Embracing God's forgiveness takes humility

A meditation preached by Fr. Eric Nicolai at Lyncroft Centre, Toronto, January 18, 2026. Today’s Gospel shows us the account of the baptism through the lens of John the Evangelist. Its the Evangelist’s take. The Baptist appears in the description. John here interprets the baptism not simply as an event, but as a revelation of identity and mission. John’s words, that we say every day at Mass resounded then, at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29) That is his identity. Pope Benedict XVI says it is the hermeneutical key to the Baptism of Jesus. It is the prism, the lens through which we must hone in on this moment, on what is happening here. Thumbnail: Francisco de Zurbarán, Ecce Agnus Dei, the Lamb of God, from 1635, in the Prado Museum, Madrid. Music: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Angelic choir.