The celebration of the Baptism of the Lord Jesus on Jan. 11 provided an ideal occasion to celebrate the 2,000th child/infant baptism at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.

Young Collin James Lara --- whose parents Philip and Achelle are active Catholics at St. Cyprian Church in Long Beach, and whose first child was baptized at the Cathedral in 2006 --- was the recipient of holy water during the afternoon baptismal celebrations. Collin's great aunt, Lulu Lara, is a Cathedral volunteer.

In performing the baptism, Father Francis Mendoza, Cathedral associate pastor, drew an analogy between the baptism of the children that day with the musical "The Lion King," in which young Simba was anointed by his father and presented to the tribe.

"We present these children to God," said Father Mendoza. "They have become sons and daughters of the King. Let us thank God for making us all sons and daughters of God."

Msgr. Kevin Kostelnik, Cathedral pastor, recalled how the first baptism at the Cathedral took place Sept. 10, 2002, the week following its Sept. 2 opening. The plan, he explained, was for he, his associate pastor and the godparents to go fully into the baptismal font with baby. Then he saw that the baby's father was rolling up his pants, getting ready to enter the water, too.

When Msgr. Kostelnik reminded him that it was the godparents who would be going into the water, the father replied, "This is one of the most important days in my life. I'm coming in." That set a precedent, and ever since the parents and godparents have shared space in the font.