The Baptism of the Lord is the close of the Liturgical celebration of the Christmas Season and the opening to the first weeks of Ordinary Time. Advent and Christmas have reminded us of the Mystery of the Incarnation. Week by week in Ordinary Time, the celebration of the Liturgy unfolds the Mysteries of the Lord that flow from the Incarnation and the Paschal Mystery, the Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of the Lord, that will be celebrated in the Lent and Easter Seasons.

All of the Church’s Liturgy is the act of worship that Jesus Christ performs in His identity as the Son of God Who became one of us through the Incarnation. We enter into that reality through our own Baptism and the flow of baptismal grace that accompanies us through our earthly journey, all the way to Eternity. Baptism is not a “once and done” reality; it is a living reality that opens us to the Sacramental Life. All of the Sacraments flow from Baptism and... Read remainder below.