(RNS) — Last Sunday (Jan. 12) most Christian churches celebrated the baptism of Jesus, an event in his life I always found confusing. I could never understand why Jesus was baptized. After all, ...

Jesus' baptism reminds us that he was one of us. He revealed that we humans must allow ourselves to be fragile, seeking and ...

On the banks of the Jordan River where the Bible says Jesus was baptized, 15-foot-high reeds rustle in the wind. The site on the Jordanian side of the river looks much like the New Testament describes ...

As the Christmas season comes to a close, the hearts of believers shift from meditating on the birth of the Lord to the beginning of his mission. This weekend we contemplate St. Matthew’s version of ...

"This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). This verse is from the Gospel of Matthew, one of the three synoptic Gospels in the New Testament of the Bible, and is about the ...

Who is Jesus? On this celebration of Jesus’ baptism, the Gospel of Matthew provides a clear answer: Jesus is the Son of God. Matthew’s account of Jesus’ baptism includes details not found in the other ...

The Baptism of the Lord closes the Christmas season. The next day begins the First Week of Ordinary Time, Lent following in five weeks on Feb. 17. The Christmas season is full of theophanies, i.e., ...

To many Christians the baptism of Jesus seems almost as much of an enigma as it did to the Baptist. It serves as a precedent for our own baptism. It also forms an introduction to Christ’s ministry.

That’s a good question. The word baptize means “to wash.” Peter, however, tells us that baptism isn’t the washing of dirt from the body, but rather a cleansing of the conscience (1 Peter 3:21).