by Fr. Tommy Lane
It is a surprise that Jesus underwent baptism in the Jordan. We need baptism but Jesus did not need baptism. Some of prayers the priest/deacon prays when baptizing someone show our need for baptism, for example, the prayer of exorcism as we call it when we pray that the child be cleansed of original sin:
We pray for this
child:
Set him/her free from original sin,
Make him/her a
temple of your glory,
And send your Holy Spirit to dwell with
him/her.
Immediately after baptism, this thought is repeated in one of the prayers:
God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has freed you from sin, given you a new birth by water and the Holy Spirit, and welcomed you into his holy people.
These prayers show us how much we need baptism. We need to be cleansed of original sin. We want to receive the Holy Spirit, and we want to be members of the Church. This happens to us when we are baptized but Jesus did not need baptism.
So why then did Jesus undergo baptism? Although Jesus did not need baptism, he underwent baptism to be in solidarity with us who need baptism. We read in the Letter to the Hebrews concerning Jesus’ solidarity with us:
he had to become like his brothers in every way, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest before God to expiate the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested. (Heb 2:17-18)
It was precisely because of Jesus’ wish to be in solidarity with us that he underwent baptism even though he did not need it.
In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, after Jesus was baptized in the Jordan, the next event is a big surprise. Jesus went to the desert for a long time and was severely tested by Satan (in Luke, Jesus’ temptation is also the next event even though in the narrative the list of Jesus’ ancestors separates his baptism from his temptation). Being tested by Satan is the last thing we would expect to happen to Jesus immediately after his baptism. We know that Jesus did not give into the temptations but Jesus undergoing them shows us his solidarity with us. Again, the Letter to the Hebrews describes Jesus’ solidarity with us, this time referring to Jesus as the high priest of the New Covenant:
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help. (Heb 4:15-16)
Reflecting on Jesus’ solidarity with us when he underwent baptism and then immediately afterwards when he was tempted in the desert, reminds us that Jesus understands us and our struggles and is with us in our struggles. When problems come our way, we should not give way to discouragement. Jesus too had his sufferings and overcame them.
But what is even more important than knowing that Jesus understands our struggles, is to know that we can turn to Jesus at any time. God is always ready to listen to us and be with us. I think we can see this in a little detail in today’s account of Jesus’ baptism by Mark which we do not find in the other Gospels. Only Mark (Year B) tells us that the heavens were torn open or split open when the Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove (Mark 1:10). If people had imagined a veil between themselves and God, now that veil is torn open, and God has reached out to us in Jesus. The tearing open of the heavens shows us that God is not only in heaven, but God also wants us to know his closeness to us in Jesus. We see that act of tearing or splitting a second time: not just Mark (15:38), but also Matthew (27:51), and Luke (23:45) tell us that when Jesus died, the veil in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. Only the high priest could go behind that veil, and only once a year on the Jewish feast of Yom Kippur. The tearing of the veil in the temple from top to bottom when Jesus died means that the way to God was now open to everyone, and not only to the high priest once a year.
Jesus’ solidarity with us which led him to undergo baptism, testing in the desert, and eventually death, invites us to draw close to him in prayer. It was because of Jesus’ solidarity with us that the heavens were torn open when he was baptized, and the temple curtain torn from top to bottom when he died. In Jesus, the veil between the Father and us has been torn open for us. Now we can pray to Jesus at any time. It is not only the Jewish high priest who can enter God’s sanctuary once a year. Because of Jesus, and our baptism which unites us with Jesus and erased original sin, we all can go behind the veil to enter God’s sanctuary. We do that when we receive the sacraments and when we pray.
© Fr. Tommy Lane 2021
This homily was delivered in a parish in Ireland.
More Homilies for the First Sunday: Baptism of Our Lord
Deepening our unity with Jesus since baptism 2023
United with Jesus since baptism 2020
The baptism of Jesus: every grace in the Church comes from Jesus 2011
Sharing in the salvific effects of Jesus’ cross through baptism 2009
Like Jesus you were anointed with the Holy Spirit at baptism
Sons and daughters of our Father since our baptism
Year C: Jesus was baptized and we are baptized, Jesus prayed and we pray 2013
Year C: Jesus with us 2022
Related Homilies: Baptism changes the quality of our souls forever 2011
Professing our faith with the Apostles' Creed during baptism