Father Rick’s Three-Minute Homily for the Baptism of the Lord.

January 12, 2025, Luke 3:15-16, 21-22.

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/011225.cfm

I Wonder

I wonder what my life would be like if my Mom and Dad didn’t ask the priest to baptize me. I wonder what I would be like if Mom and Dad never attended Mass after my Baptism. Maybe only on occasion at a funeral or Christmas and Easter. I wonder if I would have any faith at all. I can feel a big hole in my heart just thinking what that would be like.

How different my life would be! I would not know Blessed Antonio Rosmini and be a member of The Institute of Charity. I wouldn’t be a priest and have a vocation to serve you. I wouldn’t even be here if Mom and Dad didn’t bring me up in the Catholic Faith and the practice of the Faith. Sure, it may have happened another way, but who knows?

I remember hearing that Dad went to confession two days before he passed away suddenly. He didn’t know he would die of a massive heart attack. I never want to put that Sacrament off because something else is more important at the time.

When Jesus was baptized, he was 30 years old. But what did he do after his Baptism? He went into the desert, putting everything aside to be with his Father. This teaches me that our Faith is a relationship with God and each other. My Mom and Dad had a relationship with Jesus, and they made sure that they did everything they could so that I would have a relationship with him, too.

Pray with me for parents who only have their children baptized but don’t bring them up in the practice of the Faith. I praise you, Lord God, for planting the seed of Faith in every child’s Baptism. May our prayer and love for you overflow into their hearts to want You in Holy Communion more than anything else.

“Mom and Dad in heaven, the most incredible thing you did for me was not only bring me to be baptized, but you did everything you could to ensure I have a relationship with Jesus in the Catholic Church. That happened because our family attended Mass every Sunday and had a big meal afterward. That brought the Last Supper meal in Church to my family’s meal at home into one. It strengthened our relationship with each other and God. Thank you, Mom and Dad, and please, God, I will be with you one day in heaven.

Sometime today, have a chat with Jesus about your Baptism.

Love Your Neighbor!

Father Rick Pilger, IC
www.bscchurch.com