Dear Parishioners and Friends of St. Mary’s of the Lake:
[Below is part of Pope Francis’ Reflection during the Angelus onBAPTISM OF THE LORD 2019]:

  We Today, at the conclusion of the Liturgical Season of Christmas, we celebrate the FEAST OF THE BAPTISM OF THE

LORD. The liturgy calls us to more fully get to know Jesus, whose birth we have just celebrated; and for this reason the Gospel (cf. Lk 3:15-16, 21-22) illustrates two important elements: Jesus’ relationship with the people and Jesus’ relationship with theFather.

 In the narrative of the Baptism, administered to Jesus by John the Baptist in the waters of the Jordan, we see first and foremost the role of the people. Jesus is in the midst of the people. This is

not just background scenery, but is an essential component of the event. Before immersing himself in the water, Jesus‘immerses’ himself in the crowd; he joins it, fully taking on the human condition, sharing everything, except sin. In his divine holiness, full of grace and mercy, the Son of God became flesh precisely to take upon himself and take away the sin of the world: taking on our miseries, our human condition. Thus today’s event is also an epiphany, because by going to have himself baptized by John, in the midst of the repentant people, Jesus manifests the logic and meaning of his mission.

 By joining the people who ask John for the Baptism of conversion, Jesus shares with them the deep desire for inner renewal. And the Holy Spirit, who descends upon him ‘in bodily form, as a dove’ (v. 22), is a sign that with Jesus a new world is being initiated, a ‘new creation’ in which all those who welcome Jesus into their life participate. The words of the Father are also addressed to each of us, that we may be reborn with Christ in Baptism: ‘Thou art my beloved son; with thee I am well pleased’ (v. 22). This Fatherly love, which all of us received on the day of our Baptism, is a flame that was lit in our heart, and needs to be kindled by means of prayer and charity. [To Be Continued]

ORDINARY TIME: After the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord we enter the Church’s Ordinary Time. As a mat- ter of fact, [this year] January 11 will be Monday of the first week in Ordinary Time. It is called ordinary simply because the weeks in this period are numbered. The Latin word ordinalis refers to numbers in order. In other words, weeks in the Ordinary Time are numbered in order, to- taling 33 or 34 in a given year and representing the weeks from the Baptism of the Lord until Ash Wednes- day; and again from Pentecost until Advent. During these 33-34 weeks, the Church invites her children to meditate upon the whole mystery of Christ – his life, preaching & miracles, teachings & healings– in the light of his Nativity and Resurrection.