Baptism of the Lord January 11, 2026

“You are my Beloved”

This weekend we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord Jesus by John the Baptist at the River of Jordan. All of us have moments of decision, moments of insight, moments when we can see things clearly as we never have had before. For some of these moments remain etched clearly in our memories for life, milestones for life. We don’t create these moments; they just happen as we go about our lives. Jesus had this moment of decision as he stepped into the Jordan to be baptized by John the Baptist. It affirmed him in his identity and mission.

During Baptism of the Lord a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’” It is a voice of confirmation of the identity of Jesus. At every baptism since, God repeats that same heavenly proclamation, “You are my child, my beloved; with you I am well pleased.” In today's culture/time, many people, even those who are baptized Christians, have great difficulty with their own identity. The reality of baptism revealing our Christian identity certainly gives us great cause to celebrate and to live a life of commitment. It is through the sacrament of baptism that we become his beloved and our human existence finds fulfillment. Pope John Paul II writes “the day of his baptism as the day of marvel of marvels, that He called me Beloved.”

As we celebrate the feast of Baptism, let us stand in line with Jesus once again returning to the waters of life and claiming our identity and mission as beloved sons and daughters of God