Baptism of the Lord: Solemn Profession Jan. 9 2011
Dear Brother Cedd, dear Friends, we have just heard Saint Matthew’s account of the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. Matthew tells us that at his baptism a voice from heaven announced, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased”. Jesus is proclaimed as the Son of God, the anointed one, the Messiah. We know, of course, that Jesus did not prove to be the Messiah that many in Israel expected to see: he was not a political Messiah, not a warrior king. Despite this there were those who saw Jesus, listened to his preaching, and followed him because he had something to say to them about finding their way to God. We know the names of some of these disciples: Simon Peter, John, James and the other apostles, Mary of Magdala and a number of other women and countless unnamed men and women.
After his crucifixion and resurrection, and most especially after the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the Apostles and his other disciples came to understand that the life of Christ could be understood as the fulfilment of the prophecies in what we call the Old Testament. We have heard one such prophecy today, in the first reading taken from the prophet Isaiah. Jesus is to be understood as the one who delights God, the one who is a light to the nations. But we make a sad mistake if we assume that Jesus is simply a historical figure, a man who can be captured in the pages of the Scriptures.
If you listened to the opening prayer of today’s Mass you will have heard the words, “Keep us, your children born of water and the Spirit, faithful to our calling”, and you will have realised that each one of us has been, is being, called. We are not here by accident: we have a specific God-given purpose which we are invited to play in this life. Then, in the second reading the Apostle tells us that together we make up the Body of Christ. This is an important, indeed central, idea in the Church’s understanding of who she is. Each one of us has been called by Christ and by our baptism we have been united into Christ so that together we form the Body of Christ, alive and active in our world today. Jesus is not simply trapped in the pages of the Gospel narrative: It is through us, through you and through me, that the men and women of our age, of our country, have the opportunity to know Christ and so come to knowledge of the one true God. Those of you who were alert will also have noticed that Paul tells us that each one of us has a different role to fulfil in the Church: we are individual, unique persons; each with our own part to play in building up the Body of Christ, our part to play in the life of the Church.
This morning an important part of our Mass is devoted to praying for our Brother Cedd who is going to make Solemn Vows to God in our presence. Nearly all of us, one way or another, know him. This is an important moment for us because Brother Cedd is incarnating, making visible, for us what it means to answer one’s call in the Church. Our brother has heard the call of the Lord. It was a call from a successful path in life into the unknown. He has tested that call for 4½ years among us and it remained with him. Now he is ready to complete his response to God’s call by dedicating the whole of the rest of his life to seeking God in the monastic way of life.
In the Blessing Prayer which you will hear me praying over Brother Cedd in a few minutes time you will hear me say, “The voice of the Spirit has drawn countless numbers of your children to follow in the footsteps of your Son. They leave all things to be one with you in the bonds of love and give themselves wholly to your service and the service of all your people”. Brother Cedd will follow the example of generations of monks and give himself wholly to God’s service by taking vows of Stability, Obedience and Conversatio Morum. The Latin words used for this last vow we can reasonably translate as “fidelity to monastic life”.
By his vow of stability Brother Cedd commits himself to seek his salvation in the midst of this monastic family who live under the patronage of St Laurence at Ampleforth. He will seek the will of God through obedience to his abbot who has been elected by his brethren and blessed by the Church – but more than this, as he progresses in holiness, he will seek to be obedient to all his brethren. His consecration to Almighty God means that he will follow our Saviour in his journey of celibate chastity and in His lack of dependence on and detachment from earthly wealth and possessions; and he will follow the example of Christ in his life of prayer.
You will understand that he cannot live this life by his own unaided resources. Every monk needs the grace of God and in addition he is greatly helped when he has the support of his brethren, of his family, of his friends.
Today, then, let us prayerfully offer that support. And not just today. At this Mass let us commit ourselves to the continuing support of our Brother Cedd. More than that, let each one of us here commit ourselves to the prayerful support of the other members of this congregation that we may all discover our God-given vocation in life and be helped to live it faithfully.
Abbot Cuthbert Madden OSB