Bellarmine University
“Baptized and Sent”
Rev. Ronald Knott
January 10, 2016
You are my beloved Son; with you I am well
pleased.
Luke 3
I don't actually know how many people I
have baptized over the last 46 years, but I do know that there have been several hundred for sure! Every once in a
while, one of them will show up here in this very chapel, reminding me just how
old I am getting! Are any of you here today? If so, raise your hand!
The pouring of, or immersion in, water in
the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is the essence of the baptismal
ritual. Every time you enter a Catholic Church, from then on, you are invited
to dip your hand into baptismal water and cross yourself to remind you that you
are forever an adopted child of God and to remind you of your mission to the
world. Just as God's voice from heaven said to Jesus "You are my
beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," at your baptism the
Church said to you, "Your are, from this day forward, God's adopted son or
daughter, in whom He is well pleased." After the water is poured
over you, the priest or deacon anoints you on the top of the head with chrism -
the oil used in the Bible to anoint priests, prophets and kings - and says that
you and Christ are bound together, from now on and forever!
Just as Jesus' baptism marked the
beginning of his ministry of love and service to the world, as his adopted
children and heirs, our baptisms marked the beginning of our commission to
carry on that ministry of love and service to the world until he returns in
glory. Our baptisms, not just ordinations, are initiations into
ministry. In a certain sense, we all become priests at baptism, all off us
were given some share of Christ's ministry to the world.
After a lifetime of being his ambassadors,
representing Christ in the world, when we have drawn our last breath and have
been prepared for burial, our family and friends will bring our bodies back
into the church one last time. Our baptisms and our funerals are two bookends
to our lives. Just as was done at our baptism, the priest will meet your casket
at the door, sprinkle it with baptismal water and dress your casket in a white
pall reminiscent of that little white dress they put on you at your
baptism so many years before. This moment at the door of the church is
especially poignant for me on those occasions when I can remember baptizing the
deceased many years before, as I have actually done on occasion.
Students! Today is the day we remember the
baptism of Jesus, the day he officially began his public ministry. Today is
also one of those days when we are asked to remember our own baptisms, the day
we were officially charged with carrying on his ministry. In a few minutes, we
will again renew our profession of faith in the Trinity and repeat again the
vows that made for us our baptisms and vows we confirmed at our Confirmations -
vows to be a force for good in the world. To seal the deal on this
renewal, I will sprinkle you again with the water used for baptisms to remind
you once again that you are indeed a child of God, with whom he is well
pleased!
Students! In the next several years, many
of you will get married and have children. One of the things I try to do in
here is to help you start getting ready for that - help you to make remote
preparation to become serious marriage partners and parents - so that you will be ready when that time comes! To
do that, you need to be serious spiritual seekers now! Now is the time to begin preparing
yourselves for marriage and parenting. That is why renewing your own baptismal
vows is so important!
Since this is the week we pray for
vocations in general - vocations to carry on some part of Christ's ministry -
hopefully some of you will search your hearts to see if God is calling you to
lead others to holiness as a priest, deacon or religious brother or sister - to
assist and support those who have been called to marriage and parenting and to
bring the gospel to those who do not believe or whose faith is in
crisis! If you are called to ministry, respond like Isaiah,
"Here I am, Lord, send me! I will hold your people in my heart," rather
than try to run from it like Jonah!
If you are called to marriage and
parenting, decide today that you will break that cycle of going through a showy
Catholic wedding with no intention of practicing that Catholic faith afterwards
that is so common these days! Decide today that you will break that cycle of
demanding the baptisms of your children with no intention of bringing those
children up in the practice of the faith that is all to common today! Nemo dat quod non habet. If you
don't have it yourself, you cannot give it! Repeating the vows of your
baptism and sprinkling you with the water of baptism today is just a hollow
ritual if there is no intention in the heart to renew your commitment to
be a serious follow of Christ! If you are not a serious disciple yourself,
going into it, there is no way you can be a serious partner in a Christian
marriage, no way can you be a serious Christian parent, no way can you answer a
call to ministry! Decide today to be who you really are - a child of God, with whom he
is well pleased!
