Pope Francis celebrates the baptism of the Lord and invites the believers to celebrate the date of their baptism, the day they received the Holy Spirit and became the beloved children of God.
By author of Vatican News staff
To commemorate the feast of the baptism of the Lord, Pope Francis reflected on the liturgy of the day that tells how Jesus’ shameful life began.
The pope said in the Apostolic Library during the Sunday Angelus that the liturgy after the Feast of the Epiphany takes a leap of about thirty years, ‘hidden’ time Jesus spent with his family and his parents obey, study and work .
According to him, all the evangelists tell his public life which according to them lasts about three years.
It is striking, he said, that most of his time on earth the Lord led an ordinary life without standing out.
‘This is a good message for us: it reveals the greatness of daily life, the importance in the eyes of God of every gesture and moment of life, even the simplest and hidden, ”he said.
After these thirty years of hidden life, the pope continued, beginning Jesus’ public life with baptism in the Jordan River.
He explained that John’s baptism consisted of a ritual of penance: ‘it was a sign of someone’s willingness to repent and to ask forgiveness of his sins. Jesus certainly did not need it. ”
The Lord does not save us from on high
And although John the Baptist tried to stop him, the Lord insisted, he continued, because He wanted to be with the sinners: “For this reason he comes in line with them and does the same as they do. He goes down the river to immerse himself in the same state in which we are. ”
On the first day of his ministry, the pope said, Jesus therefore offers us his’ programmatic manifesto ‘and says,’ He does not save us from on high with a sovereign decision or act of power, but by meet and take our sins upon themselves. ”
This is how God overcomes worldly evil, he said, “by humbling himself and taking the lead.
This is also the way he can exalt others, he emphasized: ‘not by judging, not by suggesting what we should do, but by becoming neighbor, having empathy and sharing God’s love.
“Proximity,” he repeated, “is God’s style with us!”
The Holy Spirit
Pope Francis further explained that after this act of compassion through Jesus, another extraordinary thing happens: “heaven opens and the Trinity is finally revealed.”
As the evangelist Mark tells us (Mark 1:10), the Holy Spirit descends like a dove from heaven and the Father says to Jesus: ‘You are my beloved Son; I have a pleasure in you. “
God, the pope explained, “manifests himself when mercy appears, for that is his face.”
This episode shows us how Jesus becomes the servant of sinners and when the Son is called, he continues, “He will bring us down, and the Spirit will come down on him.”
Love asks for love
“Love asks for love,” the pope said, and it applies to us: “In every act of service, in every work of mercy we perform, God reveals himself and directs his gaze on the world.”
It reveals to us that the Pope has explained that our lives even before we do anything are characterized by mercy and that it is laid upon us.
And this, he said, happens on the day of our baptism: “There we were immersed in the love of Christ who died and rose for us. There we received the gift of the Holy Spirit. There the Father said to each of us, just as with Jesus: You are my beloved Son”.
God’s mercy is so great, the pope continued, that even those who are not baptized can receive it and trust in the resurrection when their hearts are open.
“We may think the wrong things are making a lot of mistakes,” the pope concluded, “but we always remain God’s beloved children. This is our deepest identity: ‘May our wife, to whom we are now praying, help us to cherish baptismal identity, which underlies faith and life. ‘
Appeal to Angelus
After the Angelus prayer, Pope Francis called for reconciliation in the United States following the assault on Congress on January 6, saying he was praying for the five people who had lost their lives in the violence.
Prayers for all babies who are baptized
He further said that he could not present the traditional baptismal ceremony in the Sistine Chapel at the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord this year due to the covid-19 pandemic.
‘However, I want to assure my prayers for the children, their parents, their godparents’ who would be at the ceremony, the pope said:’ I direct my prayers to all the children who are baptized in this period: they receive the Christian identity, the grace of forgiveness and redemption. May God bless them all! ”
Pope Francis concluded his speech by reminding believers that tomorrow is the beginning of ordinary time according to the liturgical year and inviting them to never tire of calling on the light and power of the Holy Spirit.
“It is love that changes everything,” he said, “if you do ordinary things with love, it becomes extraordinary, and if we are open to the Spirit, the Spirit will inspire our everyday thoughts and actions.”