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This week we celebrate the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist, who foretold of Christ’s coming, telling the people that “one mightier than I is coming.”
Saint John Neumann was the first member of his community, the Redemptorists, to profess vows in the United States. He did missionary work in Maryland, Virginia, and Ohio, and became the bishop of Philadelphia. Noted for his humility and organizational skills, he helped form the Church in the New World.
The signs accompanying the events of Jesus’ baptism ought to tip us off that something important is happening here. The heavens opening, the voice of the Father commending his “beloved Son” to us, and the presence of the Holy Spirit, all point to a moment of revelation.
There is plenty for us to be afraid of, but Jesus encourages us to trust in his power. He who can walk fearlessly over the waves of a storm can also look after us.
Through Elizabeth Ann Seton, we see poignantly the motherly face of God. As St. Anselm wrote, “Christ my mother, you gather your chickens under your wings.”
Convert, wife, mother, widow, teacher, religious─Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton did it all. Yet, in many ways, she was an ordinary woman of her time who lived life in an extraordinary way.
Care, community, and nourishment will be a regular part of Jesus’ ministry. They are, as it were, his trademarks.
What new possibilities are emerging in your life? How might they challenge you to new behaviors and priorities?
Saint Paul tells us in his Letter to the Philippians that Jesus’ name is above every other name. It is the name in which we are all saved. Devotion to the Most Holy Name of Jesus is deeply rooted in Christian history.
The Lord is present in our midst. True, there is darkness all around us. But wherever we turn we have access to enlightenment from him.
