Matthew 3: 13-17
Dear Friends,
Once again we are invited to enter into the story of Jesus. St. Matthew begins the public life of Jesus with the Baptism of the Son of God.
In spite of John’s reluctance to baptize, Jesus tells John to go along with this public ritual. God has a plan and the baptism fits into that divine scheme. God wants Jesus to share the human experience including the ritual of repentance that John was celebrating. Ultimately, the depth of this sharing will lead to his death on the Cross.
In the meanwhile, St. Mathew calls us to walk with Jesus once again in our liturgical year. Though we know the story, we will never know it well enough. Likewise, we need to bring the story of Jesus into our experience. We are always entering into new and often strange territory and in need of direction. St. Matthew presents Jesus as our guide.
St. John of the Cross, the great Carmelite mystic, recommended that we always stay in touch with the Gospel story. He said, “There is much to fathom in Christ, for he is like an abundant mine with many recesses of treasure, so that however deep individuals may go, they never reach the end or bottom, but rather in every recess find new veins with new riches everywhere..” (Spiritual Canticle 37,4)
Jesus is the Beloved Son of the Father. We need to let him touch our heart and to enlighten our mind. Slowly, this continuing encounter will draw us into the freedom of the truth and the new energy of love that only Jesus can give.
Each week in the Matthew version of the Jesus story we will be called into the gradual realization that we are loved beyond our wildest dreams. This love, if freely embraced, will set us free to journey to our own Jerusalem where we can die so we can live and give life to all.
