The Ordo makes a very stark directive on this feast of the Baptism of the Lord, in black/bold letters, no less. After 2nd vespers this evening it says: with which the Christmas season ends. In less than 3 weeks time, we have heard most of the stories of the little we know about Jesus before his public ministry began: we celebrated his birth in Bethlehem, we followed the events of the visit by the astrologers from the east, the uprooting of his family to a foreign land…and back again, and a short lesson in parenting and adolescence, Today, by his baptism in the Jordan, Jesus takes another step on the journey toward fully realizing his destiny and mission, beginning to figure out that he may not be working as a carpenter for the rest of his life after all: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

Though the church makes attempts to present the incarnation as secondary to the resurrection event…only about 4% of the liturgical year is spent on this season…as a culture, and as Christians, we seem to much prefer (and spend more time and money) on the lights, festive music and carols, and colors of Christmas over Easter. Perhaps it’s much easier for us to wrap our heads around a child being born than it is to wrap our heads around someone dying and then rising from the dead. Or is it?

As I was sitting in chapel last week thinking about what I’d miss once the decorations were all taken away this week, one of things I focused on was all the red and green that’s around during the holidays: in clothes we wear (you wouldn’t dare wear red/green together outside the Christmas season, would you?); in decorations that are hung; in poinsettias placed around the house. I found myself wondering about that red and green: could it really mean what I think it means…if I apply the symbolism of liturgical color? One of the wonders of the internet is that it doesn’t take too long to find obscure information like this, so I sat down and did a routine google search. There it was…in a number of sources: the color green represents the eternal life of Jesus Christ; the color red symbolizes Christ’s blood which was shed. How amazing: even at Christmas we are subliminally immersed into the foreshadowed death/resurrection of Jesus; pushed forward into the Triduum! And, how embarrassing! I had never made that connection before!I

On this feast of the Baptism of the Lord, we are again pushed forward. The first reading is from Isaiah’s 1st Song of the Suffering Servant, the servant who, the Jerome Biblical Commentary states: accomplishes his mission modestly and quietly, not whipping people into conformity, but transforming them interiorly.” Isn’t that who Jesus was and who we are to become? And, by the way, it sounds so very Benedictine! .

To connect to the Gospel reading today, I thought we could do it together, in song. So…if you would be so kind as to take your Music Issue and turn to #110 (and for our guests in the back, the hymn is on the worship aid prepared especially for you today). The hymn is entitled: “When Jesus Comes to Be Baptized.” It’s set to the familiar melody of “On Jordan’s Bank.” Let’s quietly read through the verses, then I’m going to give a nod to S. Callista to accompany us. (pause here for reading and singing)

“Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased.”
Merry Christmas.

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