What does baptism mean to you? We celebrate birthdays lavishly but never the day on which we were baptized yet on that day we were born as a child of God and the spirit rested on us. Think of baptism as a door through which we began a life long journey to be with God forever. Baptism is to the Christian life that a wedding is to a marriage.
My earliest recollection of baptism was as a teenager nearly sixty years ago in a rather empty, somewhat cold church on a Sunday afternoon. Less than ten people were present: the baby, her parents, my family and the priest. That wasn’t much of a congregation yet that scenario was rather common in Catholic churches until the bishops at Vatican II asked themselves, “What’s wrong with this picture?”
Until then, baptism’s purpose was seen as washing away original sin. While that remains true, that isn’t the whole point of this significant sacrament. Until St. Augustine arrived on the scene in the fifth century, the notion of original sin wasn’t even an issue in the early church. Jesus certainly had no need to be freed from original sin, so what did baptism mean back then?
In doing their homework, the council fathers recovered three truths about baptism that had been forgotten or downplayed over time: baptism is an initiation into the Christian community, a call to discipleship, that is, a new way of life, and a commissioning.
Through this ritual, the newly baptized is now numbered among the people of God, the Church. Once baptized, we assume a new identity, mission and destiny as a child of God, joining others who are baptized on common journey of faith.
The council fathers at Vatican II decided since baptism is an initiation rite into the faith community, the sacrament should be celebrated openly. In older churches where fonts were once situated outside the nave, they were then placed either in the entryway, like Saint James Cathedral and ours or near the sanctuary.
In his pastoral letter on baptism, Archbishop Hunthausen noted that the primary symbol of baptism is community, not water, and for this reason, he directed that the sacrament to be celebrated in the presence of the faith community, preferably during Mass.
Secondly, baptism is a call to discipleship. In the early Church, baptism took years of preparation. During that time, candidates had to prove their sincerity to live as Jesus did by prayer, good living, and works of charity. Baptism was seen as a turning point in a person’s life and signaled an adult choice to commit one’s life to God, figuratively and sometimes literally, for being a Christian in ancient Rome could mean martyrdom.
Once Emperor Constantine was baptized, the Church was allowed to exist in the open. In fact, you were expected to be baptized. As more and more people were baptized, the age of baptism began to move from adults to infants and the standards dropped. As time passed, the focus shifted from being a disciple to being freed from original sin. Instead of being seen as a call to discipleship, baptism became for many a cultural event.
Consequently, they never realized that baptism was more than a christening; it is also a commissioning. We were empowered by baptism to do the work of Jesus Christ and as Titus said, “to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly and devoutly in this age…so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.”
According to the church calendar, the Christmas season officially closes today but by no means are we finished with the works of Christmas. There is much to be done in the days ahead. The good news that the angels proclaimed of peace continues to unfold. Still, the most wondrous part of this story has yet to be revealed. The same spirit that anointed Jesus on the banks of the Jordan calls on us to complete the mission of Christmas: to seek out the lost, to heal the sick and the broken-hearted, to feed the hungry, to liberate the imprisoned, to rebuild families and nations, to bring peace to peoples everywhere by treating them with dignity. To complete the Christmas story is the commission given to us at our baptism.
I once thought that this feast was an odd way to end the Christmas season; after all, Jesus is now an adult. If the message we heard at Christmas, peace on earth and good will towards all, is to be made real in the coming year, it can only happen when we choose to live the message of Christmas. And that won’t be done unless we do what we can, individually and collectively, as a faith community to heed God’s call to justice by carrying out the works of Christmas.
In the waters of the Jordan, Jesus was initiated, called and commissioned to build the kingdom of God. The same holds true for us. Baptism profoundly changes our purpose for living. Just as the Spirit empowered Jesus that day, the Spirit also empowers us to carry out our baptismal promises. When you bless yourself with holy water as you leave here, remember what being a disciple is all about. Carry out your mission whenever the opportunity arises. Live the Catholic way of life to make a difference in the world around you so that without reservation, God can proudly say to you, “You are my beloved child; with whom I am well pleased!”