Explorations in the Theology of Benedict XVI

Chapter 9: The Baptism of Jesus

236 chapte r nine THE BAPTISM OF JESUS On Jesus’ Solidarity with Israel and Foreknowledge of the Passion Gary a. anderson In this essay I would like to consider the problem of Jesus’ partici­ pation in the baptism of John, an event that appears near the begin­ ning of all three synoptic Gospels. It is one of those rare moments in the history of Jesus research concerning which all scholars are in agreement—that the event itself is part of the historical record and cannot be an invention of the early Church.1 But observe my wording: though the event itself is regarded as historical, the particular depic­ tions that our gospel writers provide have been subject to dramatically different interpretations. Before turning to those problems, let us re­ familiarize ourselves with the story itself. I have chosen the version from the Gospel of Mark, the earliest witness to the event. John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a bap­ tism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from w The Baptism of Jesus 237 the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jor­ dan,confessing their sins....In those days Jesus came from Naza­ reth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” (Mk 1:4–5, 9–11)2 Benedict XVI has succinctly summarized the challenge the gos­ pel text provides the Christian reader: The real novelty [in our text] is that he—Jesus—wants to be bap­ tized, that he blends into the gray mass of sinners waiting on the banks of the Jordan.We have just heard that the confession of sins is a component of Baptism. . . . Is that something Jesus could do? How could he confess sins? How could he separate himself from his previous life in order to start a new one? This is a question that [the earliest] Christians could not avoid asking. The dispute be­ tween the Baptist and Jesus that Matthew recounts for us was also an expression of the early Christians’ own question to Jesus: “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (Mt. 3.14). Matthew goes on to report for us that “Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he consented” (Mt. 3.15).3 Benedict is aware of how Jesus’ participation in John’s baptism has been used to launch a frontal attack on one of the most treasured teachings of the Church—the declaration that Jesus was sinless. Paul Hollenbach is an excellent representative of this school, and in his oft­cited article on the subject found in the prestigious series Der Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt, he declares that the rise of departments of religious studies in secular universities is allow­ ing scholars to ask questions of the Jesus traditions that have been off­ limits for centuries. He writes: 238 Gary A. Anderson In this connection it is particularly important to focus on the tra­ ditional Christian belief in Jesus’ sinlessness. This belief has col­ ored most historical study of Jesus up to the present. Now it may be in some sense abstracted from history that Jesus never sinned, but historically speaking that issue cannot be determined one way or another. More important, the question whether or not Jesus was sinless in some sense abstracted from history is beside the point since it is clearly a theologically developed belief. Historically the fact that Jesus came to John for baptism shows demonstrably that Jesus thought he was a sinner who needed repentance. Indeed, if he had thought he was “without sin,” that very thought clearly would have been a “sin of ignorance.” For if he came to be bap­ tized believing that he did not need it, but did it for some theo­ logically appropriate reason, then he was in fact a deceiver, which was again reason enough indeed for him to need John’s baptism of repentance even if Jesus himself was unaware of it. Hence, the only reasonable...