by Fr. Tommy Lane
Jesus did not need to be baptized because he was sinless and the baptism administered by John was a sign of repentance from sin, a sign of turning away from sin. We all need baptism to begin our life with God, so Jesus in humility underwent baptism to identify with us even though he did not need it. In a conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus explained that we need to be baptized. “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above. . . Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of flesh is flesh and what is born of spirit is spirit. (John 3:3, 5)
When we were baptized it meant we belong to God from that day onwards. We could call it a consecration. Consecration means that a person or thing is handed over to God and belongs to God. There are six parts to our consecration to God at baptism which we renew our every year at Easter. The priest asks six questions, the first three concern rejecting evil and the second three concern our dedication to God:
Do you renounce
Satan? I do.
And all his works? I do.
And all his empty show?
I do.
Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of
heaven and earth? I do.
Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only
Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death and
was buried, rose again from the dead and is seated at the right hand
of the Father? I do.
Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy
Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting? I do.
These baptismal promises show that baptism is a consecration to God, handing ourselves over to God. The first three questions in our baptismal promises concern turning away from evil. Ever since the sin of Adam, there is a spirit of rebellion against God in us. We want to live life on our terms and don’t want God telling us what is right and wrong just as Adam and Eve rejected God telling them right and wrong. We want to live our lives our way without God’s dominion over us. It is because of that spirit of revolt in us that we renew our baptismal promises every year and that we need to go to confession regularly. Regular confession helps us be docile to God, to surrender to God and live better our baptismal promises.
Sometimes people make a consecration to Our Lady which is a beautiful thing to do, or they make other consecrations. These consecrations are really rededicating ourselves to our original consecration to God at baptism because whatever we give to Our Lady she gives to God. So, when we consecrate ourselves to Our Lady, we are really consecrating ourselves to God with the help of Our Lady or rededicating ourselves to God with the help of Our Lady, renewing our original consecration to God at our baptism.
Just as we need a father and mother for our life to begin, for the life of God in us we need God and Our Lady. Jesus gave us Mary as our spiritual Mother when he was dying on the cross and said, “Woman, behold your son” and to John, representing all of us, he said, “Behold your mother.” (John 19:26-27) As our spiritual mother, Our Lady is with us from the moment of our baptism because that is the moment when the life of God first enters our souls. She is with us all through our lives seeking to help us grow closer to God. The more we allow Our Lady into our lives, the closer we get to God and the better we live our baptismal promises. There is a beautiful passage in St. Louis Marie de Montfort’s Treatise on True Devotion to Our Lady:
Mary, the beloved Mother of chosen souls, shelters them under her protecting wings as a hen does her chicks. She speaks to them, coming down to their level and accommodating herself to all their weaknesses. To ensure their safety from the hawk and vulture, she becomes their escort, surrounding them as an army in battle array. (§210 in the edition by the Montfort Fathers, and pp146-147 in the first English translation by Fr. Faber)
So those who consecrate themselves to Our Lady, or we could say consecrate themselves to God with the help of Our Lady, the more they give themselves to her, the more they have her protection and care for their spiritual wellbeing to live out their baptismal promises.
Those who wear the miraculous medal know that its design was given by Our Lady during an apparition to St. Catherine Labouré in a convent in Paris. Our Lady said those lights represent the graces of Jesus she showers down on us.
The closer we are to Our Lady, the closer we will be to God and the more like Our Lady we will surrender to God and the better we will live our baptismal promises.
© Fr. Tommy Lane 2025
This homily was delivered in a parish in Ireland.
More Homilies for the First Sunday: Baptism of Our Lord
Deepening our unity with Jesus since baptism 2023
Jesus’ solidarity with us 2021
United with Jesus since baptism 2020
The baptism of Jesus: every grace in the Church comes from Jesus 2011
Sharing in the salvific effects of Jesus’ cross through baptism 2009
Like Jesus you were anointed with the Holy Spirit at baptism
Sons and daughters of our Father since our baptism
Year C: Jesus was baptized and we are baptized, Jesus prayed and we pray 2013
Year C: Jesus with us 2022
Related Homilies: Baptism changes the quality of our souls forever 2011
Professing our faith with the Apostles’ Creed during baptism