Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and Saint Rose,

The Christmas season begins with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem and then moves in a matter of weeks from the newborn Jesus to the adult thirty year old Jesus. Today we celebrate the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan. This marks the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus, who now proclaims the Kingdom of God.

This day is important, not in what it does for Jesus, but in what it does for us. Through the baptism of Jesus, the water of baptism is made sacred and the sacrament of baptism becomes possible.

A sacrament causes to happen what it signifies. In other words, it is not a mere symbolic pouring of water. It is a change: the water washes away original sin and the one who is baptized dies and rises to a new life in Christ.

Baptism is a portal to all the other sacraments and to the eternal life that God promises us in the Heavenly Kingdom. As Catholics, we want people to have this grace as soon as possible, so we baptize our children shortly after they are born so that they already become children of God. We have the parents and godparents agree to surround this child with a love of Jesus and an example of living the Faith, so that the child will know of the presence of Jesus in his life from the very beginning.

Some Christians argue that you have to be aware of what you are committing yourself to before receiving baptism. We believe that it is a lifetime of becoming aware of what our life in Christ consists. We are never fully aware of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. The grace of baptism works in us whether we are aware of it or not.

We are always growing in the grace bestowed on us in baptism. We use constant reminders that we are baptized in Christ. The holy water that we normally use when we enter and leave the church reminds us of our baptism. I am still reaching for the holy water font, even though it has been empty for nine months. I will be so glad to have that comforting sign back so I can bless myself upon entering the church!

On special occasions like Easter, we sprinkle the water to remind ourselves that we are among the baptized. It reminds us of our call to follow, serve, and witness to Jesus no matter what may happen.

Almighty, everliving God, who, when Christ had been baptized in the River Jordan, and as the Holy Spirit descended upon him, solemnly declared him your beloved Son, grant that your children by adoptions, reborn of water and the Holy Spirit, may always be well pleasing to you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. ~opening collect, Baptism of the Lord

Msgr. Cox
The Baptism of Christ, El Greco (1597)