Last Sunday, the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus was celebrated, bringing the Christmas-Epiphany cycle to its conclusion. Unlike Matthew and Luke, who begin with the infancy narratives, Mark begins his Gospel with the baptism of Jesus: the heavens opened, the Spirit descending like a dove, and the Father’s voice: “You are my Son, my beloved; with you I am well-pleased.”  Each day of his life, in every aspect of his mission on earth, Jesus lived out of the truth of those words spoken by his Father: he lived as the Beloved Son of God.

Baptism marks not only the beginning of our Christian life, but a permanent and ongoing aspect of our Christian identity.  On the day of our baptism, each of us was held in divine tenderness, washed in grace, clothed in dignity, anointed for service, enlightened for mission: not for one day only, but for a lifetime.  Baptism confers a permanent character, a seal of divine love that nothing or no one can take away from us.  It is God’s gift of the Holy Spirit: to be received in gratitude and exercised in service.

In the Gospel of John, the first words uttered by Jesus are a probing question: “What are you looking for?”  In the response of the disciples, we hear a hunger not so much for a program or a teaching, but for a relationship: “Where do you live?”  And Jesus says, “come and see.”  And they came, and they saw, and they spent the day.  Out of that time spent together, as friends getting to know each other, the disciples began their formation in the life of their Master.

“Ordinary” time is our invitation to live out this extraordinary call of discipleship leading into mission: Jesus calls us by name, draws us into relationship as disciple and friend, and then sends us forth in God’s name, invites us to share in his ministry.  And we build strong and fruitful communities when we work together, as a team, sharing in the leadership to which Christ calls us. 

This coming Saturday, January 23^rd, as part of our parish vitality initiative, we are invited to take part in a workshop entitled “Leadership Where It Matters Most”, led by Brett Powell from the Archdiocese of Vancouver.  If you think you might be interested, you can register here.

We are still in lockdown, but Mass continues to be available by live-stream on Sunday at 11 a.m. Please consult the guide for accessing the Parish YouTube page and the Live-stream Mass. Unfortunately, we are no longer able to offer Holy Communion after Mass, but we can offer that deprivation up for all those sick and in hospital, and those who are on the front lines caring for their needs.

Special thanks to all of you who have been so generous with your regular support of the parish, whether online or in person, and with our special Christmas appeal.  We are most grateful!

God bless and have a great week!

Fr. Raymond