Jan 13, 2019 [ Baptism of Lord ]
• Isaiah 42:1-4 • •Psalm 29 • Acts 10:34-38 • +
Luke 3:15-16, 21-22 •
Title: Baptism of the Lord. Desire to Leave, Desire
to Learn.
[_01_] Water is mysterious. I’d just like to touch
on this idea that water not only contains mysteries (underwater life, waves,
and creatures like whales that we do not
see on land) but also water contains the paradox – the seeming contradiction –
that water can both give life and take away life.
Rain is welcome in springtime. But,
hurricanes are feared in summer. Water has potential; water is perilous. Water
is mysterious.
[_02_] This
Sunday is the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. As Catholics, we are accustomed
to holy water in volumes that we can manage and predict, like a weather
forecast, we may not want too much water at any one time.
The sprinkling of holy water at
Sunday Mass can even take us by surprise.
And, does not the water of baptism
take the young child by surprise. This
child does not know what he or she is in for.
Therefore, in baptism, when the priest water pours water and says – “I
baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit…”and covers
the child’s whole head in water, it is a sign that the child is in fact
submerged, immersed in God’s presence.
The child feels outwardly what is
meant to be a sign inwardly. And, this is the definition of a sacrament, of any
one of the 7 sacraments; a sacrament is a visible sign of an an invisible
reality.
Yet, in its own way, baptism – like
water itself -- is one that seems to bring both ORDER + DISORDER.
[_03_] You
have been to baptisms, to christenings, right? One thing I announce is as we
gather here in church as we sit down … is that …no one has to leave just because someone
is crying or making noise… this applies ALSO
to the children as well. Sometimes, the grown-up’s cry at baptisms.
Baptisms can be a little
complicated. All the water, the oil, the
lighting of the candle, who is going to stand where…
There is both order and disorder
outwardly and visibly.
But, the baptism takes place not to
make us feel or see something really organized or elegant or beautiful..but to
bring us into a new relationship that we cannot yet see, or a relationship –
with God – that is sometimes dark, like underwater. Yet, there is life even
underwater.
The forgiveness of sin – the
forgivness of our faults – is often going to be messy. It is still worthwhile.
[_04_] Water
is mysterious because it can bring ORDER or DISORDER, INTEGRATION or
DISINTEGRATION.And, we rightly take – scientifically and legally – precautions
around water. Life preservers, for one.
But, baptism is also meant to be a
life preserver, an eternal-life preserver and connection to God’s presence.
Water is mysterious. The Baptism of
Jesus is also mysterious.
That is, we associate baptism with
the forgiveness of sin and unity with God and the discovery of our own calling.
So, why is Jesus “baptized”? We know
that Jesus does not need “forgiveness”..he does not need to be unified with God
…and he does not need to know what is calling is. Jesus does not get baptized
so that he can later make his 1st Communion. He is the Body of
Christ. He is our Communion.
Why is Jesus baptized? It is a
little mysterious.
[_05_] I would like to make an analogy, use an
example, an entirely new example.
When we were kids, my mother took us
to our local town pool. It was not the West Orange pool, but like the West
Orange pool.
It was my mother’s responsibility to
get us there, and – in some cases – to watch over us, but as we grew up, she
let us be more and more independent.
When she first took my sister there,
my sister – apparently – clung to her and insisted that my mother sit through
her swimming lesson. My mother thought this was unnecessary, but stuck around
of course.
One day, somewhat unexpectedly, my
sister announced –“I’m OK, Mom …you do not have to stay with me any longer…I’ll
go to the swimming lesson by myself.”
My mother was like, great. She was
psyched that my sister could be independent for a while and she would still be
supervised at the pool. And, my sister was showing her willingness to be
integrate herself into another community, to connect to new people.
[_06_] I
suggest that 2 related desires made this possible, 2 desires that Jesus also
has for himself and 2 desires that he wants us to have.
These are –
DESIRE TO LEARN.
DESIRE TO LEAVE.
[_07_] My
sister, had a desire to LEARN, to learn to swim and my mother could trust the
lifeguard and instructor.
But, my mother could not and would
not simply drop my sister off.
In other words, the separation was
possible because my sister also had a desire to LEAVE.
[_08_] In the
baptism of the Lord, we see Jesus’ willingness and desire both to LEAVE and to
LEARN.
1st. By being born in Bethlehem and living
in Nazareth and teaching in Galilee, Jesus shows his vulnerability as both a
divine and human person. We could say that he left behind his privilege as a
divine person and his miraculous powers, at times, to show that he would suffer
and die for us. He did not have to take up the cross, but did so to show us the
way to love and sacrifice for each other.
His baptism shows that he has been
submerged and immersed in all the things of our lives. He is also connected to us.
Father Ronald Knox in a sermon
observes it is harmonious with both our faith and reason that we come to the
Sacraments … all of them, not only to pray for ourselves but for others.
Our lives on earth are interwoven,
intertwined. We were not meant to be solitary units here or in the world to
come. Jesus also dwelt among us so that we would recognize this connection with
God as our Father.
[_09_] Jesus
also has a desire to LEARN, and LEARNING implies a relationship with you and
with me.
He wants to meet you where you are,
where I am, in our prayer and conversation each day, in the mystery of our
lives and our struggles.
So that we can also leave behind
anything that is harming us, anything that separates us from him. It is
sometimes messy doing so…there may be laughter or tears, but is also the first
day of our new eternal life with Him, in the name of the Father, and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit. [_fin_]
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