What is the meaning of Jesus’ Baptism?
As Christians, we should be aware that baptism is a sign of repentance of sin and conversion to a new way of life. So why did Jesus get baptised? It may not be a question you have previously considered; however, it is an important one worth thinking about.
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The feast of the Baptism of the Lord marks the end of the Christmas season.
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The baptism of Jesus marks the commencement of His public ministry. In the same way Christ emerges out of the waters of baptism; He emerges from a life of seeming obscurity into a life of miracles, proclamations and crowd gathering. Jesus approaches the Jordan River and recognises His life will change considerably once he steps up from the waters anew. The other thing that occurs after Christ’s baptism is the descent of the dove, symbolising the anointing the Holy Spirit, and the revealing of the ‘anointed one’. Jesus is revealed as the beloved Son, and in the same way we too receive a new identity through the waters of baptism. At our baptism so too the Father declares, “This is my beloved daughter, this is my beloved son…”
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI also offers us further insight into the Baptism of the Lord, seeing Jesus’ baptism as a public expression of His submission to the will of the Father and His identification with sinners. While sinless, by being submerged in the waters of the Jordan, Jesus is seen by many as a man who needs to be full of repentance. This consideration, at least in a small way, begins to lay the ground work for His death and resurrection; He will descend into death and rise again to life.
Benjamin Leschke
Lay Pastoral Assistant
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“Jesus shows His solidarity with us, with our efforts to convert and to be rid of our selfishness, to break away from our sins in order to tell us that if we accept Him in our life, He can uplift us and lead us to the heights of God the Father. And Jesus’ solidarity is not, as it were, a mere exercise of mind and will. Jesus truly immersed himself in our human condition, lived it to the end, in all things save sin, and was able to understand our weakness and frailty. For this reason, He was moved to compassion, He chose to “suffer with” men and women, to become a penitent with us. This is God’s work which Jesus wanted to carry out: the divine mission to heal those who are wounded and give medicine to the sick, to take upon himself the sin of the world.”
From Homily of Pope Benedict XVI on feast of the Baptism of the Lord 2013
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