Epiphany 1
By The Reverend Martha Frances
Year B, Epiphany 1 - The First Sunday after the Epiphany
11 January 2009
Text: Mark 1: 4-11
Other Readings: Acts 19: 1-7; Ps 29; Genesis 1: 1-5
This morning we celebrate Jesus' baptism, one of the great themes of the Epiphany season: Jesus' being manifest as God's Son, the Beloved, with whom God is well pleased. That's what "epiphany" means, of course: manifestation, a showing forth. Certainly God's greatest manifestation was Jesus Christ, & with this rite of passage, his baptism by his cousin John, he began his public ministry.
Mark's version of Jesus' baptism by John tells us that Jesus appeared to his cousin John to be baptized, & that even as John baptized Jesus, he distinguished his own ministry from that of Jesus, telling everyone that Jesus was more powerful than he & would baptize with the Holy Spirit. Our epistle reading today expands on the theme of the importance of Jesus' baptism having new meaning distinguished from Jewish baptisms, even John's. One who is baptized by Jesus is created anew, & just as our Hebrew scripture this morning recalled the first creation, so John proclaims one baptized in Jesus' name is recreated, made new. We're reminded that Christianity is a new creation though fully steeped in the Jewish tradition.
Only a few words—one simple sentence—are necessary to describe John's baptism of Jesus. Other gospel writers describe both the appearance of a dove & the voice from heaven as a public event, but Mark indicates it was a private showing forth seen & heard by Jesus alone. When the heavens are torn apart for the dove to descend, the rigid Jewish social fabric that separate the rich & poor is destroyed, & Jesus' ministry continues to emphasize his concern for all God's creatures with whom he shares a common humanity. God's incarnation is proclaimed at the time of Jesus' baptism.
Each year in celebration of Jesus' baptism, we renew our baptismal vows because they are fundamental in our understanding of our own personal & communal ministry as Christians. Today, we are fortunate to have 3 young boys coming forward for the sacrament of baptism. These boys & their parents & some of the godparents have met with me to discuss the sacred step they are taking, & Aaron & Zane have asked to be baptized themselves. When parents present their children for baptism within the Christian community, you see, they show an awesome trust in the community, because they recognize that it really does take a village to rear a child. These parents step forward with these precious little people to entrust to all of us their spiritual nurturance. How many of us have done the same thing, perhaps without even realizing the radical nature of our action? In this world of separateness & individualism, we say that we are truly family, that we are responsible & that we have the ability to respond to the religious upbringing of these precious children of God.
Therefore, as we affirm our baptismal vows with Xabi, Zane, & Aaron, we proclaim our intention to live out the promises which we make with them & for them. This is pretty serious business which we're about, sisters & brothers in Christ, & I hope you recall today those infants, youth, & adults you've supported around this & other baptismal fonts so that today's reaffirmation of faith will be your re-creation, your recommitment to allow the Holy Spirit to strengthen your own faith & make you bold to model it for others in this & the wider community.
First, God is the primary actor in both Jesus' & our baptism. While Jesus is the human actor, God initiates the action, & it is God's spirit appearing as a dove, speaking to Jesus to commission or ordain him for his ministry. Our baptism, whether it occurred when we were babies, teenagers, or adults, is first & foremost God's gracious action upon our lives. It "marks us as Christ's own forever" as the baptismal rite states.
We begin in a few moments by joining in the Apostles' Creed, probably not actually as old as the original apostles, but one of the earliest affirmations of the basics of the Christian faith. We might take issue with some of the phrases today, but the basics themselves are pretty solid. Then, I'll ask you 5 powerful questions which are really an outline for discipleship. Notice that your response to each of these 5 questions is "I will, with God's help." We're in this spiritual quest together, you see.
You may want to follow along with me in the Book of Common Prayer on pages 304-305. In a few moments, we'll promise, with God's help, to grow each day as we support others to continue their Christian formation. We promise regular worship attendance where we share bread & wine as we do in the Holy Eucharist, to learn through regular Bible study, & to really get to know each other in fellowship with one another. That's the first vow. The second is a promise to try to avoid evil, but when we recognize that we have stumbled into sin, we'll ask & believe in the forgiveness God gives us & return to doing God's will. Next, we promise to tell people about the good news of Christ's love for us & to live in such a way that others believe that news. St. Francis used to say that we all need to preach the gospel & when necessary, use words. How many ways can we live as Jesus desires us to live? Our fourth promise is to stay alert to others' Christlikeness, treating our neighbors as we want to be treated, & recognizing all we encounter as our neighbors. Finally, we promise to work within the structures of our church & society to make our world more just & peaceful, affirming each other's God-given dignity, even when others act as if they don't believe it themselves. These are not frivolous promises, but we share in their fulfillment with God's help as we commit to growing up our children to join the larger community as faithful disciples ourselves. How about it, folks? Are we ready to recommit to being the village these & our other children should be able to trust & believe in?
Year B, Epiphany 1 - The First Sunday after the Epiphany
11 January 2009
Text: Mark 1: 4-11
Other Readings: Acts 19: 1-7; Ps 29; Genesis 1: 1-5
This morning we celebrate Jesus' baptism, one of the great themes of the Epiphany season: Jesus' being manifest as God's Son, the Beloved, with whom God is well pleased. That's what "epiphany" means, of course: manifestation, a showing forth. Certainly God's greatest manifestation was Jesus Christ, & with this rite of passage, his baptism by his cousin John, he began his public ministry.
Mark's version of Jesus' baptism by John tells us that Jesus appeared to his cousin John to be baptized, & that even as John baptized Jesus, he distinguished his own ministry from that of Jesus, telling everyone that Jesus was more powerful than he & would baptize with the Holy Spirit. Our epistle reading today expands on the theme of the importance of Jesus' baptism having new meaning distinguished from Jewish baptisms, even John's. One who is baptized by Jesus is created anew, & just as our Hebrew scripture this morning recalled the first creation, so John proclaims one baptized in Jesus' name is recreated, made new. We're reminded that Christianity is a new creation though fully steeped in the Jewish tradition.
Only a few words—one simple sentence—are necessary to describe John's baptism of Jesus. Other gospel writers describe both the appearance of a dove & the voice from heaven as a public event, but Mark indicates it was a private showing forth seen & heard by Jesus alone. When the heavens are torn apart for the dove to descend, the rigid Jewish social fabric that separate the rich & poor is destroyed, & Jesus' ministry continues to emphasize his concern for all God's creatures with whom he shares a common humanity. God's incarnation is proclaimed at the time of Jesus' baptism.
Each year in celebration of Jesus' baptism, we renew our baptismal vows because they are fundamental in our understanding of our own personal & communal ministry as Christians. Today, we are fortunate to have 3 young boys coming forward for the sacrament of baptism. These boys & their parents & some of the godparents have met with me to discuss the sacred step they are taking, & Aaron & Zane have asked to be baptized themselves. When parents present their children for baptism within the Christian community, you see, they show an awesome trust in the community, because they recognize that it really does take a village to rear a child. These parents step forward with these precious little people to entrust to all of us their spiritual nurturance. How many of us have done the same thing, perhaps without even realizing the radical nature of our action? In this world of separateness & individualism, we say that we are truly family, that we are responsible & that we have the ability to respond to the religious upbringing of these precious children of God.
Therefore, as we affirm our baptismal vows with Xabi, Zane, & Aaron, we proclaim our intention to live out the promises which we make with them & for them. This is pretty serious business which we're about, sisters & brothers in Christ, & I hope you recall today those infants, youth, & adults you've supported around this & other baptismal fonts so that today's reaffirmation of faith will be your re-creation, your recommitment to allow the Holy Spirit to strengthen your own faith & make you bold to model it for others in this & the wider community.
First, God is the primary actor in both Jesus' & our baptism. While Jesus is the human actor, God initiates the action, & it is God's spirit appearing as a dove, speaking to Jesus to commission or ordain him for his ministry. Our baptism, whether it occurred when we were babies, teenagers, or adults, is first & foremost God's gracious action upon our lives. It "marks us as Christ's own forever" as the baptismal rite states.
We begin in a few moments by joining in the Apostles' Creed, probably not actually as old as the original apostles, but one of the earliest affirmations of the basics of the Christian faith. We might take issue with some of the phrases today, but the basics themselves are pretty solid. Then, I'll ask you 5 powerful questions which are really an outline for discipleship. Notice that your response to each of these 5 questions is "I will, with God's help." We're in this spiritual quest together, you see.
You may want to follow along with me in the Book of Common Prayer on pages 304-305. In a few moments, we'll promise, with God's help, to grow each day as we support others to continue their Christian formation. We promise regular worship attendance where we share bread & wine as we do in the Holy Eucharist, to learn through regular Bible study, & to really get to know each other in fellowship with one another. That's the first vow. The second is a promise to try to avoid evil, but when we recognize that we have stumbled into sin, we'll ask & believe in the forgiveness God gives us & return to doing God's will. Next, we promise to tell people about the good news of Christ's love for us & to live in such a way that others believe that news. St. Francis used to say that we all need to preach the gospel & when necessary, use words. How many ways can we live as Jesus desires us to live? Our fourth promise is to stay alert to others' Christlikeness, treating our neighbors as we want to be treated, & recognizing all we encounter as our neighbors. Finally, we promise to work within the structures of our church & society to make our world more just & peaceful, affirming each other's God-given dignity, even when others act as if they don't believe it themselves. These are not frivolous promises, but we share in their fulfillment with God's help as we commit to growing up our children to join the larger community as faithful disciples ourselves. How about it, folks? Are we ready to recommit to being the village these & our other children should be able to trust & believe in?
posted by
Hope Episcopal Church
at 8:29 PM
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