Jesus’ baptism ended his private life and began his public ministry

St. John Paul II, in his apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae (Oct. 2002), added the five Luminous Mysteries of the Holy Rosary to “bring out fully the Christological depth of the Rosary.”

The First Luminous Mystery of the Holy Rosary is the baptism of Jesus. John Paul II wrote, “The Baptism in the Jordan is first of all a mystery of light. Here, as Christ descends into the waters, the innocent one who became ‘sin’ for our sake, the heavens open wide and the voice of the Father declares him the beloved Son, while the Spirit descends on him to invest him with the mission which he is to carry out.”

A Bible commentary states: “The wonderful events which followed the baptism of Jesus directly foreshadowed the wonderful effects of Christian Baptism which our Lord then instituted. In the Sacrament of Baptism the Holy Spirit comes down on man, gives him sanctifying grace, and implants in him the three theological virtues of Faith, Hope, and Charity. By the grace of Baptism God adopts man to be His beloved child, and opens for him the way to heaven.”

Regarding the descending of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, Origen said, “Christ was baptized for our sake, in order to sanctify the waters. The Spirit descended in the form of a dove, since wherever there is reconciliation with God there is a dove, as in the case of Noah’s ark . . . announcing God’s mercy to the world and at the same time making clear that what is spiritual should be meek and without wickedness, simple and without guile.”

“A voice from heaven, saying, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased’” (Mt 3:17). St. Augustine said, “Here then we have the Trinity presented in a clear way: the Father in the voice, the Son in the man, the Holy Spirit in the dove.”

Venerable Fulton J. Sheen wrote, “In the waters of the Jordan He was identified with sinners; in the baptism of His Death, He would bear the full burden of their guilt . . . The Cross must have been looming up in His thoughts now with increasing vividness. It was no afterthought in His mind. He was temporarily immersed in the waters of the Jordan only to emerge again. So would He be immersed by the death on the Cross and the burial in the tomb, only to emerge triumphantly in the Resurrection . . . The baptism in the Jordan closed Our Lord’s private life and began His public ministry. He had gone down into the water known to most men only as the son of Mary; He came out ready to reveal Himself as what He had been from all eternity, the Son of God.”

Dr. Pius Parsch explained that Christ’s baptism helps us to understand more clearly the basic structure of the spiritual life: “At my baptism I was immersed with Christ, and with Him I died and was buried. Then I emerged, and for the first time heaven opened to me as the Holy Spirit made His entrance into my soul; and my Father in heaven glanced down upon me, now ‘His son, His child.’

“In each holy Mass, Christ’s baptism is again operative. Through the holy Sacrifice I am immersed in His sacrificial death; heaven then opens and the Holy Spirit descends in holy Communion, while through the pledge of the sacrificial Banquet the Father assures me of renewed and enriched sonship in himself.

“The baptism of Christ takes place within me a third time at death, for death is indeed a sort of baptism. Death is like immersion into the dark depths, and when I emerge, it is into heaven above. Then I will see the Blessed Trinity, no longer through the darkened sun-glass of faith, but in immediate vision, face to face . . .

“Christ’s death is the foundation. Upon this foundation the edifice rises through baptism and the Eucharist; while the Lord’s return at death spells completion to the work.”

耶穌受洗把水祝聖 

若望保祿二世在他宗徒書信玫瑰經（2002年10月），加入了光明五端，好能『帶出玫瑰經全面基督學的真諦』。

光明五端的第一端是耶穌受洗。若望保祿二世寫道：『若旦河受洗首先是光的奧秘。這裡，基督下降到水裡，這位無罪的，為我們的緣故變成了「罪」，天廣開了，天父聲音宣稱祂是天父的愛子，聖神下降在祂上給予祂將要執行的使命。』

一本聖經評註稱：『隨著耶穌受洗後令人驚嘆的事跡，直接預兆了我主建立聖體聖事的神妙效果。在聖洗聖事中，聖神降到人上，賜與聖寵，並灌以信、望愛三德。因著聖洗聖事的寵愛，天主接納人作祂的愛子，為他開啟天國的道路。』

天主聖神以鴿子形狀降來，奧利振說：『基督為我們緣故受洗，好能把水祝聖。聖神以鴿子形狀降來，因為無論何處人和天主修和都見有鴿子出現，在方舟的事例中…宣布天主對世界的仁慈，同時清晰指明靈性應該是溫純，沒有邪惡，簡單沒有奸詐的。』

『又有聲音由天上說：「這是我的愛子，我所喜悅的。」（瑪竇3:17）』聖奧斯定說：『由此我們有天主聖三清楚顯現：聖父以聲音，聖子以人，聖神以鴿子。』

可敬Fulton J. Sheen 寫道：『在約旦水中，祂與罪人一起，在祂死亡的洗禮中，祂背負了他們罪過的全部負荷…十字架必會在祂的思想上更形清晰。十字架不是事後思考。祂暫時浸於約旦水中，只待出來。所以祂，將是浸於十字架的死亡中並埋於墳墓裡，只待重現於勝利的復活…約旦受洗結束了我主的私人生命，開始了祂公開的神職。祂走進水裡時，人認識祂是瑪利亞的兒子；祂從水裡出來卻顯示祂一向都是的、永恆天主子。』

Pius Parsch博士解釋稱基督受洗幫助我們多一點明白靈性生命的基本結構：『在我受洗時我與基督浸於水中，同時我跟祂一起死亡，埋藏。然後我從水中出來，天便第一次為我開了，因為聖神、祂進入我靈魂中；我天上的父親在天上垂視於我，現在「祂的兒子，孩童」。

在每一台聖彌撒中，基督的受洗再一次運作。經這神聖犧牲，我被浸於祂犧牲的死亡中；天隨之而開，聖神降於聖體中，通過這犧牲宴席的承諾天父保證使我重新並充實我兒子的身份。

基督受洗在我死亡的時候第三次再臨於我，因為死亡實際上是受洗的一種。死亡一如浸於黑暗的深層中，當我出來的時候，便進入天堂。我會看見聖三，不要需要經由信仰漆黑的太陽眼鏡，卻在即時的景象，面對面…

基督的死亡是一個根基。在這根基上宏偉的建設經聖洗和聖體聖事冒起；當我主由死亡中回來，拼寫了祂工作的完結。』