Author: SHSS

Sunday is the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. The term Ordinary Time means that we are not preparing for an important feast like Christmas or Easter, nor are we celebrating an important feast. There are two Ordinary Time liturgical seasons. The first Ordinary Time follows Christmas and ends with Ash Wednesday. The second Ordinary Time follows Pentecost and ends with the First Sunday of Advent. The first Ordinary Time begins by focusing on the Incarnation and will lead us to the season of Lent. The second Ordinary Time has its focus on Easter and will lead us to the season of Advent. Keep in mind: when Jesus is involved in our lives, nothing is ordinary.​

Called to Discipleship in Belief and Behavior

In today’s readings, we are called to be followers of Christ. We are called to live our discipleship in our belief and in our behavior. In baptism, we are called to a life of holiness and wholeness. The Gospel invites us to “come and see.” We are invited to meet the Lord Jesus again for the first time. We are invited to deepen our personal relationship with the Lord. The lives of Peter, Andrew, James, and John were radically changed. They grew beyond what they may ever have imagined. Our relationship with the Lord is deepened through prayer and our relationship with others.​

The Universal Call, Personal Paths

When the call to holiness is universal, the discernment of one’s way to live out that call is personal as well as Church-related. All vocations have similar earmarks. The call always involves the giving of oneself completely to the Lord through the vocation. Each vocation is called to the service of others in the name of the Lord. Each vocation has death and resurrection experiences. Each true vocation feels natural to the one called. Thus, some are called to the vocation of marriage and parenthood, others to religious life or single life. Some are called to Holy Orders as deacons or priests. All are called to give of themselves. All have their lives completely changed for the better.​

Hear the Invitation Anew

I invite all to hear today’s Gospel for the first time. I invite all young people to consider Christ as your hero and to seek a life that will proclaim his greatness. Hear the invitation of Christ to follow him. See and hear this call as a call to deepen one’s personal relationship with the Lord in the context of the Eucharist, Scripture, and Church. See the Lord as a dynamic and alive person for you in your heart, in your mind, and your whole being. Grow in the Lord, and you will have a life to the fullest.

Msgr. Guy A. Massie​
January 18, 2026

The Baptism of the Lord is another major Epiphany of the Incarnation of God among us in Christ Jesus. In this feast, there is a manifestation or showing of Christ. In St. Paul’s Letter to Titus we read: “The grace of God has appeared, saving all and training us to reject godless ways…” and again: “When the kindness and generous love of God our savior appeared….” Seeing is the main theme of the readings. The invisible God is seen in Jesus. Notice that on Christmas, Christ is manifested to the shepherds by the angels. On the Epiphany, Jesus is manifested to the magi by Mary. In today’s liturgy, Christ is manifested to us by the Father and the Holy Spirit.

The Feast and the End of Christmas

The feast closes the Christmas Season. The Baptism of the Lord is the manifestation of Christ Jesus, the Incarnate Word, to the world by the Father and the Holy Spirit. The Baptism of the Lord begins the public ministry of Jesus.

In this baptismal event, Jesus aligns himself with sinful humanity, which struggles to be sinless while faced with human weakness. In the mystery of the Incarnation, God touches our weakness, our spiritual wound, and heals it.

John’s Baptism and Christian Baptism

The baptism which John the Baptist administered is not the same baptism we as Christians receive. The baptism of John the Baptist was a baptism of repentance; it was a sign that the one being baptized would try to change one’s life. The baptism John administered has its roots in the Jewish mikvah bath. The mikvah is a cleansing and signifies a new beginning.

Our baptism is an immersion into Christ Jesus. We are immersed into the redemption which Christ has brought about through his passion, death, and resurrection.

Jesus’ Solidarity with Sinners

Jesus preached a baptism of repentance in the hope of the coming of the Kingdom of God. Jesus, who is sinless, does not need the baptism of John. Jesus is not a repentant sinner.

Yet Jesus accepts John’s baptism as a sign that he stands with all struggling sinners who desire redemption, long for healing, and want the reign of God. The Baptism of Jesus begins his public ministry. The redemptive ministry of Jesus will lead to the Cross. It will be Christ’s faithfulness to his ministry that will ultimately redeem our unfaithfulness.

From Baptism to Easter

Truly, the mystery of the Incarnation is astounding when one realizes that God became human to take on our weaknesses and to make atonement for us. The event of the Baptism of the Lord resembles Easter. The baptism begins the redemptive work of Jesus which will culminate in the events of Easter.

The Baptism of the Lord begins the victory of Christ over all forms of evil and death.

Our Call to Manifest Christ

Each of us, because of our baptism, Confirmation, and especially the Eucharist, is called to be a manifestation of Christ to those around us. Yes, Christ acts through us for others. In the same way, the divine Holy Spirit, who comes to us in every sacrament, enables us to recognize the manifestation of Christ in those around us, especially in the poor, the vulnerable, the innocent, the wise, those in need, and even the gifted.

God’s presence surrounds us. The universe is singing God’s presence. We need to be alert to this divine Presence. This feast is one of hope and comfort for all of us. It reminds us that Jesus walks with all people of good will who are striving to be faithful and yet fail from time to time. The Epiphany events of the arrival of the magi, the Baptism of the Lord, and the Wedding Feast at Cana remind us that nothing will separate us from the love of God which comes to us in Christ Jesus.

Msgr. Guy A. Massie
January 11, 2026

How do we hear these Christmas stories? What are we hearing? Do we assume we know the story? Allow me to repeat what I said at the beginning of Advent: “We are hearing the readings again for the first time.” The text of Scripture remains the same; you and I have changed. The depth of our belief may have changed. Faith may be deeper or shallower. We may be hearing these readings after experiencing loss or sadness. We may be hearing these readings at a time in life when change, for better or for worse, seems imminent. You may be hearing these texts after having your own child or while expecting your own child. How is God showing, or not showing, himself to you today?​

The Meaning of Epiphany

Today is the great feast of the Epiphany. The word Epiphany means “to show” or “to manifest.” Today’s feast is more catechetical than historical. This means the story is teaching us about Jesus. The story is addressing the identity of Jesus through the use of symbols. The liturgy recognizes three major epiphanies: the Arrival of the Magi, the Baptism of the Lord, and the Wedding Feast of Cana.​

In many ways, this feast is like a summation of the whole Gospel story. The entire Gospel shows us Christ. The ultimate question that the entire Gospel addresses to us, after telling us about Jesus, is “Who is Jesus?” For the Gospel, Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior, the Redeemer, and above all else, Jesus is God made flesh. If you were asked, “Who is Jesus?” how would you answer?​

Manifestation to the World

If the celebration of Christmas was an epiphany to the shepherds and to the people of Israel, then today’s feast has a universal theme. Today is the manifestation of Christ to the world. The world is represented by gold, God is represented by frankincense, and the suffering servant who would die for his people is represented by myrrh.​

The Mystery of the Incarnation

The mystery of the Incarnation of God among us in the humanity of Jesus is so great an event that words, celebrations, poetry, music, or art cannot adequately express its complete meaning. In the mystery of the Incarnation, we see that humanity can be a vehicle, a carrier, a minister of the divine. God is made present through human relationships. The Incarnation continues in the Body of Christ, also known as the Church. Those in a relationship with Christ in his day were encountering and interacting with God.​

Thus, it is in and through our humanity—baptized into the Body of Christ, nourished by the Eucharist, in prayerful conversation with God, anointed by the Holy Spirit—that we manifest Christ to the world. It is through our frail humanity that mercy, love, kindness, justice, truth, peace, joy, etc., are carried to our respective worlds of home, work, and school. Because of the Incarnation, we carry God to a waiting world.​

Living the Incarnation

Yes, through the Incarnation, God touches a broken, weak, dirty, sinful, imperfect humanity and brings healing and reconciliation. When believers in the Incarnation live their faith in every circumstance, then Christ is manifested to the world.​

Msgr. Guy A. Massie​
January 4, 2026
Readings for The Feast of the Epiphany