Deacon Fritz Bauerschmidt, Professor of Theology at Loyola University Maryland and a deacon of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, preached this homily at Mass in the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Baltimore, Md, on the vigil of the Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord,2021. It has been lightly edited for publication in print. -Ed.
I had a very nice homily in mind for today -- something about ancient Israelite cosmology and the symbolic role it plays in Mark’s story of Jesus’ baptism -- but, as so often in life and ministry, events interrupt our plans, and I feel compelled to say something about the assault on the Capitol building and about what light the Gospel of Jesus Christ can shed in these dark days.
