When I used to teach religion and Confirmation classes we often had a monthly “teacher on the hot seat” session, a time when students could ask me anything pertaining to religion or religious implications of current events — in short, everything under the sun from ‘Do animals go to heaven?’ to ‘Can countries sin?’ Pretty heady stuff.
One of the most common questions I used to get is ‘Why did Jesus get baptized?’ It’s a fair question. Clearly, we teach that Jesus was sinless, so why get baptized — a sacrament of repentance? The answer I give is that Jesus is confirming that the teachings of John the Baptist, while radical at the time, are true and from God. More importantly, he is living the example he is teaching. Christ, throughout his time on Earth, walks the walk and talks the talk. Or, should I say, walks the talk? He says that we are to be generous to the poor, and therefore lives in poverty. He says tells us to not hate our enemies, and gives his life over to them. So, it follows that if he says we should be baptized, he himself gets baptized. Even John the Baptist is taken aback by this completely selfless act of integrity. By being the best example of what he preaches, Jesus is opening the door to us and invites us to experience the love in the sacraments.
And what did we do to deserve this love? As humans, particularly Americans, we often feel that we must earn our gifts. We tend to be wary of anything given to us. Certainly, personal responsibility is important, but as Americans we always say that nothing is free — well, except the love of God. As Paul tells us in his letter to Titus:
“When the kindness and generous love of God our savior appeared, not because of any righteous deeds we had done but because of his mercy, He saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he richly poured out on us through Jesus Christ our savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:4-7).
We must be like our example, Jesus Christ, and go to the sacrament not because we’re supposed to or feel we need to, but because our ability to share in God’s grace is a gift. Let us run to the altar and the confessional during this Year of Mercy, not because we’re dirty and need to be cleansed (though that might be the case), but because this gift of love is free, unalienable, and cannot be given or taken away. So, I’ll playfully echo John’s invitation: Come on in, the water is fine!
I’ll be seeing you,
Elliot