Baptism and a Sense of Belonging

We all love to have a sense of belonging. Every organization attracts members, and to be a member is to have a sense of belonging to that organization. We use identity cards or even passwords as evidence of our membership. Religious organizations and cultural groups have different rituals for conferring membership or some methods for initiation of new members. For the Jews, initiation is through circumcision; and for Christians, membership is conferred by way of baptism.

This Sunday, many Churches in the Christian world commemorated the baptism of Jesus. Just before He began His public ministry, Jesus approached John for baptism. The question here is, why did Jesus submit Himself for baptism? It sounds like a founding father of a nation requesting citizenship in the nation he founded. No wonder John was slow in taking on the honor of baptizing someone who was greater than he.

The baptism of John was the baptism of repentance; Jesus was sinless and had no reason for repentance or conversion. However, He went to John for baptism for some significant reasons:
He went as a mark of humility; his baptism was a symbolic act which made him stand in solidarity with all sinners; the fulfillment of all righteousness could also be interpreted as the fulfillment of the law of Moses, which required that all priests be washed with water, as Aaron and his sons were washed before they began to minister unto the people (Leviticus 8:6). Similarly, the baptism of Jesus marked the beginning of His public ministry.

The prophecy of Isaiah was re-echoed during the baptism of Jesus. The voice of God the Father was heard from the clouds declaring, “This is my well-beloved Son in whom I am well pleased”, and the presence of the Holy Spirit appeared as a dove. The confirmation of the identity of Jesus came at the appropriate time, just at the threshold of His public ministry. Through this baptism, God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Thereafter, Jesus began His ministry:

“He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil.”

The Evangelist John explains how “Christ came by water and blood.” (1 John 5:6) This fact was made visible when blood and water flowed from the side of Jesus. The water mentioned by the evangelist refers to the waters of Baptism, which purifies, and the blood signifies the Eucharist, which sanctifies. Thus, those who are baptized are cleansed by the water and saved by the blood through the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, water came to be an essential element for baptism.

Jesus said to Nicodemus,

“No one can enter the Kingdom of God
without being born of water and the Holy Spirit.”
~ John 3:5

St. Augustine speaks of the importance of water in Baptism:

“There is no baptism without water.”

The baptism of Jesus was a moment to confirm, assert and affirm His identity as “beloved of God.” Baptism confers a Christian identity on the baptized. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains our membership through baptism:

“In Baptism we become members of the body of Christ,
sisters and brothers of our Redeemer and Children of God.”
(cf. Youth Catechism #200)

Challenges of Identity

There are times when we experience a challenge to our identity. For example, it can be challenging asserting your identity in a place where you are in the minority: in a place where you are the only Catholic in the midst of Pentecostals, or the only Christian in the midst of Muslims, or as a member of a minority party in the midst of people who belong to a dominant party. How are you able to assert or compromise your identity in a difficult situation?

Another challenge to identity is living a life where our identity tallies with our pattern of life. We can experience some identity crisis when our religious values do not agree with our public identity.
Furthermore, in the modern world where we have multiple identities, such as ethnic and professional, it can be confusing to know which of these identities is most important. There are people who identify more with their ethnicity than with their religion.

So, what is an authentic Christian identity? We may be quick to mention some external markers of identity, such as the Bible, scapular, and rosary. All these identify who we are. However, authentic Christian identity is essentially tied to the identity of Jesus. He is the head and His members are the body; He is the vine and His members the branches. As we share in His identity, we also share in His mission.
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Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ, Year B: Isaiah 55:1-11; 1 John 5:1-9; Mark 1:7-11.