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FROM THE DESK OF THE PASTOR
Jan. 9, 2026
Dear Friends in Christ,
This weekend we conclude the Christmas season with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. Through his baptism, Christ, the sinless one, goes down into the water to make the waters of baptism holy, capable of washing away our sins and conveying his divine life to us. Thus, Christ prepares the font for us so that, through our baptism, we may share in his mercy and divine life. Christ’s Baptism is also another epiphany of Jesus’ divinity: The voice of the Father, identifies Jesus as his beloved Son, and the Dove of the Holy Spirit descends upon him as he comes up from the water. Pope Benedict summarizes beautifully what has been revealed by the Christmas Season and summed up by Christ’s baptism.
The words that the Evangelist Mark recounts at the beginning of his Gospel: "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased" (1: 11), introduce us into the heart of today's Feast of the Baptism of the Lord with which the Christmas Season ends. The cycle of the Christmas Solemnities leads us to meditate on the birth of Jesus, announced by the angels who were surrounded with the luminous splendor of God; the Christmas Season speaks to us of the star that guided the Magi of the East to the House in Bethlehem, and invites us to look to Heaven, which opens above the Jordan as God's voice resounds. These are all signs through which the Lord never tires of repeating: "Yes, I am here. I know you. I love you. There is a path that leads from me to you. And there is a path that rises from you to me". The Creator assumed the dimensions of a child in Jesus, of a human being like us, to make himself visible and tangible. At the same time, by making himself small, God caused the light of his greatness to shine. For precisely by lowering himself to the point of defenseless vulnerability of love, he shows what his true greatness is indeed, what it means to be God.
Christmas, and more generally the liturgical year, is exactly that drawing near to these divine signs, to recognize them as impressed into daily events, so that our hearts may be open to God's love. And if Christmas and Epiphany serve primarily to render us capable of seeing, of opening our eyes and hearts to the mystery of a God who comes to be with us, then we can say that the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus introduces us into the daily regularity of a personal relationship with him. Indeed, by immersion in the waters of the Jordan, Jesus united himself with us. Baptism is, so to speak, the bridge he built between himself and us, the road on which he makes himself accessible to us. It is the divine rainbow over our lives, the promise of God's great "yes", the door of hope and, at the same time, the sign that that indicates to us the path to take actively and joyfully in order to encounter him and feel loved by him. POPE BENEDICT
May this feast remind us of the grace and new life of Christ we have experienced through our own baptism. It should remind parents and future parents of the importance of having their children baptized soon after birth. It is in baptism that we first encounter Christ and his saving love. It is the way that we are caught up into the divine life of the Blessed Trinity.
FR RAPHAEL IS ON RETREAT NEXT WEEK
Fr. David will be on retreat next week, so we will have a modified daily Mass schedule. Please pray for him while he is a way that his retreat will be fruitful.
Blessings on your week!
Fr. Johnson
