Today we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord, the last feast in the Christmas season. For the ordinary Christian, it may be challenging to connect the Baptism of Jesus with the infant narratives of the Incarnation we focused on during the Christmas season.
The connection will take some reflection, but hopefully, we will come to see that the Baptism of Jesus is indeed connected to Christmas. St. Matthew frames the picture by telling us Jesus was with St. John the Baptist at the river Jordan. In humility, St. John at first objects to baptizing Jesus, and Jesus tells him that it is fitting and righteous that he do so.
For centuries, theologians had recognized that the sinless Jesus did not need to be baptized. Still, they posited that his willingness was to sanctify the waters that would be used for generations thereafter for their baptisms. Christ was first baptized so that Christians would follow after him in confidence. Through baptism, the person who was doomed to eternal death is reborn as a son or daughter of God with the possibility of living eternally with Him.
The Baptism of the Lord reveals Jesus’ true identity as both human and divine. Through the fiat of the Blessed Mother and the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus was born in flesh and blood as Mary’s baby. During his infancy, there were many signs that He was not just an ordinary baby.
The shepherds in the fields were told by an angel not to be afraid, for the child would be the savior of the world. The Magi followed a star and journeyed out to visit the newborn King of the Jews. Following the star that led them to the place where Jesus was with his Mother, they were overjoyed and prostrated themselves, doing him homage. The Magi offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Those gifts represented who Jesus is: a king, a priest, and a sacrificial lamb for the salvation of the world. It wasn’t until he was baptized that the fullness of who Jesus is was revealed.
As the son of Mary, Jesus’ human nature was well established, and his Baptism would reveal his divine nature as one in being with God the Father. When he rose from the waters, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and came upon him.
St. Matthew uses the word “dove” not by accident. In the ancient world, doves represented purity. After a birth, a mother would offer doves as a part of ritual purification. A dove was instrumental in the story of Noah and the flood. When the dove returned with an olive branch in its mouth, Noah was assured that the flood had receded. Similarly, Israel is equated with a dove seeking God’s help in a time of crisis. A dove symbolized the purity of God and His power to transform chaos into peace.
The crescendo of St. Matthew’s account is the voice which came from heaven, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Now we realize Jesus is the Son of God and is a divine person with a human nature given to Him by Mary. The proclamation from heaven identifies Jesus as God himself. God has visited his people in the flesh to save them from death.
As we close out the Christmas season, we should be reminded of Jesus as God and man. He is the Son of the Father and the Son of Mary. God made man to save His creatures from death.