Consider for a moment how we introduce ourselves. Hello, my name is Joe, I live in Nutley . Hello, I am Lynn , I work at the Archdiocese.

Why don’t we say, hello, my name is Joe, I am a baptized Roman Catholic. If we did this it would carry more significance than any other introduction. Maybe we don’t because our baptism was so long ago we do not remember it and we may have lost sight of its significance.

Let this day of the baptism of Our Lord and the Scripture we have all heard change that for the good of our lives of faith. For by His baptism and ours we become tied directly to Him in the sacrament of solidarity. Consider the words of Isaiah. I have formed you and set you as a covenant for the nations.

A covenant is an agreement with God, it is not a contract therefore it should not be broken. Jesus is the everlasting covenant and we are the covenant or disciples to the nations, always by our baptismal call to serve. This is the first reason Jesus chose to be baptized so that through scripture we would always recall our own baptism.

As for service, many people say that there is nothing they can do. This is not the case. The most important thing we can all do, and should by words of the second reading, is be a visible sign of God’s commandments. Our daily words and actions are our window of opportunity to witness our baptismal promises every day. Picture the life giving water being poured over your head every time a situation arises that calls for you to be a living disciple.

So, have I convinced you to wake up each morning and say, good morning Joe, you are a baptized Roman Catholic ready to take his part in the world. Hopefully I have done this, but if not consider the following thought:

Jesus allowed himself to be baptized by John for another reason. He wanted each of us to never discount what we or any other person can do to motivate the faith he brings to the world.

Just after I was ordained a deacon I gave a Homily on pro-life. Afterwards a man approached me and said that he was thankful and appreciative of my words. He introduced his children to me, there were six of them, all with special needs. He and his family had adopted all of them and now run a home for unwed mothers. My thought was that although he was thankful for my homily I could not think past the fact that his baptismal witness was far more inspiring. Jesus wants us to never to discount our own example or that of anyone else who may demonstrate the importance of this sacrament of solidarity every day of our life.