT 3:13-17]
Today, we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. The reflection the scripture readings propose to us is this: How does a person come to seek baptism? Most importantly, they need to be brought into an initial contact with How do we draw inspiration from these two liturgical celebrations this evening?
God’s mercy and compassion. This was the case of Cornelius. How gracious our God is, as St Peter remarked when Cornelius received the Holy Spirit even though he was not a Christian or even a Jew. He said, “The truth I have now come to realise is that God does not have favourites, but that anybody of any nationality who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to him.” We are reminded of the words of the angels at Christmas when they said, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” (Lk 2:14) God’s mercy is freely given to all without reservation. even to non-Christians. St Paul wrote that God “desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim 2:4)
Truly, this first encounter with God’s merciful love is critical for someone who is growing in faith in God, just like Cornelius. Unless we encounter the personal love of God for us in our lives, it is difficult to grow in faith and in relationship with Him. Those of us who have intellectual faith in God through study and knowledge alone would not be able to stand firm in our faith in times of trial and difficulty. As the Lord said, such faith is not built on rock. “And so when the rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” (Mt 7:25)
This truth is reiterated in today’s feast of the baptism of our Lord. His public ministry began with a critical God-experience. The gospel tells us that “as soon as Jesus was baptised he came up from the water, and suddenly the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And a voice spoke from heaven, ‘This is my Son, the beloved; my favour rests on him.'” This is a very important event marking the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, after thirty years of hidden life in Nazareth. Only at His baptism, were His identity and mission revealed and confirmed. Unless we know our identity and mission, we cannot give ourselves totally to our calling, as all of us are called for a certain purpose in life. Mission is not an ambition. It is a calling that comes from a clear consciousness of one’s identity. In this event, therefore, the evangelist presents both a Christophany and a theophany of our Lord. Hence, this feast is celebrated as a continuity of the feast of Epiphany, when Christ was manifested as Saviour of the world.
The Baptism of our Lord is first of all a Christophany, that is, Christ is manifested as the Anointed One, the Messiah whom the Holy Spirit rests on Him. Christ was not anointed by oil but in the power of the Holy Spirit. In other words, upon receiving the Holy Spirit, Jesus came to consciousness of His mission as prophesied by Isaiah. “I, the Lord, have called you to serve the cause of right; I have taken you by the hand and formed you; I have appointed you as covenant of the people and light of the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to free captives from prison, and those who live in darkness from dungeon.” Accordingly, St Luke at the inauguration of His mission recounted the incident at the Synagogue at the beginning of His ministry, citing from the prophet Isaiah what He was called to do. “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Lk 4:18f cf Isa 61:1f; 58:6)
This mission is to be accomplished in lowliness, humility, compassion and self-sacrifice. The baptism of Jesus has been a cause of embarrassment to the early Church. If Jesus were the Son of God, and therefore without sin, how could He ask for baptism from John the Baptist? Indeed, this gave cause to some disciples who wondered whether John the Baptist could be the Messiah instead. We read in John’s gospel, that the religious leaders sent “in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, ‘I am not the Messiah.'” (Jn 1:19-22) He also denied that he was Elijah, or the Prophet promised by Moses. (cf Dt 18:18). By asking to be baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus was assuming not just our humanity but the conditions of what it means to be human. He faced all the temptations and trials of being human, even though He did not fall into sin. But He was not exempted from the temptations of the Evil One or the finite conditions of being a man. In this way, He took upon Himself the sufferings of humanity and the sins of man.
As the Suffering Servant, the words of the prophet Isaiah apply to our Lord. “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom my soul delights. I have endowed him with my spirit that he may bring true justice to the nations. He does not cry out or shout aloud, or make his voice heard in the streets. He does not break the crushed reed, nor quench the wavering flame. Faithfully he brings true justice; he will neither waver nor be crushed until true justice is established on earth, for the islands are awaiting his law.” His mission was to bring justice and reconciliation in the world and with God through non-violence and compassion. Through His compassion for the poor, the suffering, the hungry and those who were sick, He revealed God’s mercy and compassion. To sinners and His enemies, He offered forgiveness. Jesus sought to win us over by love, compassion and forgiveness.
His Baptism was not just a Christophany but a Theophany as well. “As soon as Jesus was baptised he came up from the water, and suddenly the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And a voice spoke from heaven, ‘This is my Son, the beloved; my favour rests on him.'” Jesus was not just revealed as the Messiah, the Anointed One, He was also revealed as the Son of the Father. In this theophany when the Father revealed Himself as the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, He gave Jesus the impetus to reveal His love and mercy. As the Son of the Father, the mission of our Lord was to manifest the Father’s self-emptying love for humanity, and His compassion and mercy for all. It is significant to remember that this theophany is as much for us as it was for Christ. As confirmation of Christ’s divine sonship, and therefore sharing in the Father’s mission to save humanity, it was also when Jesus experienced the Father’s love in an intimate manner, affirming Him of His mission. It was also a confirmation of the Father’s love for Him when the heavenly Father said, “This is my Son, the beloved; my favour rests on Him.”
We who celebrate this Feast of the Baptism of our Lord, are reminded of our own sonship and daughtership at our baptism. It is critical that we too need to have a radical experience of the Father’s love so that we can truly give ourselves to the same mission of giving ourselves for the salvation of humanity, in selfless service and love. As Christians, we too are called to be the light to the nations and the hope for those in despair and in suffering. But we can know our true identity only when we come to know the Father’s love intimately and hear Him saying to us, “You are my beloved Son or Daughter!” Unfortunately, many of us are not conscious of our sonship at baptism and that is why, through the Charismatic renewal particularly, and through other religious encounters, we are called to rediscover our sonship or daughtership in Christ. Unless this happens, our witness to Christ and our participation in Christ’s mission would be weak as we lack a consciousness of identity and therefore our mission.
Secondly, we too must be like Jesus who is identified with the sufferings of humanity. Like Jesus, we are called to feel with the suffering of our fellowmen and the wounds they carry in their heart and body. Jesus, in asking John the Baptist to baptize Him, made it clear that He was the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. (cf Jn 1:29). By immersing Himself in the water and emerging from the waters, He showed us the way, namely, by suffering with us unto death and giving us hope and new life in His resurrection. We too must be like Christ who not only immersed Himself in the sins and suffering of humanity but in the Father’s love through the Holy Spirit poured into our hearts. In this way, we can give hope to those who are suffering, that through death to self and dying to death, we have an assurance of new life in the Spirit. Let us live out our baptismal calling in imitation of our Lord, “God had anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and because God was with him, Jesus went about doing good and curing all who had fallen into the power of the devil.” May we be light and hope to others in Christ.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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