The Sacrament of Baptism

When John the Baptist baptized Jesus, God showed to everyone present that Jesus was 'the
One Who is anointed by God', the One Who God had promised to send to save the people He
loved. Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit and the power of God. (Mt. 3:16-7; Mk. 1:24;
Jn. 6:69; Acts 3:14) (C.C.C. # 438).
The public life of Jesus began with His Baptism and ended with Jesus commanding the Apostles to "go and make disciples of all, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son and the
Holy Spirit" [Mt. 28:19-20] (C.C.C. # 1223) These words of Jesus from the Holy Bible teach
Christians the great importance of the Sacrament of Baptism.
(excerpt: catholicism.about.com)
The Sacrament of Baptism is often called "The door of the Church," because it is the first of
the seven sacraments not only in time (since most Catholics receive it as infants) but in
priority, since the reception of the other sacraments depends on it. Once baptized, a person becomes a member of the Church. Baptism has six primary effects, which are all supernatural graces:
1.The removal of the guilt of both Original Sin (the sin imparted to all mankind by the Fall of
Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden) and personal sin (the sins that we have committed
ourselves).
2.The remission of all punishment that we owe because of sin, both temporal (in this world and
in Purgatory) and eternal.
3.The infusion of grace in the form of sanctifying grace; the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit; and the three theological virtues.
4.Becoming a part of Christ.
5.Becoming a part of the Church, which is the Mystical Body of Christ on earth.
6.Enabling participation in the sacraments, the priesthood of all believers, and the growth in
grace.
(catholicdoors.com)

THE BAPTISM OF OUR LORD

Born Again Of The Spirit.

T oday, as the season of Advent and Christmastide comes to a close, we consider an incident which may have caused
embarrassment in some quarters of the early Church: Jesus' baptism in the Jordan river. This incident, rather like the story of the woman caught in the act of adultery, reveals something rather shocking and scandalous. Since the baptism instigated by John the Baptist was expressly for repentance and Jesus had no sin, why did the Lord insist on being baptized? In Matthew's record of the incident John the Baptist basically protests and resists this action of the Lord's. In response, the Lord calms him down and tells him that this step of baptism was necessary to fulfil all righteousness (Matt. 3:15).
The reason Jesus was baptized was to identify fully and completely with the human race he came to redeem and save. Jesus' baptism marks the day when he publicly identified with sinners. He was about to take upon himself the work of being the Saviour of the world. He would do so by identifying with sinners and taking their sins upon himself. So, when sinners were in a queue to be baptized, Jesus joined the queue. At the moment of Jesus' baptism God revealed himself as Three
Persons in One God, Blessed and Holy Trinity. In words spoken from heaven, God the Father affirmed his love for his beloved Son; by his appearance in the form of a dove the Holy
Spirit hovered over the Son as he had hovered over the earth at creation; and by embracing baptism in the Jordan, the Son identified himself with the human race.
“Lord Jesus, in baptism we are immersed and assimilated into your death and resurrection. Teach us to go down into the depths of our baptism and discover therein the amazing grace and blessing you have given us -for through our baptism we are born again of the Spirit and are made children of God.”
(excerpt: catholicbibleschool.org)

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS WORLD DAY OF PEACE JANUARY 1ST 2014

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FRATERNITY, THE FOUNDATION AND PATHWAY TO PEACE

In my first Message for World Day of Peace, I wish to offer to everyone, individuals and peoples, my best wishes for a life filled with joy and hope. In the heart of every man and woman is the desire for a full life, including that irrepressible longing for fraternity which draws us to fellowship with others and enables us to see them not as enemies or rivals, but as brothers and sisters to be accepted and embraced. 

Fraternity is an essential human quality, for we are relational beings. A lively awareness of our relatedness helps us to look upon and to treat each person as a true sister or brother; without fraternity it is impossible to build a just society and a solid and lasting peace. We should remember that fraternity is generally first learned in the family. The family is the wellspring of all fraternity, and as such it is the foundation and the first pathway to peace, since, by its vocation, it is meant to spread its love to the world around it. 

We Christians believe that in the Church we are all members of a single body, all mutually necessary, because each has been given a grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ, for the common good. Christ has come to the world so as to bring us divine grace, that is, the possibility of sharing in his life. This entails weaving a fabric of fraternal relationships marked by 

reciprocity, forgiveness and complete self-giving, according to the breadth and the depth of the love of God offered to humanity in the One who, crucified and risen, draws all to himself: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another”. This is the good news that demands from each one a step forward, a perennial exercise of empathy, of listening to the suffering and the hopes of others, even those furthest away from me, and walking the demanding path of that love 

which knows how to give and spend itself freely for the good of all our brothers and sisters. 

Christ embraces all of humanity and wishes no one to be lost. “For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him”. He does it without oppressing or constraining anyone to open to him the doors of heart and mind. “Let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves” – Jesus Christ says – “I am among you as one who serves”. Every activity therefore must be distinguished by an attitude of service to persons, especially those furthest away and less 

known. Service is the soul of that fraternity that builds up peace. May Mary, the Mother of Jesus, help us to understand and live every day the fraternity that springs up from the heart of her Son, so as to bring peace to each person on this our beloved earth 

(excerpt .vatican.va )

Irish Litany of Mary

Great Mary, Greatest of Marys
Greatest of Women
Mother of Eternal Glory
Mother of the Golden Light
Honor of the Sky
Temple of the Divinity
Fountain of the Gardens
Serene as the Moon
Bright as the Sun
Garden Enclosed
Temple of the Living God
Light of Nazareth
Beauty of the World
Queen of Life
Ladder of Heaven
Mother of God
Pray for us.

Mary, The Mother of God The Mother of God

During the Twelve Days of Christmas the Church celebrates many important feasts. None, however, is as important as the feast celebrated on the octave (eighth day) of Christmas, January 1: the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. In fact, the Church regards this feast as so important that it is a Holy Day of Obligation. On this day, we are reminded of the role that the Blessed Virgin played in the plan of our salvation. Christ's Birth was made possible by Mary's fiat: "Be it done unto me according to Thy word."
One of the earliest titles given by Christians to the Blessed Virgin was Theotokos "God-bearer." We celebrate her as the Mother of God, because, in bearing Christ, she bore the fullness of the Godhead within her.
 As we begin another year, we draw inspiration from the selfless love of the Theotokos, who never hesitated to do the will of God. And we trust in her prayers to God for us, that we might, as the years pass, become more like her. O Mary, Mother of God, pray for us!
 (excerpt catholicism.about.com)

Let the message of Christ find a home with your family.

A s we celebrate The Holy Family - Jesus, Mary and Joseph, we reflect on what it is to be a family. The family is the
basic unit of society and the Church. It is in the family that wefirst learn to communicate, that we learn what is good and bad.It is in the family that we learn what love is, to forgive and to
pray. It is in the family that we first learn about God, Jesus andOur Lady. Our family forms us for many years to come. Thefuture of humanity depends on the family because it is through
a family that we all come.
If we are to be reflecting God’s plan for our families then we will have to be families that put God first. So do you turn off the TV every night to pray together as a family? The Letter to Colossians says, “Let the message of Christ in all its richness find a home with you.” If faith in God is not what motivates a family, that family is starting with a disadvantage. The Letter tothe Colossians reminds us to put the message of Christ in the
center of our homes and lives.
What a mystery of God’s love and grace families are. The love in a family is really a reflection of the love of God. The vocation of families is to show God, to let God’s light shine
through.
Today we celebrate The Holy Family. When God the Fathersent Jesus to us to reveal his love and to show us the way to him, Jesus did not fall out of heaven as an adult. Jesus came as a member of a family, The Holy Family of Nazareth. God chose a family to show us how all families are to find their way to him. We pray that our families fulfill God’s plan because that is the only way to be happy families.
 (excerpt frtommylane.com)