with whom I am well pleased

Baptism of the Lord, Year A

Today marks the end of the Christmas season. Today we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord, Jesus. We might rightly ask, why did Jesus get baptised. Jesus who was without sin, did not need to be baptised. In fact, John himself was confused and told Jesus, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?” Jesus is God who became man. To be like us he obeyed the customs and laws of the time. Jesus wanted to be in solidarity with us humans, he was like us in everything except sin. Jesus shows us how we are to live, so that we are saved; he walked the walk before us. Jesus is the “Immanuel,” God is truly with us. In one way or another, whatever we face, God as man, Jesus, has gone through it too. Our God is unlike the gods about whom we read or see in films. God is unlike the gods who reign over people and punish them for bad behaviour. We can trust God. We can follow God, because in his love, he walks besides us, to lead us to eternal life. What God is asking of us, God as man has already lived through it, in one way or another.  

The baptism of Jesus reminds us of our own baptism. It is wrong if we believe that this was a once in a lifetime celebration which happened for most of us, when we were still babies. Baptism is a sacrament which marks us for life and gives us certain responsibilities. As baptised Catholics, we are obliged to share our faith. As parents, our first responsibility is towards our children. It is not enough to send our children for catechetical meetings, nor is it enough to go with them for Sunday mass. Although these things are good in themselves, and we should do them, we also need to be Christian witnesses to them in word and deed.  

A reading from the Gospel of Matthew (Mt 3, 13-17)  

Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan 
to be baptized by him. 
John tried to prevent him, saying, 
“I need to be baptized by you, 
and yet you are coming to me?” 
Jesus said to him in reply, 
“Allow it now, for thus it is fitting for us 
to fulfil all righteousness.” 
Then he allowed him. 
After Jesus was baptized, 
he came up from the water and behold, 
the heavens were opened for him, 
and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove 
and coming upon him. 
And a voice came from the heavens, saying, 
“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” 

The Gospel of the Lord 

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ 

  1. Read the Gospel story so that you are familiar with it.
  2. Reflect on what the Gospel story is saying to you. Which points would you highlight and why?
  3. When Jesus was baptised, God the Father said, “This is my beloved Son.” Stop and reflect. These are the same words, God said when you were baptised. What do these words mean to you today? How does it feel that God is looking at you and saying, “this is my beloved son/ this is my beloved daughter”? 
  4. Our baptism day is special, and it will always remain special no matter how old we are. There are other special days, like our birthdays, anniversaries and special occasions, which we celebrate every year. If you do not already do so, start celebrating the baptism day of each member of your family. 
  5. Together with your family find the right time to read this Gospel. The environment helps, so before you start, prepare; 
    i. The Bible reading from St Matthew (3, 13-17) 
    ii. Holy Water (if available, everyone makes the sign of the cross on their forehead to remind us of our baptism)
    iii. A white pillar candle 
    iv. cover the table with a white cloth
    v. A computer/laptop with the readings and clips 
  6. Go through the steps with your children (2 age groups are being suggested).
  7. Feel free to adapt to your situation
  8. Be creative 😊 
  9. Go to the Prayer Corner section to continue praying as a family. 

Although we are still in Christmas Time, today we will not listen to a story of when Jesus was still a little boy. Today we hear a story of when Jesus was grown up! Today’s Gospel is about the baptism of Jesus. We were baptised when we were still babies. Let us hear about Jesus’ baptism.  

  • When we are baptised, we become part of God’s family
  • Baptism photos of the members of our family 

What do you remember from today’s Gospel? 

To whom did Jesus go, to be baptised? (John) 

What was the name of the river, when John baptised the people? (Jordan) 

When Jesus was baptised, the Holy Spirit appeared. What did the Holy Spirit look like? (a dove) 

Do you remember what the voice from heaven said? (This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.) 

The voice from heaven, was the voice of God the Father. With these words, he wanted to show that Jesus was his son and that he was very happy and proud with Jesus. When are your parents happy and proud because of you? (they are always happy and proud, but more so when we do things which are good and right) 

Do you know when you were baptised? 

Do you know that God the Father is also happy and proud with us too? We became part of God’s family when we were baptised, and God is very happy and he loves us greatly. God is happy and proud of us, not only on the day of our baptism, but he loves us and he is happy about us, every day.  

Look at the baptism photos. What do you see? Are they different? 

In your photos, apart from the priest and your parents, there are two other persons. Do you know who they are? 

These are your godparents, and like your parents, they love you and want you to become best friends with Jesus. During this week, try and go to the church where you were baptised, together with your parents and godparents. (note to parents and godparents: when you enter the church, find the font of holy water and make the sign of the cross on your child’s forehead, make the sign of the cross on the forehead of the siblings too and on your forehead as well. This reminds us of our baptism). Go near the baptismal font and thank Jesus for the day you were baptised, thank him for your parents and godparents who love you and want you to love Jesus. After this visit, continue the celebration by going out together. 

Sign of the Cross.

Lord God, thank you for the gift of baptism. Father, God, thank you that we are your children, and you love us, like you love Jesus. Help us so that like Jesus, we always please you in what we do and say. Amen.  

Listen to, I am child of God.

In last week’s Gospel, Jesus was a very young child, but this week we listen to a time when he had grown up into a man! Today’s Gospel is about the time Jesus was baptised.

  • We are children of God
  • Nothing

What do you remember from today’s Gospel?

Jesus did not need to be baptised. When we are baptised, what we call our original sin, is forgiven. This is not some sin we committed, since we are still babies when baptised, however it is something we inherit, the temptation to do what is wrong. Jesus never sinned, that is why he did not need to be baptised. However, he wanted to be baptised to show us what we need to do. Jesus wanted to be like us.

When Jesus was baptised, something amazing happened. The Holy Spirit appeared as a dove and a voice was heard, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” These words remove all doubt as to who Jesus was. Jesus is the Son of God. Today’s Gospel is not important only because it shows us who Jesus is, but it also reminds us of our own baptism. Like Jesus, we are called to love others, every day we are called to do what God wishes. Jesus was baptised by John, just like many were doing at the time. By so doing, he wanted to show us that he was one of us. God became man so that like us, he could live a life which did not always bring joy, like us he lived a life which included suffering. Jesus knows what it means to be human, he understands what we face each day. Jesus became man, so that we may never feel alone.

Something like what happened during the baptism of Jesus, happened during our baptism. When Jesus was baptised, God the Father said, “This is my beloved Son.” When we were baptised, God the Father made us his children, and God said, “This is my beloved son” / “This is my beloved daughter.” In this way, today’s Gospel does not only reveal who Jesus is, but it also shows us who we are. Whatever we do, this truth never changes, we are the beloved children of God!

If Jesus became man to show us how to live, what are some things that we can do to be like Jesus? (be true friends, help as best as we can, we do not use hurtful words, take care of each other, we do not boast …)

Our baptism day is a very special day. Do you know when you were baptised? If not, ask your parents. Ask also about your god parents. Together go to the church where you were baptised, and near the baptismal font renew the baptismal promises. (you may find these promises here.

Sign of the cross

Lord God, we are your children. Help us so that every day we make choices which please you. Give us the courage to live with others as brothers and sisters. We pray this in the name of Jesus, our brother. Amen.

Listen to, Child of God.

How to use this space

God speaks to us in many ways, including through the Sunday Scripture readings. Here you will find useful background and activities to better understand the upcoming Sunday's Scripture readings, helping you to connect the Scripture to daily life in a meaningful way.