DAILY- HOMILY

JANUARY 11, 2009
FEAST OF THE LORD'S BAPTISM - B

ISAIAH 42:1-4, 6-7
Thus says the LORD: Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one
with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my spirit; he shall bring
forth justice to the nations, not crying out, not shouting, not making
his voice heard in the street. a bruised reed he shall not break, and
a smoldering wick he shall not quench, until he establishes justice on
the earth; the coastlands will wait for his teaching. I, the LORD,
have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the
hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light
for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners
from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.

ACTS 10:34-38
Peter proceeded to speak to those gathered in the house of Cornelius,
saying: "In truth, I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in
every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to
him. You know the word that he sent to the Israelites as he proclaimed
peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all, what has happened all
over Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached,
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power. He
went about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil,
for God was with him."

MARK 1:7-11
This is what he proclaimed: "One mightier than I is coming after me. I
am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. I have
baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." It
happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and
was baptized in the Jordan by John. On coming up out of the water he
saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit, like a dove,
descending upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, "You are my
beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."

REFLECTION
We officially end the Christmas season today with the Feast of the
Baptism of the Lord. Today's feast actually signifies the beginning of
his public ministry where Jesus proclaims that the kingdom of God is
at hand. Thus, there is the command to repent and believe in the Good
news, that is, to believe in Jesus as sent by God to save us from our
sins.

The baptism of Jesus is surely different from the baptism that we are
familiar with. In essence, exegetes or Biblical scholars interpret
this action of Jesus to allow John to baptize him as the way of Jesus
to show his solidarity with us. He did not have the baptism that we
have and commonly understand since Jesus is without sin.

But what is significant is what the Father says to Jesus, that is, in
acknowledging Jesus as His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased.

It might be good then to ask ourselves whether we feel consoled and
can accept when God claims us as God's children. How then do we show
in our lives that we are somehow deserving of such a title, label, or
designation? The clue lies in the succeeding phrase; what will make us
pleasing in God's sight?

Tomorrow, we go back to Ordinary Time in the Church calendar. The
challenge then lies in being able to do seemingly ordinary works or
acts of kindness with generosity and love. In doing so, these
seemingly routine acts become somehow extraordinary and would
hopefully makes us pleasing to God. In being able to share oneself
unconditionally, the Lord will take delight in us. This is not to give
the impression that by our good works, we become deserving to be
considered children of God. Again, it is by God's graciousness and
prerogative that God calls us sons and daughters.

Today's Feast of the Baptism of the Lord then challenges us in our
being a "new creation" in Christ especially with the New Year. We are
in God and are invited to know who God says we are, and sees who we
are, and relates with us according to how God has formed us and called
us as the "beloved." May we be given the grace to be able to claim our
being beloved children of God.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Sophia Gonzalez
- Christy Chin
- Judy
- Boy Afable
… for the personal intentions of
- Pauline
- Nitz Carvajal and family
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
- Lilia Serrano
- Pete Tioseco
Eternal rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine upon them.
May they and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Genevieve Marie Son
- Birthday: Anita Sy Thietof
- Birthday: Bettina M. Cordon
- In Memoriam (+): Manio Victor
… for the healing and peace of all families

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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