Mark 1:9-12 (GNT)
9 Not long afterward Jesus came from Nazareth in the province of Galilee,
and was baptized by John in the Jordan.
10 As soon as Jesus came up out of the water,
he saw heaven opening and the Spirit coming down on him like a dove.
11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my own dear Son. I am pleased with you.”
12 “ At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness,”
Reflection
Baptism as a sacrament has been and continues to be a contentious issue both in and outside of the Christian church.
Some churches, like ours, celebrate infant baptism, (also called Christening) where the parents (and god-parents) bring the baby or child before the congregation and the family and congregation makes promises to and on behalf of the one baptized. In some churches the sacred ritual is understood as an individual family ceremony so just the family and priest are present. The child would then make a profession of faith at an older age, whether this is a First Communion as in the Roman Catholic Church (usually around age of 7) or a Confirmation ceremony around the age of 12 or older in some Protestant churches.
Some churches will only accept or recognize the baptism of adolescents or adults and if you want to belong to these churches you have to be (re) baptized. And then there are churches which do not baptize at all like the Unitarians or the Salvation Army. Although many of these churches have blessings or naming ceremonies to celebrate the birth of the baby.
Jesus, being a Jew, would have had a circumcision ceremony or bris (brit milah) on the eighth day after he was born when he was also given his name.
Jesus, as a Jew, would have taken a purifying bath (mikveh) each time he went to the temple. The temple would have one place where you would have to immerse yourself in purifying water in order to enter the Holy space but there would have been many mikveh places throughout the land. Water purification was and is a ritual for many Jews both male and female even today.
When John the Baptist came along – calling all Jews to repent of their sins and be baptized in the Jordan River it would have been understood to be in line with the mikveh, it was the way to symbolize that you had been cleansed.
So Jesus comes to John the Baptist, he repents and is cleansed by immersing himself in the Jordan River along with thousands of other people.
Reading today’s scripture I am struck by the brevity of the passage. It’s so short for such a momentous occasion! When Jesus comes up out of that water he is immediately immersed in a vision of the heavens opening and a voice saying “ You are my own dear Son. I am pleased with you.”
We are not told in Mark if anyone else except Jesus sees or hears this vision but what an affirmation this is to Jesus that he is on the right path!
This is where he is supposed to be at this moment, this is what he is supposed to be doing! This is the direction his life is supposed to take – if he wants to!
We don’t often look at Jesus’ story and say this is a turning point for him – a pivotal juncture in his life. Yet each step Jesus takes is a decision – to go and be baptized by John or not! To go into the wilderness – or not! To choose disciples, to preach, to heal, to walk the path that prophets and wise men and holy people had walked before him and still walk today – to hear a calling and follow it and to see a vision and believe it. Jesus doesn’t know what will happen maybe doesn’t expect anything to happen but he has an openness that allows him to acknowledge and accept when something does happen.
This vision as Jesus rises out of the water requires that Jesus pay attention: to hear, to listen, to see and to respond.
This vision gives Jesus’ life purpose and direction so that when the next decision comes; that of the Spirit leading Jesus into the desert, into the wilderness, Jesus is ready to go, there is no account of hesitation. The vision is not only an affirmation but a promise; God is with Jesus on this path, this journey.
Jesus, baptism is the beginning of a new direction in Jesus, life, maybe a deepening of his spiritual quest, maybe a rededication of a path he was already on but it was pivotal, it was life changing .
And it can be the catalyst in our lives. We don’t have to immerse ourselves in the Jordan River to listen for God’s voice in our lives. We, too, can find purpose and direction and hope in those words that Jesus heard:
“You are my own dear child. I am pleased with you”
God is with us on our path, on our journey. We are not alone.
Come and Find the Quiet Center:
(music can be found on youtube: https://youtu.be/Mpb_nHwex-A )
Come and find the quiet centre
In the crowded life we lead
Find the room for hope to enter
Find the frame where we are freed
Clear the chaos and the clutter
Clear our eyes that we can see
All the things that really matter
Be at peace and simply be
Silence is a friend who claims us
Cools the heat and slows the pace
God it is who speaks and names us
Knows our being touches base
Making space within our thinking
Lifting shades to show the sun
Raising courage when we're shrinking
Finding scope for faith begun
In the Spirit let us travel
Open to each other's pain
Let our lives and fears unravel
Celebrate the space we gain
There's a place for deepest dreaming
There's a time for heart to care
In the Spirit's lively scheming
There is always room to spare
9 Not long afterward Jesus came from Nazareth in the province of Galilee,
and was baptized by John in the Jordan.
10 As soon as Jesus came up out of the water,
he saw heaven opening and the Spirit coming down on him like a dove.
11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my own dear Son. I am pleased with you.”
12 “ At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness,”
Reflection
Baptism as a sacrament has been and continues to be a contentious issue both in and outside of the Christian church.
Some churches, like ours, celebrate infant baptism, (also called Christening) where the parents (and god-parents) bring the baby or child before the congregation and the family and congregation makes promises to and on behalf of the one baptized. In some churches the sacred ritual is understood as an individual family ceremony so just the family and priest are present. The child would then make a profession of faith at an older age, whether this is a First Communion as in the Roman Catholic Church (usually around age of 7) or a Confirmation ceremony around the age of 12 or older in some Protestant churches.
Some churches will only accept or recognize the baptism of adolescents or adults and if you want to belong to these churches you have to be (re) baptized. And then there are churches which do not baptize at all like the Unitarians or the Salvation Army. Although many of these churches have blessings or naming ceremonies to celebrate the birth of the baby.
Jesus, being a Jew, would have had a circumcision ceremony or bris (brit milah) on the eighth day after he was born when he was also given his name.
Jesus, as a Jew, would have taken a purifying bath (mikveh) each time he went to the temple. The temple would have one place where you would have to immerse yourself in purifying water in order to enter the Holy space but there would have been many mikveh places throughout the land. Water purification was and is a ritual for many Jews both male and female even today.
When John the Baptist came along – calling all Jews to repent of their sins and be baptized in the Jordan River it would have been understood to be in line with the mikveh, it was the way to symbolize that you had been cleansed.
So Jesus comes to John the Baptist, he repents and is cleansed by immersing himself in the Jordan River along with thousands of other people.
Reading today’s scripture I am struck by the brevity of the passage. It’s so short for such a momentous occasion! When Jesus comes up out of that water he is immediately immersed in a vision of the heavens opening and a voice saying “ You are my own dear Son. I am pleased with you.”
We are not told in Mark if anyone else except Jesus sees or hears this vision but what an affirmation this is to Jesus that he is on the right path!
This is where he is supposed to be at this moment, this is what he is supposed to be doing! This is the direction his life is supposed to take – if he wants to!
We don’t often look at Jesus’ story and say this is a turning point for him – a pivotal juncture in his life. Yet each step Jesus takes is a decision – to go and be baptized by John or not! To go into the wilderness – or not! To choose disciples, to preach, to heal, to walk the path that prophets and wise men and holy people had walked before him and still walk today – to hear a calling and follow it and to see a vision and believe it. Jesus doesn’t know what will happen maybe doesn’t expect anything to happen but he has an openness that allows him to acknowledge and accept when something does happen.
This vision as Jesus rises out of the water requires that Jesus pay attention: to hear, to listen, to see and to respond.
This vision gives Jesus’ life purpose and direction so that when the next decision comes; that of the Spirit leading Jesus into the desert, into the wilderness, Jesus is ready to go, there is no account of hesitation. The vision is not only an affirmation but a promise; God is with Jesus on this path, this journey.
Jesus, baptism is the beginning of a new direction in Jesus, life, maybe a deepening of his spiritual quest, maybe a rededication of a path he was already on but it was pivotal, it was life changing .
And it can be the catalyst in our lives. We don’t have to immerse ourselves in the Jordan River to listen for God’s voice in our lives. We, too, can find purpose and direction and hope in those words that Jesus heard:
“You are my own dear child. I am pleased with you”
God is with us on our path, on our journey. We are not alone.
Come and Find the Quiet Center:
(music can be found on youtube: https://youtu.be/Mpb_nHwex-A )
Come and find the quiet centre
In the crowded life we lead
Find the room for hope to enter
Find the frame where we are freed
Clear the chaos and the clutter
Clear our eyes that we can see
All the things that really matter
Be at peace and simply be
Silence is a friend who claims us
Cools the heat and slows the pace
God it is who speaks and names us
Knows our being touches base
Making space within our thinking
Lifting shades to show the sun
Raising courage when we're shrinking
Finding scope for faith begun
In the Spirit let us travel
Open to each other's pain
Let our lives and fears unravel
Celebrate the space we gain
There's a place for deepest dreaming
There's a time for heart to care
In the Spirit's lively scheming
There is always room to spare
