The celebration of the Baptism of the Lord concentrates our thoughts on the purpose of Christ’s birth. At Christmas we rejoiced in the wonder of the incarnation, the Son of God born into the frailty of our humanity. Now we contemplate the scene of his baptism. Here, as a prelude to his public ministry, his baptism reveals the inner life that sustained the child born to Mary.
Christ was born as the fulfilment of the words spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom my soul delights. I have endowed him with my spirit that he might bring true justice to the nations.”
