"Come oh Holy Spirit come!
Come like Holy Fire and burn within us!
Come like Holy Wind and cleanse us!
Come like Holy Light and lead us!
Come as Holy Truth and teach us!
Come as Holy Love and enfold us!
Come as Holy Power and enable us!
Come as Abundant Life and fill us!
Convert us! Consecrate us!
Until we are wholly Thine!
Come Holy Spirit, Come!
(Ancient prayer, copied)

Today we begin the holy season of Epiphany. The word "epiphany" means a "showing forth" or "manifestation." For Christians it means the showing forth of Jesus, a manifestation of who he is and is to be. Three stories form the heart of this understanding: The coming of the Magi; the changing of water to wine at a wedding at Cana of Galilee; and the Baptism of Jesus. The arrival of the wise men from the East at the manger remind us that Jesus came for all people, not just the select, and that all people would be saved. Changing of water to wine shows us the power of Jesus. Finally, Jesus in his baptism is named as the beloved, the son, the one of God. We celebrate this baptism today and, in Christ's name, bring Melissa Dell'Oro into Christ's family through her baptism. We also renew our own baptismal vows reminding us of whom and whose we are.
In Luke's story Jesus' baptism is done in the context of prayer, both before and after. He is baptized both by water and the spirit, as symbolized in the coming of the spirit like a dove. It is difficult to know whether or not Jesus expected the magnitude of what happened that day. Eminent Anglican theologian, John McQuarrie, has said that "…Christ grew into Christhood…" (Principles of Christian Theology)Given that his baptism marked the beginning of his public ministry and was essentially ended at the Transfiguration (when we hear the same words) it is entirely possible that he was simply doing what God was directing him to do through prayer. There are many signs throughout his ministry that indicated a deepening and maturing of Jesus' understanding of his ministry. That is wonderful news for us, especially those, who like Melissa, were baptized as infants. It is liberating because, if we are growing into our baptism and ministry, if we aren't "finished yet," then our fits and starts are both understandable and forgiven.
Baptism is the one rite that is accepted by all Christian denominations. The one primary difference is that some, like the Baptists, insist upon full immersion in water as older persons rather than a pouring or sprinkling on the head of infants.
There is a story told about a little boy whose father was a Baptist pastor who, after seeing baptism by immersion for the first time one Sunday, "…proceeded the next morning to baptize…you guessed it…his three cats in the bathtub.
The youngest kitten bore it very well, and so did the younger cat, but the old family tomcat rebelled.
The old feline struggled with the boy, clawed and tore his skin, and finally got away. With considerable effort the boy caught the old tom again and proceeded with the "ceremony."But the cat acted worse than ever, clawing and spitting, and scratching the boy's face.Finally, after barely getting the cat splattered with water, he dropped him on the floor in disgust and said, "Fine, be an Episcopalian if you want to!"
(Homiletics, January 2007, p. 19)Just as Jesus between his baptism and final walk to Jerusalem ministered to God's people, we, too, are called to that vocation by virtue of our baptisms. That ministry is characterized by seeking justice and peace and loving others as ourselves. The vocation of peace was well understood by that rugged individualist, Henry David Thoreau, who went to jail rather than paying a poll tax to a government that supported slavery. His good friend, Ralph Waldo Emerson, raced to the jail when he heard the news and said: "Henry, what are you doing in there?" Henry replied: "Ralph, what are you doing out there?" (Copied)
Our vocation as the baptized was effectively summed up in Desmond Tutu's sermon at the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul on September 11, 2002. I shared this with you four years ago, but, it seems even more relevant to our denomination and our country today. He said:
"God says to you, 'I love you. You are precious in your fragility and vulnerability. Your being is a gift. I breathe into you and hold you as something precious." He went on to say: "God says to you, 'I have a dream. Please help me to realize it. I dreamed that this world will become a better world, compassionate and caring, gentle and sharing, forgiving and forgiven, reconciling and reconciled. I have a dream that the lion will again lie down with the lamb, that swords will be beaten into ploughshares and spears into pruning hooks, that my children will know that they are members of one family, the human family, God's family, my family.' In this family there are no outsiders. Jesus said, 'If I be lifted up, I will draw not some, but all to me.' Black and white, rich and poor, gay and straight, Jew and Arab, Palestinian and Israeli, Roman Catholic and Protestant, Serb and Albanian, Hutu and Tutsi, Muslim and Christian, Buddhist, Pakistani, Indian – all belong." He continued by naming this as a radical thing; that it means that all belong together…Sharon and Arafat, Bush and bin Laden, the late Hussein…that all are God's children. For this reason he claimed that the 'war on terrorism will not, cannot be won, unless the war against poverty, disease, and ignorance is won…If we are family, we cannot go on spending huge amounts on instruments of death and destruction when a very small fraction of those budgets would ensure that our sisters and brothers – everywhere—would have clean water, enough to eat, a safe home, accessible health care." He claimed that we are bound so together that we can be human, free, safe and prosperous only when we are together. He concluded by saying to us as Americans: "God cries out to you wonderful people in this incredible land, 'Please help me realize my dream that my children will wake up one day and know that they are family."
So we welcome this morning Melissa, all the baptized and all who are seeking. We welcome them home. We welcome them home to a new family, to a new vocation and to a new life.
AMEN