Following Our Baptismal Vows
ProLifeCorner: Father ProLife-
John answered them all, “I baptize you with water; but He who is mightier than I is coming, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”
The political thriller Bridge of Spies is based on the true story of James Donovan, an attorney who became an unlikely but remarkably effective diplomatic and political negotiator during the tense years of the Cold War.
You see Donovan was a New York insurance lawyer. But in 1957, he is tapped by the bar association to take on the thankless task of representing accused Soviet spy Rudolf Abel at his espionage trial. A conviction is all but assured — but the U.S. government wanted to show the world that American justice doesn’t railroad anyone. So they assigned Donovan, an insurance lawyer rather than an experienced defense attorney, to make sure that the legal process is followed to the letter. Donovan reluctantly agreed to represent Soviet Spy Abel.
But Donovan does a better job than expected, and managed to spare his client the death penalty. Donovan would eventually go on to negotiate a prisoner swap with the Russians: Ironically, Rudolf Abel (whom he defended) for an American U-2 pilot shot down over the Soviet Union.
In the course of the trial, a CIA agent approaches Donovan. The CIA wants to know if Abel has revealed anything to Donovan about his contacts. But Donovan refuses to violate the lawyer-client privilege. The CIA agent smirks, “Don’t go Boy Scout on me. We don’t have a rule book here.”
Donovan responds, “You’re Agent Hoffman, yes?”
The agent replies, “Yeah.”
“German extraction?”
“Yeah, so?”
“My name’s Donovan — Irish, both sides. But what makes us both Americans? Just one thing — one, one, one — the rule book. We call it the Constitution; and we agree to the rules – which is what makes us Americans. And it’s the Constitution which makes us American, so don’t tell me there’s no rule book …”
The irony is that in a government so obsessed with preserving the “American Way,” Donovan seems to be the only one actually living it.
Today, we hear the preaching of St. John the Baptist from St. Luke’s gospel. Using expressive imagery, St. John the Baptist announces Christian Baptism, proclaiming that he is not the Messiah; He, the Messiah, who is on His way, will come with the authority of supreme Judge that belongs to God, and with the dignity of the Messiah, who has no human equal.
St. John the Baptist preached the moral requirements of the messianic Kingdom with charity but without human respect (aka political correctness). Preaching the truth can lead one to be a thorn in the side of those who are not ready to change their way of life — to such an extent that they even persecute the preacher, which was what King Herod Antipas did to St. John the Baptist.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, in Bridge of Spies, James Donovan is both “claimed” and “called.” In baptism, we, too, are both claimed and called by God: God “claims” us as His own people: a people of truth, integrity, justice and mercy; and He “calls” us to the work of realizing His vision, His “Kingdom” that Jesus reveals in the gospels. Today’s feast of Jesus’ baptism challenges us to renew our baptismal vows and to respond to that call and claim — in every decision we make, and in everything we do — so that we are disciples of the Jesus of the Gospel of truth, of justice, and of the American way!
Mary, Mother of Truth, pray for us!
