Exercising our Baptismal Responsibility

Homily for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
Isaiah 62.1-5 Psalm 96 1 Corinthians 12.4-11 John 2.1-11

There are certain responsibilities that come with our baptism. It’s true that the most important and lasting effects of baptism are not things that we can do, but what God gives to us – cleansing from original sin, incorporation into the Church, adoption as a son or daughter of God. But with those gifts, we are also given responsibilities. As baptized children of God, we are called to develop a relationship with him, to spend time in prayer and worship getting to know our heavenly father. As baptized children of God, we are called to recognize Christ in all our brother and sisters, and to treat them with the same love, respect, and compassion that we would show to Christ himself. As baptized children of God, we are called to turn away from evil and sin day by day and develop the habits that help us lead a moral life, one in which other people can see Christ in us. Each of us are called to exercise our baptism in different ways, using the specific spiritual gifts we have been given. Some of the baptized have done better in fulfilling these responsibilities than others. But regardless of who we are or what our past actions have been like, this is our call – to live as God’s children and to lead other people to Christ. And in these days, we are being called to exercise our baptismal responsibilities.

With millions of people in Haiti suffering from this week’s earthquakes, the stories of devastation from that country are almost unbelievable and unbearable. Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with the effects of the earthquake devastating an already struggling country. The news reports are sometimes difficult to watch, and even the relief efforts seem to be encountering difficulties. There are some people have said that the earthquake was God’s response to evil present in the world. Others have said that it gives evidence that God does not exist – how could a loving God let disasters like this happen? As Christians, we believe that God does not and cannot cause suffering – but rather, he is with us in the suffering, feeling our pain and giving us comfort and peace. Natural disasters are just that – natural, not divinely inspired. The hand of God is found not in the destruction, but in the response. And that is where we are called to help, to exercise our baptismal responsibilities to recognize and care for Christ in the people of Haiti.

The question everyone asks is “how?” How can we help? First, of course, we must pray. The power of prayer cannot be overlooked. We pray for the people of Haiti, we pray for the organizations, governments, and individuals who at this very moment are bringing comfort and aid to the survivors of the earthquake. And we pray for the dead, that they come in peace to the kingdom of heaven. But we can do more. An online group has been formed encouraging Catholics to Fast for Haiti – to fast from one or more meals in the coming weeks and to donate the money that we save to the relief efforts. And for those of us many miles from the center of the earthquake, the promise of financial support can accompany our prayers across those miles to show in a very real way our solidarity with a portion of the people of God who are suffering terribly. Next weekend, we will take up a second collection to support the efforts of Catholic Relief Services in Haiti. Catholic Relief Services is the official international aid agency of the Catholic Church in the United States, and they have been working in Haiti for over 50 years. They already have several hundred staff members in Haiti and have pledged over $30 million worth of relief aid. Archbishop Daniel has asked that a portion of the collection taken in parishes of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis be directed specifically toward the rebuilding of the cathedral and seminaries in Haiti, all of which were destroyed this week.

The people of Haiti need our help. But it’s not just them, and it’s not just now. As Christians, we are called to recognize Christ in all people all around the world all the time and to do whatever we can so that all people can live a life worthy of who they are – children of God. Right now, our attention is directed to this small, poor Caribbean country. I am sure that we will rise to the occasion and provide the prayers and the assistance that we can. But there is a world of suffering, a world of hurt, from our own homes and families to the villages of Africa and Asia and everywhere in between. We cannot be silent; we cannot sit by and worry only about ourselves. Until all people can recognize Christ in us and we can recognize Christ in them, there is more work to be done. That work is our baptismal responsibility.