The Baptism of the Lord_C - Christ Among Us_011225

 Image Credit: Baptism-of-Christ.jpg/ by Davezelenka

Deacon Tom writes,

Christ Among Us

 

The Baptism of the Lord, Year C

 

Today’s celebration of The Baptism of the Lord marks an end to this Christmas Season. I hope the peace and joy of the Christ Child touched you and your loved over the course of this holy time of year. You will notice that the white vestments that have signified these solemn days of Christmas will give way to green indicating a return to “Ordinary Time”  next week as the liturgical calendar rolls forward.

 

Last Sunday we celebrated the Feast of the Epiphany of Our Lord. This Feast’s importance is centered on the visit of the magi whose presence before the newborn King of the Jews reveals God’s loving plan of salvation for all the nations of the world. Yes, God who first befriended the people of Israel now sends his Only Begotten Son into the world so each person may experience the intimate presence of Emmanuel, the presence of Christ living among us.

 

In today’s gospel text Jesus comes to John to be baptized in the Jordan River, a second occasion where God is visibly living and active in our human family. God’s voice from on high proclaims and affirms Jesus His “Beloved Son” as the Holy Spirit descends in bodily form. Yes, today we experience the fullness of Trinitarian love fully present in the completely human person of Jesus.

 

The Baptism of Jesus reveals the mystery of the presence of God in all of our lives. God comes to us when we are baptized just as he came to Jesus, filling us with his Spirit and claiming us as his own. We too become his “beloved.” We are invited to deepen our awareness of the calling we have received in our own baptism and, as our journey of faith continues, to pass the fire burning within us to all those who come into our lives. But really, is this really happening in our lives? Do we have any sense at all that we are God’s “beloved”? I remember the Nuns in school telling us if we were the only person alive, Christ would have come down and died for us. That profound thought should help us grasp that God loves more than we can imagine and therefore should move us to love God in return equally as much... even with OUR own heart, soul, mind and strength.

 

Our relationship with God is much like our relationship with others in our lives. Just as it would be virtually impossible to have a healthy and meaningful relationship in this life with someone we claim to love but then constantly ignore, so to with God. To be his “beloved” is to be in an intimate and trusting relationship with him, a union of trust and faithfulness that is mutually nourishing, beneficial, health, and supportive, and yes, even full of surprises!

 

As we ease back into Ordinary Time, let us remember that we are God’s “beloved.” Let this simple thought become our mindset as we move into this new year so that we take advantage of every opportunity to act as God’s beloved and continue to grow in his love, deepen our relationship with him, and to share the abundance of his love with everyone whose lives touch ours. Can you think of any better way to help our troubled world than to share God’s love with everyone in our lives?

 

Enjoy the day!

Deacon Tom

 

 

Please Visit www.deaconspod.com and listen in as the three deacons engage in a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer to those on the threshold, those thinking of joining our Catholic Community or walking away from it. 

 

OTHER RESOURCES

 

Recommended Reading: Christian Mystics - Their Lives and Legacies throughout the Ages by Ursula King. Introduces sixty men and women whose great devotion and mystical relation to God transformed the times in which they lived and continues to affect our search for spirituality today. What a good way to nourish our spiritual lives by learning from the lives of those who have travelled the way before us.

 

 

 

Recommended Podcast: Recovering the mystical Identity of Christianity This is a wonderful presentation by Fr Laurence Freeman who leads us on seeing the mystical in our everyday lives… Great stuff for the soul here… Give it a go….

The Epiphany of the Lord_C - Lighten the Load_0105025

Epiphany_Three-Kings_reyes

Deacon Tom Writes,

“Lighten The Load”

 

The Epiphany of the Lord, Year C

 

No matter what the Holiday may be, we often hear headlines about how horrible airline travel is... delayed or cancelled flights, long lines, frustrated or impatient travelers.  Then there is the 50-pound weight limit for our baggage which, if you go over, you get dinged a $35 or $50 penalty. Perhaps you have seen people pulling items out of their check in bag and stuffing them into the carry on to avoid the penalty. If you are smart, you use your scale at home to avoid such a scene at the airport. In that case you might be confronted with the difficult choice of leaving behind that extra sweater or the additional pair of dress shoes and if push comes to shove, and you can’t decide, oh well, you are just going to have to pony up the extra bucks!

 

I wonder if the Magi had trouble packing all they needed for their trip. They didn’t know how long their journey would take nor what exactly they would need along the way. There was only so much that they could bring with them and there were no shopping malls along the way like there is today. They had to pack wisely if they wanted to find that special object they were seeking, the infant King of the Jews.

 

This journey of the Magi that announces the Good News of God’s salvation to the entire world invites us reflect on the journey of our lives. The Magi’s story prompts us to ponder the direction of our lives and asks us, “What it is that we are looking for in this life”? What is the object of our hearts’ desire that is driving us forward each day; what is that “special thing” that will completely satisfy us when we find it? Most of us recognized that our lives are so busy and cluttered at times that we often neglect those important things that give us the most joy and happiness. Suffering from that same condition, I have been asking myself what are the essential, absolute necessities I need to enjoy life. It comes down a single word…relationship. Relationships with my family, friends, and God are what matter most to me at this stage of my life. Perhaps the same is true for you also. 

 

There are so many activities that contribute to the busyness of our lives that don’t contribute to the quality of our lives, nor do they lead us to what is most important: a deeper relationship with those around us and God. If the choices we are making aren’t leading us to deeper, more profound relationships, then, these are the things we need to leave behind, just like we must leave some things behind when we pack for the airport. Life, as we are often reminded, is full of choices…some are good, and others, well, not so good.

The choice I hope all can agree upon as we enter into 2025 is our own individual need to make better spiritual choices in the New Year. By that I mean, to choose to spend more time in prayer, more time examining our conscience to see where we need to make some changes in our attitudes or to identify areas where we just aren’t living up the teachings Christ taught us, those difficult things to do like forgiving others, not judging others, stopping gossip or overcoming our skepticism over so many things. As our lives have been turned upside down in many ways because of the pandemic, perhaps we can use the time going forward to delve into our spiritual lives and toss out any baggage that is not leading us into intimate communion with the Heart of God.

 

May God, who sent His only Son to “dwell among us,” help us to accomplish this in the New Year. And, may God bless you and your loved ones in the days to follow.

 

Enjoy the day and a very Blessed, Holy, and Happy New Year to you and your loved ones.

Deacon Tom

 

 

Please Visit www.deaconspod.com and listen in as the three deacons engage in a contemporary conversation exploring the treasures our Catholic faith has to offer to those on the threshold, those thinking of joining our Catholic Community or walking away from it. 

 

OTHER RESOURCES

Recommended Reading: The Cloud of Unknowing and the Book of Privy Counseling is an anonymous fourteenth-century text and one of the most practical and useful guides to finding union with God ever written. The Cloud of Unknowing consists of a series of letters written by a monk to his student or disciple, instructing him (or her) in the way of Divine union. Its theology is presented in a way that is remarkably easy to understand, as well as practical, providing advice on prayer and contemplation that anyone can

Recommended Podcast: Desert Fathers in a Year (with Bishop Erik Varden) Exodus 90 – ( Link to Apple Podcast.)

Modern life is like a desert—a parched and barren expanse where the soul thirsts for the living water Jesus promised at the well. Amid the ceaseless distractions and allurements of materialism, God can seem absent. As the Desert Fathers of old fled the noise of the world to seek God in silence, we too have been called into the desert.
Guided by Bishop Erik Varden, this year-long series—beginning January 1, 2025—invites listeners to encounter the profound wisdom of the Desert Fathers.

Bishop Erik Varden, a Cistercian monk and Bishop of Trondheim, Norway, is one of today’s leading Catholic voices. A convert to Catholicism during his studies at Cambridge, he was drawn to the monastic life, ultimately joining Mount St. Bernard Abbey in England, where he eventually became abbot. Through his writing and teaching, Bishop Varden speaks compellingly to a secular world, using the language of beauty to reveal the centrality of our search for God—even when we wander astray.
Join us as we step into the desert together, guided by the wisdom of the ancients, to rediscover the love of Christ that conquers all obstacles. Visit DesertFathers.com to learn more.