One of the most exciting things I've experienced in the last month was the visit to my home of #1 grandson, Calvin, all the way from his home in North Carolina. Now Calvin is all of 16 months old so he had mom and dad come along for the visit. Now there are many things I can share about the visit of #1 grandson, but I was thinking this week about the toy that Calvin plays with that tells him the sound of different animals. You and I are familiar with this toy because our kids played with it, maybe some of you played with it. Now I got to thinking that only certain animals are included on this toy; there is a kind of animal discrimination going on. And maybe, just maybe that is why one of the more popular songs today is: "what does the fox say"!! Do you know the song? Well that might depend on age and your own level of being computer savvy. Its a silly song, and the lyrics attempt to give some voice to the fox. I guess if you think about, does anyone really know the real voice of a fox?
For us, voice is so important. We recognize loved ones by the sound of their voice, it's important to have a voice and it may be equally important to be a voice for someone!
As people of faith, by our Baptism we have the voice of Christ within in us, and we are called to be His voice to all, especially those who have no voice!
Now we indeed have arrived at the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, a significant feast in many ways. Today the Church declares the end of the Christmas season and we are ready to begin Ordinary Time tomorrow. It also helps us to understand the manifestation of Jesus Christ, and that's why we follow the Epiphany with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, and often, we hear the words of the Wedding Feast of Cana during this time. These three important events in the life of Jesus help us to know who He is and why He came. He came to save us, He came to take own our sins and He came to give us a path to eternal happiness.
In today's Gospel Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist because he asks the Baptist to allow it for now. We should know that Jesus had no need of Baptism, in the manner that you and I need Baptism. Jesus shows us the example of the importance of Baptism in our lives. Baptism cleanses us from original sin, it remits any other sins we may have at the time of Baptism and it incorporates us into the life of the Church. We become reborn, new creatures. But while all of this happens to and for us, make no mistake, Jesus did not need water to be made clean, he went into the water and made it clean. Jesus did not need to hear the words spoken at Baptism, yet he made them holy. John the Baptist did not need to be the minister to make the Sacrament real for Jesus, rather Jesus consecrated John by being present and asking John to allow it for now!
Now I have my little green Baptismal book with me again today. I've shared with you before from my book. Still to this day, I can turn to the page with the name and date of my first Baptism; Aiden Hellbach, April 9th, 2009. And my last child baptized is here too, Caroline Whitmer, December 1st, 2013. I remember both days. We all can learn from revisiting parts of the rite of Baptism contained in this book. What name to you give your child? What do you ask for your child of the church? Verbally, mom and dad declare the child's name and state they ask for Baptism. And the godparents are asked too if they are ready to help mom & dad in their duty as Christian parents. Before we pour water and actually conduct the Baptism, the adults present, parents and godparents, renew the Baptismal promises. They are in effect giving voice for the young child by using their voices to reject sin and Satan and to profess believe in God the Father, Jesus the Son, the Holy Spirit and the teachings of the Church. It is a powerful moment. And as the Baptism takes place, if we listen with ears of faith, we too will hear: this is my beloved son, this is my beloved daughter, in whom I am well pleased!
Just this week, Pope Francis has conducted a catechesis on Baptism, doing so in the context of the readings from the 1st letter of John, the epistle of love. The Holy Father has challenged each of us to learn and embrace the actual date of our own Baptism. He asks us to write that date down on our calendars and to celebrate that date, every year, with the intensity and joy of a Feast Day; our own annual Feast Day. That too sounds like our home work today. Can we all embrace our Feast Day, the date of our Baptism, and to recall we are born a new; reborn in Christ Jesus! And in that Baptism, as we grow older and older, are we the voice of Jesus to all we meet, especially the poor, the unborn, the inmate, the immigrant and all of his children?
In the week ahead, can we also be more aware of how we use our voice, His voice in our daily lives. And as a reminder of our Baptism, can we as Catholic families return to the practice of using Holy Water in our homes, to bless ourselves, to bless each other and to bless and sanctify our daily prayer?
What does the fox say? I really still don't know for sure. But I know what Christ says and how He wants us to be His voice to those we encounter every day. And I know the voice of the Father, and I pray that when he speaks to me and to you, we too will hear:
This is my beloved son/daughter, in whom I am well pleased!
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