The Baptism of The Lord
Dear Friends,
Today we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord, the moment where Jesus steps into his public ministry and is confirmed in his mission. After John baptizes Jesus, the Gospel tells us that the heavens open, and the Holy Spirit descends upon Jesus like a dove as a voice rings out from heaven: “You are my beloved Son. With you I am well pleased.”
One of my favorite quotes about Jesus from St. Irenaeus says, “He who was the Son of God became man, so that men might become sons of God.” This simple quote contains a profound mystery. That Jesus came not so that we could be mere spectators of his mission and of his relationship with the Father, but so that we could be active participants in that mission, and true sons and daughters of the same Father. We are so accustomed to calling God our father that I think sometimes we can forget how wildly amazing that claim is. God loves us so much that he sent his Son to become one of us, to call us out of the slavery and brokenness of sin, and to make us co-heirs and children of his kingdom. The Baptism of Jesus is special because it marks the beginning of Jesus’s mission of salvation, but also because it calls us and confirms us in that same mission.
January is a time of new beginnings, of resolutions, of remembering who we are and where we are headed. Today, our Father looks down on each one of us and reminds us of our identity. He does not see us for our sins, our failings, the ways that we are lacking and needing to change; he sees us as his beloved children. He looks at you and he says, “You are my beloved son. You are my beloved daughter. With you I am well pleased.”
-Jule Coppa, Penn Campus Minister