Reflection – The Baptism of Jesus

The feast of the Baptism of Jesus occurs at the end of the Christmas season before the Church begins the cycle of Ordinary time. The baptism of Jesus marks the beginning of his public ministry. From that day he began his mission of proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom of God. Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit at his baptism to help him carry out his mission – the Gospel from St. Mark tells us “the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily shape, like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you’”.

Today’s feast gives us an opportunity to reflect on our own baptism and on our mission in life. Although most of us were baptised as infants and were too young to remember, our baptism was an important occasion in our lives. Our parents and godparents committed to bringing us up in the love of God and the practice of the Catholic faith. We give thanks for their witness and that of the wider Church community in helping us on our faith journey. Through our baptism we too received the gift of the Holy Spirit making us share intimately in the life of God, who loves us unconditionally and calls his children.

As children of God we each have a share in the Church’s mission of evangelisation, and we can be missionaries in our own lives by bringing the love of God to others just as we have come to encounter it ourselves. Being a missionary means flourishing in the graces of our baptism. The Gospel challenges us to love radically and be missionary in action, heart and mind. We can embrace our missionary identity more fully by responding in generosity and love with a renewed yes to Christ; witnessing to his love for us by our faithfulness in living out the message of the Gospel, and by the example of our lives.  In that way we can be true disciples of Christ and witnesses for the light of life, opening our lives to God’s grace and providence and living out our baptismal promises in reality.

Author: Patrick Muldoon