Through our Baptism, we discover our true identity

"The Elephant Man" (Baton Rouge)
January 25, 2010
Octavia McCoy White
January 28, 2010
"The Elephant Man" (Baton Rouge)
January 25, 2010
Octavia McCoy White
January 28, 2010

Everyone is born unique with unconditional value. No other person is or will ever be just like me. We are all made after the image and likeness of God. However, each of us can only reflect a small part of God’s vast Divinity. Performer Anthony Rapp said it very clearly, “There is only one you for all time. Fearlessly be yourself.”


But how do we know how we are? How do we get in touch with our own uniqueness? Sometimes figuring out who we are is difficult. Most of us would say things like I’m a mechanic, I’m a student, or I’m an American, or I’m a mother or a wife, or a father or an oil field worker, or I’m the youngest in my family and so on. We would describe our roles in life.

These descriptions do not get in touch with the deepest truth of who we are. Many people are single, husbands or wives, students, oil field workers, or business people. Those roles do not point out the reality of who we are. It is our Baptism that gives us the most comprehensive answer to that question.


The late Pope John Paul II once said that what was important about him was not the fact that he was the pope but that he was baptized. It is through our Baptism that we come to know who we are.


Not only were we baptized many years ago, we are baptized at this very moment. Baptism is about the present, not about the past. When we talk about ourselves, we don’t say I was a man or a woman. We say I am a man or a woman. Whenever we talk about who we are, we use the present or future tense.

Baptism gives us our most basic identity. Through Baptism we affirm that we are sons and daughters of a loving God and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ. We are also a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. This is who we really are.


Throughout the rest of our lives, we live so that this basic identity becomes more evident in our lives. If we are faithful to our Baptism, then everything we do grows out of the fact that we are God’s beloved sons and daughters.

We all have other identities besides our basic identity as a Baptized person. There are thousands of different ways in which we are asked to live out our lives. How do these identities fit in with our basic identity?

This is where we have to learn how to live both as a son or daughter of God and as one who is deeply immersed in the things of this world. Someone who spends his or her life in a classroom must discover how teaching others can be done in a spirit of love and concern. We can say the same thing of any other profession.

Our life’s work must be done within the framework of our Baptism. Because of our Baptism we must learn to be a loving mother, father, oil field worker, fishermen, secretary, student, businessperson, etc. Our Baptism encompasses our life in the world, and gives it shape and focus.

Baptism is a true “Christ-ening,” making us other Christs. The Spirit given to us empowers us to reveal God’s love and grace to the world.

The Spirit enables us to be victorious in our struggles with the evil forces within ourselves and in our world. The Spirit also urges us to look out for the weak, the poor, and the needy.

Actress July Garland got it right when she said, “Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.”