Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

When I was in junior high, I remember having multiple conversations with my best friend about how she was preparing for her baptism in her Protestant church and how proud she was to be a Christian. Despite the Confirmation classes that I was taking at the time, I remember being confused about the Sacraments of the Catholic Church and my friend would make me wonder why I got Baptized as an infant when I had no choice in the matter. It wasn’t until much later that I began to grasp the theology of Baptism and while I am no theologian, the readings for Sunday give us just one insight into the gift of this Sacrament.

In the first reading, God tells us through Isaiah that we are called to be a light to the nations and in the psalms, we respond: ‘Here am I Lord, I come to do your will.’ While this is a verse we hear and repeat often in Church, it’s time to start praying the words we are saying. Do we understand what it means to do God’s will no matter where we are or how we are feeling? It’s in these words that we can start a simple, honest conversation with God.

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Here am I Lord, at the office feeling exhausted and frustrated, I come to do your will.’

‘Here am I Lord, at home feeling bored and unmotivated, I come to do your will.’

‘Here am I Lord, at the store feeling impatient and hungry, I come to do your will.’

‘Here am I Lord, at your Church feeling distracted and confused, I come to do your will.’

In the second reading, we are confronted with a similar message from St. Paul, that we are called to be apostles, to be holy. Holiness is the mission of the Church that we are Baptized into, as well as the very reason God breathed life into us. From our very conception God has made us to be holy and has given us the gift to be a light to the nations. You might think of your Baptism as an involuntary initiation, but the reality is that it was a celebration of God speaking words of truth and promise to our hearts. Our parents and godparents forced nothing upon us, but rather made the invisible visible, declaring that we belong to Him and His family. And now as adults, we can reflect on the way God has lived up to the promises He made at our Baptism and declare in the likeness of St. John the Baptist:

‘I have seen and will testify that I am the son/daughter of God.’