ALTHOUGH NOT a vessel of beauty, nonetheless John the Baptist was a vessel of mercy. Although hesitant to baptize Jesus—it is you who should be baptizing me—Jesus replies mysteriously to the baptizer's consternation: "Let it be so now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." [Mt 3:15]
AS A sign of contradiction, the baptizer reluctantly casts water on the Divine Fire to fulfill all righteousness: He baptizes Jesus in the Jordan River. In a scene contemplated by holy priests who ponder their judgment before God, the heavens opened above Jesus and the Spirit of peace descends upon the Son of God.
TO THE sign of water was added the divine benediction from heaven, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased." [Mt 3:17] Thus the ritual of sign and blessing was completed by Jesus as an example of holiness for the people and the empowerment of his ministry.
THE OLD year comes to an end; a new one commences. Utterly untouched by human chronology, the procession of time continues uninterrupted until Christ's return in glory. The days and seasons drift by and man is left to reflect on the fact of his mortality and his life's meaning. If he is wise, man will interpret lessons and experiences in a fruitful way, and he will contemplate the purpose of that which has ended or continues to unfold.
THERE ARE as many ways of letting go as there are leaves on a tree. In the past year, each of us has bid farewell to something or someone, and in many instances, not without great sorrow. We detach and say goodbye, this sometimes against our will. We are compelled to accept the inevitability that time and space will separate those who sail away on the unseen wind and those who come to rest firmly in the earth.
MY HEART goes out to you who persevere in faith, to you who love Christ, who worship the Father wholeheartedly, and walk in the Spirit. And I implore our heavenly Father with all my soul that this new year of grace will bring times of refreshing for the Church and his faithful people. I pray, too, that when your self-assurance is a bruised reed and your strength of will is a dimly burning wick, you will behold the "Spirit of God descending like a dove" [Mt 3:16] to bring you peace and contentment.
MAY YOU realize in the depths of your soul, as God's beloved children of faith, that Christ the Light of the World has purchased your salvation at a great price and that every good gift comes from God. For he who was baptized in the fire of his holy passion, death and resurrection has won for his Church the fatherhood of the God of mercy and clothed us with the glorious garment of his abiding pleasure.
