YOU MUST BE BORN ANEW…

Acts 4:23-31

23 When they were released they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 

24 And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who didst make the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, 25 who by the mouth of our father David, thy servant, didst say by the Holy Spirit, ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples imagine vain things? 26 The kings of the earth set themselves in array, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed– 27 for truly in this city there were gathered together against thy holy servant Jesus, whom thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 

28 to do whatever thy hand and thy plan had predestined to take place. 29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats, and grant to thy servants to speak thy word with all boldness, 30 while thou stretchest out thy hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of thy holy servant Jesus.” 

31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness. 

John 3:1-8

1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 

2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 

4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born anew.’ 8 The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with every one who is born of the Spirit.”

MEDITATION

St LUKE DESCRIBE the response of the apostles upon their release from the Sanhedrin who wished to silence their zeal to proclaim the risen Christ! Unperturbed by the threats of their enemies the apostles assembled with their fellow brethren and in union with one another, inspired by the holy spirit, they burst out and sang a canticle of joy and victory (vv 26-30) which literally shook the  foundations of the ground they stood on!

St JOHN’S GOSPEL recounts the private meeting under cover of the dark that took place between a member of the Sanhedrin who appears to have been drawn to the message of salvation as preached by the Lord. Nicodemus prologue his interview with our Lord by acknowledging His standing as an authoritative teacher when he refers to Jesus as “Rabbi!” Most strikingly, Nicodemus recognized our Lord’s divine powers through the miracles that he either saw or the reports thereof that has been doing the rounds to the extent that he desires to possess what Jesus is offering, teaching and doing!

Our Lord cuts to the chase and sets out the foundation upon which God’s children shall enter the kingdom when He refers to a necessary act of renewal that a believer must ‘undergo’ which refers to baptism. The combination of natural water and the supernatural Spirit poured out by God together with the formulatic invocation of the Trinity (Mt 28:19) as demonstrated later at our Lord’s baptism is presented to Nicodemus to consider. Mt 3:16 Jesus concludes His description of the sacrament of baptism by emphasizing that it is a mysterious act orchestrated by the second person of the Trinity, that wash away original sin is beyond our human finite sense of understanding (v8), thus it is a necessary requirement for each person and or believer!  

Grievously many self proclaimed  “teachers” of scripture have twisted and or misinterpreted the message and teachings of Christ Jesus by cataloguing baptism as an “optional” or an unnecessary requirement! Most ‘protest’ the need to perform infant baptism and prefer to “dedicate” a child based on their reasoning that the child must be able to enumerate their desire to be baptized rather than the parent deciding for the child- Notice the equivocation and contradiction in this false premise when the parent “dedicate” the child without the child’s permission!!! Sacred scripture is clear that baptismal renewal is for the entire family with no age restriction! Acts 2:39;11:14;16:30-33 Parents and ‘teachers’ will one day be held to account when we deny our children entry into God’s kingdom by our vincible ignorance!

Below evidence of child baptism from the Early Catholic Church Fathers

Irenaeus

“He [Jesus] came to save all through himself; all, I say, who through him are reborn in God: infants, and children, and youths, and old men. Therefore he passed through every age, becoming an infant for infants, sanctifying infants; a child for children, sanctifying those who are of that age . . . [so that] he might be the perfect teacher in all things, perfect not only in respect to the setting forth of truth, perfect also in respect to relative age” (Against Heresies 2:22:4 [A.D. 189]).

Hippolytus

“Baptize first the children, and if they can speak for themselves let them do so. Otherwise, let their parents or other relatives speak for them” (The Apostolic Tradition 21:16 [A.D. 215]).

LET US PRAY: Psalms 2:1-9

1 Why do the nations conspire, and the peoples plot in vain? 

2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and his anointed, saying, 3 “Let us burst their bonds asunder, and cast their cords from us.” 

4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the LORD has them in derision. 

5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, 

6 “I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.” 

7 I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my son, today I have begotten you. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. 

9 You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” 

catholicwitnessct@gmail.com  Henry R SYLVESTER              

Note: The daily scripture readings are taken from the Roman Missal which the Catholic Church use in the daily Celebration of the Holy Eucharist throughout the world.Some readings may differ because of the celebration of local feast days of saints around the world.