Ordinary Time

This Sunday begins Ordinary Time, the liturgical year during which the Church celebrates not a mystery of the life of the Lord and of the history of salvation, but the mystery of Christ in its totality.

In this ordinary time the liturgy invites us to follow the Redeemer every day and does so starting from the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan river. In year A, it offers us the report by the apostle John in which it is said that from every part of Judea people went to John the Baptist in large numbers to listen to him and be baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. The fame of this "more than a prophet" baptizer was so great that many wondered if he was the Messiah. But he replied firmly: "I am not the Christ". However, he remains the first "witness" of Jesus, having received indications from Heaven: "The man on whom you will see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit" (Jn 1:33).

Today's Liturgy makes us examine the mystery of Jesus in the light of his divinity. His incarnation makes life a sanctuary of divinity. Not only his life is divine. With the salvation brought by him by taking away sins, our daily life, our work, our joys, love and tenderness become the sphere of divine holiness.

Today we also begin the 2026 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (18 to 25 January) & the theme is "One Body, One Spirit, One Hope," from Ephesians 4:4, emphasizing that despite diverse traditions, Christians belong to the one Body of Christ with a shared calling and hope. The theme encourages deeper fellowship in Christ, calling Christians to live out their unity in a world wounded by division. Our striving for unity among Christian is both a personal journey of deepening conversion, and a witness to a world of much brokenness, division, and strife.

2nd Sunday OT