FEAST OF THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD
TODAY BRINGS TO AN END our Christmas celebrations. And we see the third and last of the three great manifestations by which were made known to us that our God had come among us in a very special way. (However, the sign that Jesus gave in Cana is also a special manifestation of God's presence in Jesus.)
THREE MANIFESTATIONS
The first of these manifestations was through the story of the birth of Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem. The first people privileged to experience this manifestation were the shepherds, representing the poor, the sinful, and the social outcasts on whom Luke's Gospel is especially focused.
The second manifestation, the Epiphany, celebrated Sunday, reflects Matthew's emphasis that Jesus was born not only for his own people but for people of every country and every race everywhere.
The third and final manifestation of God's presence among us through Jesus is found in all the four gospels. While the first two manifestations are linked with the birth of Jesus, this one comes at a much later date, at the moment when Jesus is about to begin his public life.
WHY BAPTIZE JESUS?
We might very well wonder, along with John the Baptist, why Jesus needed to be baptized. "It is I who need baptism from you," John said to Jesus, "and yet you come to me!" All those others being baptized in the Jordan by John were doing so as a sign of repentance for their sins and as an expression of their desire to turn around their lives. How could Jesus, the Son of God, be part of this?
The first answer to this is that Jesus in so doing was expressing his total solidarity with the human race, of which he was a member. He identified with them, not as a sinner but as a fellow human being. As he steps out of the water, the heavens open and the Spirit of God comes down on Jesus to fill him with all God's fullness. "This is my Son, the Beloved [agapetos, the object of God's agape, his outpouring love]; in him I am deeply pleased."
From: Sunday Scripture Reflections with Frank Doyle SJ and Beliefnet
