Homily for the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord: “We are transformed”

From my homily for this feast from 2013: 

At home, I have a little green book that someone gave me as an ordination gift: it’s the Rite of Baptism for Children, with all the prayers and readings for the sacrament. In the back, there’s a notation I scribbled on the inside cover: “Margaret Flanagan.  July 1, 2007.  First baby baptized.” I wrote that down in the book so I’d never forget.  It was a big day for Margaret – and for me.

Of course, the biggest day for baptism is the one we’ve just heard in the gospel: the baptism of Jesus.  I don’t know that John the Baptist wrote it down in the back of any book.  But we do have this account in the gospels, and we hear it once again and are reminded: this is where it all began.

Baptism was the beginning of Christ’s public ministry – and for the rest of us, our own baptism marks the beginning of our own lives as Catholic Christians. Most of us were baptized when we were infants, so we don’t remember it. And the chances are, if you have been a part of a baptism – as a parent or a godparent or just a relative looking on – there’s a lot going on that you may not have noticed.

This Sunday, the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, is a good opportunity for us to notice what we may have been missing – to look beyond the water and the oil and the prayers and the crying babies and the christening gown that was worn by your great grandmother’s second cousin.  This feast is a chance to reflect on what this sacrament means —and, in particular, how it is celebrated.

It comes down to the “Three C’s of Baptism”: Creation, Commitment, and Community.

First, Creation.  One of the things you notice about the baptism ritual is that, unlike most of our liturgies, it doesn’t begin with a hymn or a song or a prayer.  It begins, instead, with a question:

    “What name do you give your child?”

It sounds obvious.  But those seven words are deceptively simple. Everything that follows flows from them.  Baptism, the first sacrament of initiation, is fundamentally about who we are—and who we will be.  To be baptized is to be defined in a new way: as a Catholic Christian.  We are transformed.  As the rite states, we become a new creation. Having a name, an identity, is critical to that. In Genesis, you’ll recall, one of the first things Adam did was name everything around him.  In naming their child, parents continue what began in Genesis – and, in effect, declare that they are continuing God’s creative work in the world.

So yes: baptism is about creation – in all its beauty and joy and wonder.

The second C is Commitment.  It is the commitment of parents – and, significantly, godparents. Being a godparent entails commitment: a commitment to the Catholic faith, and to living that faith with fidelity, enthusiasm and joy. That means living it in such a way that their godchildren will see what they do, how they pray, what they value, how they love and they will say: “I want to be like that.”

To make that possible, the Church insists that at least one of the godparents must be Catholic.  The other one, if not Catholic, must be a baptized Christian.  I have lost track of the number of times parents have asked me about having one of the godparents be Jewish, or Muslim, or even atheist.  They assure me that these are good people and dear friends.  I’m sure they are. But we are talking about more than friendship here. We are talking about a role that has responsibilities, to help raise the child in the faith that they profess.  During the baptism, godparents publicly profess their belief in Christ, the Trinity, the Virgin Mary and all the other tenets of our faith.  They make a commitment to the faith, and to helping these children live that faith.

Finally, there is the third C, Community.  Early on in the rite, the priest or deacon says, “My children, the Christian community welcomes you with great joy.”  The Church celebrates this sacrament as a community—because as a community, we pray together, rejoice together, grieve together, grow together. The Christian life isn’t lived in isolation.  And we don’t celebrate our sacraments that way, either. The guidelines for baptism make clear: “All recently born babies should be baptized at a common celebration on the same day.”  This is why we baptize several children together on the first Sunday of every month.  It is an experience to be shared.

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