Year C The Baptism of the Lord


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