Why was Jesus Baptized by John the Baptist?

Hi C153!  I have a question:  Why did Jesus have himself baptized by John the Baptist? – Anonymous

This is a very timely question as we celebrate today the Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord.  Let’s look at what recent popes have to say:

John Paul II (April 1, 1998)           
At first sight this is a surprising episode, because John’s baptism was a baptism of “repentance” which prepared man to receive the forgiveness of sins.  Jesus knew well that he had no need of that baptism, since he was completely innocent.  In submitting to John’s baptism, Jesus did not receive it for his own purification but as a sign of redemptive solidarity with sinners.  His baptismal act contains a redemptive intention.  Later he would call his passion a “baptism”, describing it as a kind of immersion in suffering redemptively accepted for the salvation of all: “I have a baptism to receive. What anguish I feel until it is over!” (Lk 12:50).

John Paul II (January 12, 1997)   
The Gospel according to Mark, like the other synoptics, recounts Jesus’ Baptism in the River Jordan.  The liturgy of Epiphany recalls this event in a triptych that includes the adoration of the Magi from the East and the wedding at Cana.  Each of these three moments is a particular revelation of his divine sonship.

Benedict XVI (January 13, 2008)
This was his first public manifestation after approximately 30 years of hidden life at Nazareth.  It is both a christophany and a theophany:  first of all, Jesus manifests himself as the Christ or Messiah, which means “anointed”.  At the same time, together with the Son appeared signs of the Holy Spirit and the heavenly Father.     
What is the meaning of this act that Jesus wishes to fulfil—overcoming the Baptist’s resistance—in order to obey the Father’s will (cf. Mt 3: 14-15)?  Being baptized together with sinners, Jesus began to take upon himself the weight of all of humanity’s sin, like the Lamb of God who “takes away” the sin of the world (cf. Jn 1: 29).  By dying he is “immersed” in the Father’s love and the Holy Spirit comes forth, so that those who believe in him could be reborn by that inexhaustible font of new and eternal life.