This coming week we will be celebrating the feast of the Ascension of Jesus into heaven. His work on earth as Son of God / Son of Mary – Crucified and Risen is just about at an end, from a strictly earthly perspective. It is time for the Son to return to the Father, it is time for Jesus, Son of Mary to take his place at the right hand of the Father in heaven, to prepare a place to receive his Mother, when we celebrate her Assumption in August: and to prepare a place for us as he promised he would. It is an exciting time of year.
We are still in the wondrous season of spring when everything is bursting forth green, flowering and fragrant. It is the great Easter Season! It is still –after six weeks - a fitting time to talk about baptism. That which brings us into the newness of life that Jesus won for us on Calvary and released by his Resurrection is Baptism. We use the water – so recognizable as spring showers and rain – to welcome into the Church those selected by the Holy Spirit to be members. In the first reading today, even Peter was surprised when the Holy Spirit fell upon the Gentiles who were listening to him preach. It was the same Sprit that fell upon him and the Apostles and many others on Pentecost day. It was quite obvious to Peter then that these Gentiles ought to be baptized right
away for the forgiveness of their sins; and in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And they were.
[Now, it seems that at this very early stage of the game – on this particular occasion – the Gentiles were "confirmed" first before they were "baptized." Not until later did the Church sort out and define the order of the full initiation rites of the Church: which now are Baptism – Confirmation – Eucharist].
The important thing here is that God does the calling; those who hear the call are graced to respond to the call: to receive the waters of Baptism, the fire of the Holy Spirit, and the Bread of Life – if they are attentive, alert & willing!
Today we will celebrate – following this homily – the baptism of Cody Fournier. We are so fortunate to have this opportunity today to celebrate the human life of a child, and the new-spiritual-life that comes with Baptism. Parents, cooperating with God give the child human life; but their greatest gift to the child is to give him/her an opportunity to possess "newness of life" – the gift of "Divine Friendship; and the gift of becoming an adopted spiritual son / daughter of God – and a true adoptive brother and sister to everyone else who is baptized and lives in Jesus Christ: brothers and sisters in the Church.
In the gospel passage Jesus tells us that by dying for us: our lost friendship with him and his Father was restored; and the possibility of true, deep and meaningful friendship with one another – which had also been seriously wounded by the sin of our first parents - was also restored: we were reconciled to God and to one another! Baptism is what connects us to that Divine Friendship that runs up and down (from and to God); and all around, to our brothers and sisters – who if they are baptized too, are qualified to be our very best of friends, not only for life but forever.
This is what life in the Church means: life in a Community of Friends – who are united with one another by the amazing love of Jesus (God's own Son and our Brother and Friend) who proved that friendship by dying for us: no one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. [And to boot, Jesus died for us when we were still enemies – due to the technicality, that we couldn't even be friends of his until he did die – he loves us so very much!]
He asks us then too: to do as he commands: which is to LOVE: to FRIEND as many people as we can, as he friends them: by being nice to them, helping them when there is something we can do to help, and to do this because we first have been loved and friended by him! Our Alms Program is called: Friends Helping Friends / Help Thy Neighbor – this is an excellent way for us to do what Jesus commands – along with many other of your own ideas.
And now it is time for us to welcome into our parish family of caring friends: a young one whom we now promise to take under our wing to give spiritual support, sustenance, love and friendship to all the days of his life: it is time for the rite that has been passed on for 2000 years to begin: it is time to celebrate the great sacrament of Baptism!
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