Cradle to Cross.  From the moment that Jesus is born into the world as a little child until the time comes for him to begin his public ministry there is one purpose for his life – to fulfill the will of the Father for salvation.  God sent Jesus the Son into the world to be a living sign of his love for all people whom he wills to be his children and share in the divine life of love, abundance and joy.  God gives Jesus to the world as a gift of his love, as a fulfillment of every one of his promises. 

     From the beginning God has established a covenant with a chosen people to lead them into a promised land of peace and prosperity.  God’s part of the covenant promises is to live with his people, to share in their struggles and sorrows, to bless them and protect them in his love, to teach them and guide them on the way to his kingdom through the law given on Sinai, to be as a husband to Israel and share his life with his people.  The part of the promises of the covenant that belonged to Israel was to separate themselves from the world of darkness and death and to live as a light to the nations, to walk humbly in the light of God’s law and word, to provide a dwelling place for God in the heart of their community, to live in the freedom of God’s people and not to enslave themselves to others through sin, to remain faithful to their relationship with the One God and to share their blessings with others in a true witness of love, in short, to be a holy people.  This covenantal relationship required a conversion, an acknowledgement of sin, a death in satisfaction of the price of redemption and a new life of grace, lived in a new way.

      Righteousness is a covenantal word and means the fulfillment of the promises and terms of the covenant.  One is righteous if one lives according to the terms of the covenant and makes good on his promises.  God is the Righteous One.  He fulfills all of his promises.  Jesus is born to fulfill all righteousness.  He is the fulfillment of the law and of every promise that God has made to Israel for salvation when God promised to be the shepherd of Israel himself.  He fulfills every promise on behalf of God in the covenant.  Jesus also shares in our humanity and he becomes the righteousness of humanity, fulfilling the part of the covenant for humanity through obedience.  Jesus accepts the will of God on behalf of humanity and lives his life in service and sacrifice.  Righteousness is fully revealed on the cross: God’s love unto the end; man’s obedience unto death.

     This fulfillment of all righteousness closes all past covenants between God and his people and begins a New Covenant of grace and freedom in filial relationship with God, a new life that is already a share in divine life and in heavenly worship.  Now we can begin to understand this Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord that we celebrate today.  Jesus is baptized by John in the Jordan river, at a very particular time in history, in order as he says, “Allow it now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”  This “epiphany” is the manifestation of Jesus as the one to “fulfill all righteousness.”  Pope Benedict remarked on this in his book, Jesus of Nazareth: “The whole of righteousness must be fulfilled.  In Jesus’ world, righteousness is man’s answer to the Torah, acceptance of the whole of God’s will, the bearing of the “yoke of God’s kingdom,” as one formulation had it.   In a world marked by sin, then this Yes to the entire will of God also expresses solidarity with men, who have incurred guilt but yearn for righteousness.  The significance of this event could not fully emerge until it was seen in light of the Cross and Resurrection.”

     When Jesus came up out of the waters of baptism the heavens were opened.  Baptism opens for us the gates of heaven.  As the baptized we share in the divine life with God and our worship is joined to the heavenly liturgy offered before the throne of God.  The Baptism of Jesus completes the baptism of John.  What began as a baptism of repentance and conversion becomes a way to new life in God’s heavenly kingdom.  Baptism now is for us a new life, an eternal life, a life lived in the freedom of God’s children, a life lived in the heart of God in the Church with God making a dwelling place in our hearts.  May we all remember our Yes to God that was spoken on our behalf on the day of our baptism and opened for us the way to heaven and may we live in the glorious manifestation of our new life in Christ.