Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7; Acts 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
During the Second
World War there was a man who went about doing good to the people. He
provided shelter to refugees from Greater
Poland, including 2,000 Jews whom he hid
from Nazi persecution in his friary in Niepokalanów.
On 17
February 1941 he was arrested by the German Gestapo and
imprisoned. After a few months the deputy camp commander decided to
pick 10 men to be starved to death. One of the selected men, Franciszek Gajowniczek, cried out, lamenting his family, and a man
volunteered to take his place.
During the
time in the cell he led the men in songs and prayer. This is the
story of Maximilian Kolbe,
who went about doing good to the humanity.
The mission
that Jesus accepted at his Baptism and entrusts to everyone
at baptism is to do good to humanity.
In today’s
Gospel we read the account of Jesus’ baptism.
St. Luke
emphasizes three points:
First point
is, “After baptism Jesus was in prayer.”
Prayer
is communion with God. Through the symbol of baptism
Jesus has re-established man’s relation with God. In Paradise,
when sin entered into the life of man he became estranged from God. Man
dreaded the presence of God. In Genesis (3:8–10) we
read: “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was
walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God
among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, 'Where are
you?'
He answered, 'I heard you in
the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
Again in Exodus
(20:18–20) we see that man trembles at the presence
of God. “When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the
trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear.”
Whenever man
was in the state of sin he was frightened to approach God. In Baptism
Jesus re-establishes man’s communion with God.
The second
point is, “Holy Spirit descended upon him in the form of a dove.”
In the religions of early man, doves were
revered as the sacred companions of the gods. The first archaeological evidence
depicting doves as a spiritual animal dates back to 5000 BC, with the
Sumerians. In Assyria the dove was a royal bird. The ancients considered the
dove as a bird of the gods. A dove, therefore, used to be often pictured above
the heads of the gods. For the Syrians and Phoenicians the dove was a divine
messenger. Several ancients believed that the human soul was in the form of a
dove. Many tombs in countries like Greece, therefore, had the dove engraved on
them.
A white dove
is generally a sign of peace in Judaism too. In Genesis (1:2) the life giving Spirit is compared to the bird hovering
over the water. It was a dove that brought the message of peace to Noah’s ark
after the floods (Gen. 8:8). Deuteronomy (32:11) compares Yahweh, who stirs the
people of God for the new exodus, to a bird. The dove was referenced to several times in the
books of Psalms and Songs of Solomon, and is depicted as graceful, pure and
lovely.
The dove is an apt symbol to indicate many of
the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22-23.) Virtues like innocence, love,
meekness, peace, purity and simplicity are symbolised by the dove. These virtues are the treasure of every Christian baptised in the Spirit. Through baptism the Holy Spirit sets his permanent seal
on us (Eph 1: 13; 4:30; 2 Cor 1:22). The baptism by water indicates the birth
in the Spirit (Jn 3:5).
The Third
point is God’s declaration:
“You are my son, the beloved
My favours
rest on you.”
The Jews had
not the slightest doubt that in God’s economy there was a favoured nation
clause. They strongly believed that a son of Abraham was exempt from
judgment. But, John the Baptist gave them a shock by his preaching
that racial privilege meant nothing, that life not lineage was God’s
standard of judgment. St Peter in today’s first reading reiterates the
preaching of John that God does not have any favourites, but that anybody of
any nationality, who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to Him.
Through
baptism we have become his chosen ones. As God declared at the baptism of
Jesus, “You are my Chosen one”, today these words are repeated at the
baptismal pond whenever a child is baptized. When our baptismal vow is
renewed God declares, ‘You are my chosen one”.
St Peter
asserts that as the chosen one Jesus went about doing good, because God
was with him. Now it is our privilege to do good to the people.
Swami Vivekananda gives the key to
blessedness: “We may all be perfectly sure that it will go on beautifully well
without us, and we need not bother our heads wishing to help it. Yet, we must
do good; the desire to do good is the highest motive power we have, if we know
all the time that it is a privilege to help others.
Sir Philip Sydney was lying wounded in the
battlefield, and felt severe thirst on account of much loss of blood. He asked
for a cup of water to quench his thirst. But finding another soldier in a
similar distressing predicament by his side, Sir Philip offered the cup to the
soldier instead of taking the water himself, saying: “Thy need is greater than
mine.”
Dear friends, we get a lot of opportunities
in our daily life to do good to others: just postpone one of our
needs, sacrifice one of our conveniences, forego a meal, give up an
entertainment for the sake of our brothers. And we will be counted among
the chosen ones of God.
Satish