The Most Important Day Of His Life

Yesterday papal biographer George Weigel posted an article in which he reflected upon the baptism of Saint John Paul II:

…in preparing the first volume of my biography of St. John Paul II, Witness to Hope, I described the pope’s return to his parish in Wadowice on his epic first papal pilgrimage to Poland in June 1979. Stepping into the church where he had served Mass, received the scapular, and prayed daily during his youth, the 264th Bishop of Rome went straight to the chapel that housed the baptismal font and venerated the place where he had been "born again" in 1920.

Why? Because Karol Wojtyla knew that that day was the most important day of his life: the day when he was first empowered, by water and the Spirit, to become a friend of the Lord Jesus Christ and a missionary disciple. As John Paul understood it, the most important day of his life was not the day on which he was ordained a priest, consecrated a bishop, or elected pope. The most important day of his life was the day of his baptism. Everything else flowed from that, like the waters in Ezekiel’s vision, flowing from the restored Temple to renew the face of the earth.

As we enter into Ordinary Time, let us remember the mission we received in those baptismal waters: to be Christ’s disciples and to introduce Him to the world.  

Saint John Paul II, Pray for Us!

A Great Gift and Responsibility

                "Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near" (Is 55,6).

These words from the second part of the Book of Isaiah…are an invitation to go more deeply into the meaning for us of today's Feast, the Baptism of the Lord.

In spirit let us return to the banks of the Jordan where John the Baptist administered a Baptism of repentance, exhorting to conversion. Coming up to the Precursor is Jesus, and with his presence he transformed that gesture of repentance into a solemn manifestation of his divinity. A voice suddenly comes from heaven:  "You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased" (Mk 1: 11) and, in the form of a dove, the Spirit descends upon Jesus.

In that extraordinary event, John saw realized what had been said about the Messiah born in Bethlehem, adored by the shepherds and the Magi. He was the very One foretold by the prophets, the beloved Son of the Father; we must seek him while he can be found and call upon him while he is at hand.

In Baptism every Christian personally meets him; he is inserted into the mystery of Christ's death and resurrection and receives a new life, which is the life of God. What a great gift and what a great responsibility!

                 -Homily of Blessed John Paul II for The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, 2003

The Baptism of the Lord

1. "Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near" (Is 55,6).

These words from the second part of the Book of Isaiah…are an invitation to go more deeply into the meaning for us of today's Feast, the Baptism of the Lord.

In spirit let us return to the banks of the Jordan where John the Baptist administered a Baptism of repentance, exhorting to conversion. Coming up to the Precursor is Jesus, and with his presence he transformed that gesture of repentance into a solemn manifestation of his divinity. A voice suddenly comes from heaven:  "You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased" (Mk 1,11) and, in the form of a dove, the Spirit descends upon Jesus.

In that extraordinary event, John realized what had been said about the Messiah born in Bethlehem, adored by the shepherds and the Magi. He was the very One foretold by the prophets, the beloved Son of the Father; we must seek him while he can be found and call upon him while he is at hand.

In Baptism every Christian personally meets him; he is inserted into the mystery of Christ's death and resurrection and receives a new life, which is the life of God. What a great gift and what a great responsibility!

-Blessed John Paul II, Homily of Feast of The Baptism of the Lord, 2003