Baptism of the Lord “A” 2020 Mt. 3: 13-17
One of the most memorable celebrations of the Sacrament of Baptism that I ever had took place when I was the Pastor of the Newman Centre, the Catholic parish for the University of Toronto. While most of the parishioners were students, we did have some young families that lived in the area that were also part of the parish. This meant about 3 or 4 times a year I would celebrate the baptism of a baby.
In the celebration of Baptism for children, the ceremony begins with 3 questions for the parents of the child. The third question is quite lengthy and begins with a statement of the parents’ awareness of their responsibilities: “You have asked to have your child baptized. In doing so you are accepting the responsibility of training your child in the practice of faith. It will be your duty to bring your child up to keep God’s commandments as Christ has taught us, by loving God and our neighbour.” Then comes the question: “Do you clearly understand what you are undertaking?” Of course, the answer is yes.
When I asked this question of one set of parents for a baptism at Newman, there was a pause. The mother and father looked at each other, and then the father said, “Uh, kind of.” I smiled at them and said, “I like that answer”. After the baptism was over, the father said to me, “Father, you know our ‘Uh, kind of’ answer? As this is our first child, we are constantly being reminded of how the life we have been entrusted with is a tremendous, and at times, overwhelming responsibility. And we realize that isn’t going to change.” Truly, their “uh, kind of” answer may be the most honest answer to a question I have ever heard.
Undoubtedly parenting is not easy – and it’s getting more and more complicated in the society we live in. Parenting requires wisdom and faith and persistence and patience and endless love for their children, for whom parents would give up their lives for – and in fact they do so, in little ways every single day. To be a parent is a life-long task – one never stops being a Mom or Dad. Recently a precocious young parishioner asked me, "Fr. Michael, now that you're old, I was wondering if your Mom still Moms you?" I assured her that both my brother and I would definitely say YES to that question.
Today’s gospel focusses on Jesus’ baptism. Unlike most baptisms, Jesus was a full-grown adult when He was baptized. His stepfather and mother did not need to say yes on His behalf. He did so Himself. I wonder what Jesus thought after He was baptized. Did He really know what would result from His saying yes to the will of His Father?
For example, could He picture the cross that He would hang from just three years after His baptism? Did He have any inkling of the pain of rejection and betrayal He would encounter in His ministry? Did He think of the struggles His followers would have in understanding and accepting His teachings? Did He come to know how much it hurts to love someone and then have to say goodbye to them?
What Jesus definitely knew was that He was in the care of God the Father. He knew that the Father and the Holy Spirit would direct Him as needed, when needed. And that is something we need to remember in our own lives – no matter who we are – we may not know how the future will unfold, but we need to know and trust that God will be very present in that future.
Almost every person present today was baptized. On the day that you were baptized, you were committed to God and to follow Jesus. You were called to be a person of integrity, whose standard of behaviour is in line with our Christian faith - whether at work, at school, at home, outside or in here. Which means you were called to speak as He would speak, to do as He would do. I realize that’s asking a lot of us. But here are some suggestions that can help make it happen:
Start by doing what you say you’re going to do.
If you’re baptized Catholic, and especially if you were confirmed, you committed yourself to go to mass each Sunday. No excuses – just come.
If you are a parent, you promised at your child’s baptism that you would teach your children about Jesus – so do so.
You would have also promised at your child’s baptism that you too will obey the commandments. So set a good example for your children - don’t lie or cheat or steal or gossip. That’s not what Jesus would do.
Don’t worry so much about being the first or the best or the greatest. Jesus didn’t care much about that. Neither should you.
And finally, when all else fails, go back to the fundamentals: Love God, love your neighbour, love yourself.
And if you do all that, then my dear people, one day you may just hear those lovely words that Jesus heard at His baptism: “You are my beloved son, my beloved daughter. In you I am well pleased.”