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Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary-
Homilies |
"Humble
Submission to Jesus Opens the Floodgates of Grace for Our Souls"
Fr. Jonathan L. Reardon
9
January 2011
Year A
These past two weeks or so we have been focusing on the
infant Jesus – the birth of God in human history. We have
celebrated the dawning of the fulfillment of the plan of
salvation announced at the Fall of Adam and Eve. But today we
must shift gears a bit. Today we find Jesus as an adult. He has
grown in wisdom, knowledge, and stature. Today’s Feast of the
Baptism of the Lord begins the mission of the Redeemer – a
mission that would take Him three and a half years down the road
to His death on the cross and the complete fulfillment of the
reconciliation between God and mankind. Here we celebrate that
moment when Jesus Himself went down into the waters of the
Jordan River to be baptized by St. John. Even though He had no
sin of His own, He submitted Himself to this ritual act. In this
sacred action, Jesus teaches something about His mission. He
reminds us, first of all, that due to His divine nature, the
gestures and actions of the Son of God have an eternal and
sacred meaning. In no way did He need to be baptized but when
those ordinary waters run down the head of the Savior they
become holy – thus Jesus sanctifies for us the waters of baptism
for all eternity. As it marked the beginning of His public
ministry – so too, our own baptism marks the beginning of our
lives as Christians, as believers in and followers of Christ. It
is through the grace of baptism that makes us “born again.”
Here, the stain of original sin is washed away and we are given
a new life of grace in the Holy Spirit, a life that gives us
participation – a direct connection – with the Spirit and Life
of Christ and that of the Church. Thus He marks us as His sons
and daughters forever.
There is something, however, that strikes me about this Gospel
passage in particular. St. Matthew reports that St. John was
hesitant to baptize the Savior: “I need to be baptized by you,
and yet you are coming to me?” He says. Jesus replies: “Allow it
now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all
righteousness.” The first meaning behind the words of Jesus –
“to fulfill all righteousness” – points us toward, as we have
said, the sanctification of the waters of baptism for all
eternity. But secondly, John recognized His need for Jesus to
baptize him, to be cleansed by the Savior and not vice versa. He
is resistant, hesitant, and perhaps even a little frightened.
But notice the humility of both men. It’s the Creator being
baptized by the creature; the Savior submitting Himself to the
means salvation to one in need of redemption. John yields to the
wishes of Jesus and the heavens were opened, the Spirit in the
form of a dove descended upon Jesus and the voice of the Father
was heard: “this is my beloved Son…” and the result is beginning
of Jesus’ mission of salvation – it is the beginning of the work
of the restoration of harmony between God and humanity – work
that is continued in the Church through Her sacraments – in
particular that of Baptism, Eucharist, and Penance.
But how often do we find ourselves, much like St. John in the
beginning of this passage, hesitant, reluctant, and even
resistant of the way in which Jesus wants to act and work in and
through us? How often do we, maybe not so blatantly, refuse to
allow His grace to transform us? Perhaps because we get a little
too comfortable with where we are in relation to God. Perhaps we
do not think we need to progress any more in our spiritual
lives. Perhaps we do not like to be challenged in our faith.
Perhaps we are unmotivated to learn more and have grown
lukewarm. But we, like St. John, have to be humble enough to let
God act in and through us – for it was his humble submission to
Jesus that opened the gates of salvation for all nations, for
all time and eternity. When we do the same, humbly submit to
God, acknowledge our sins before Him, open our hearts to Him and
let Him speak and act in us we see with eyes of our faith
something truly amazing, something that reaches beyond
ourselves: Jesus coming to us, being present to us and
identifying with us. So our prayer must be to let Him in, to let
Him penetrate the deepest recesses of our hearts, every fiber
and fabric of our being – we must give Him permission. Then do
we truly become servants of God, then the words of Isaiah in our
first reading – traditionally applied to Christ but could truly
be applied to us – have a profound and real affect on our
relationship with God: “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my
chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my
spirit.”
As we close the
Christmas Season and begin the Season of Ordinary Time where we
contemplate and meditate upon the work and Mission of the
Redeemer may our prayer this day and every day be a prayer
giving our Lord permission to speak and act in and through us so
that we too may hear the voice of the Father – “this is my
beloved son, this is my beloved daughter, in whom I am well
pleased.”
