My Sisters and Brothers:
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, and so we recall that moment when “Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan” (see Mark1:7-11). Jesus the human being chose to be baptized because he was very much “one of us.”
We may on this day reflect upon the significance of our own baptisms as we each do our best to live our Christian lives! Of course we hope to do that with fidelity to the message and the example of Jesus himself.
We may ask ourselves, “do our own baptisms effect the way that we live our Christian lives in this world?” We may also ask ourselves “how do our baptisms connect us to the rest of the human community – especially to our Christian community?” I believe that some rather crucial obligations are placed on each one of us because we are baptized followers of Jesus Christ!
In the first reading today, the prophet Isaiah tells us that the children of God are called to “open the eyes of the blind, to bring prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon those who live in darkness” (see Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7). Jesus understood this calling and he constantly modeled for us how to serve others while serving God! Unfortunately, we know that many people in our world continue to be enslaved by sin and darkness. Today, the words of Isaiah continue to challenge us (and he composed his thoughts at least twenty-five hundred years ago).
I believe that many people in our own time continue to be enslaved by sin and darkness because they have failed to understand and/or accept the idea that none of us can live without the constant care, love and support of others. Most of us understand that we very much need to exist within a community of people and that “no person is an island.” My experience tells me that if a person chooses to live an isolated and highly individualistic life, then he or she will likely lose any sense of responsibility for others, even members of their own families and/or their communities. Our baptisms, something we each share with the Lord Jesus Christ, calls us to be people who are very much connected to the rest of the human community, and of course, this must start “at home.”
As those who are baptized, each one of us have great and important responsibilities toward the others around us! This means that, if we are to be faithful to our Christian calling, then we must always strive to be positive forces in our local and extended communities. We must help those in need; we must answer the cries of the poor and the afflicted; we must help our sisters and brothers who are addicted to drugs and alcohol and we must aid those who are afflicted with disease (just to name few things!). I don’t believe we will be able to do these things well if we fail to understand that we, as human beings, and as followers of the Lord Jesus, are profoundly connected to one another.
If we are faithful to the challenge of our baptisms, then like Jesus in today’s Gospel, we will be told by our Father in heaven that we are his beloved children and that with us he is “well pleased.” May we encourage one another with the baptismal faith we each strive to put into action!
Praise God! Friar Timothy
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Today we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, and so we recall that moment when “Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan” (see Mark1:7-11). Jesus the human being chose to be baptized because he was very much “one of us.”
We may on this day reflect upon the significance of our own baptisms as we each do our best to live our Christian lives! Of course we hope to do that with fidelity to the message and the example of Jesus himself.
We may ask ourselves, “do our own baptisms effect the way that we live our Christian lives in this world?” We may also ask ourselves “how do our baptisms connect us to the rest of the human community – especially to our Christian community?” I believe that some rather crucial obligations are placed on each one of us because we are baptized followers of Jesus Christ!
In the first reading today, the prophet Isaiah tells us that the children of God are called to “open the eyes of the blind, to bring prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon those who live in darkness” (see Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7). Jesus understood this calling and he constantly modeled for us how to serve others while serving God! Unfortunately, we know that many people in our world continue to be enslaved by sin and darkness. Today, the words of Isaiah continue to challenge us (and he composed his thoughts at least twenty-five hundred years ago).
I believe that many people in our own time continue to be enslaved by sin and darkness because they have failed to understand and/or accept the idea that none of us can live without the constant care, love and support of others. Most of us understand that we very much need to exist within a community of people and that “no person is an island.” My experience tells me that if a person chooses to live an isolated and highly individualistic life, then he or she will likely lose any sense of responsibility for others, even members of their own families and/or their communities. Our baptisms, something we each share with the Lord Jesus Christ, calls us to be people who are very much connected to the rest of the human community, and of course, this must start “at home.”
As those who are baptized, each one of us have great and important responsibilities toward the others around us! This means that, if we are to be faithful to our Christian calling, then we must always strive to be positive forces in our local and extended communities. We must help those in need; we must answer the cries of the poor and the afflicted; we must help our sisters and brothers who are addicted to drugs and alcohol and we must aid those who are afflicted with disease (just to name few things!). I don’t believe we will be able to do these things well if we fail to understand that we, as human beings, and as followers of the Lord Jesus, are profoundly connected to one another.
If we are faithful to the challenge of our baptisms, then like Jesus in today’s Gospel, we will be told by our Father in heaven that we are his beloved children and that with us he is “well pleased.” May we encourage one another with the baptismal faith we each strive to put into action!
Praise God! Friar Timothy
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