Holy Baptism

The Sacrament of Initiation

Prepared for St. Jamesí

Episcopal Church

Austin, Texas

The Rev. Greg Rickel, Rector

What is Holy Baptism?

Tertullian, one of the early church fathers once said, ìChristians are not born, they are made.îÝ And water is what makes one a Christian.Ý Baptism is a sacrament, it is not magic.Ý Unfortunately, our modern notion of baptism is that we must get our child or ourselves to the font as soon as possible in order to secure our salvation and/or our place in heaven.Ý

Nothing could be farther from the truth or the intent of the ritual of Holy Baptism.Ý The Book of Common Prayer says that ìa sacrament is the outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.îÝ This is a beautiful saying that is true of baptism.Ý The outward and visible sign is water, the community gathered, the person being baptized.Ý The inward and spiritual grace is Godís work to do and the change we feel.

The Book of Common Prayer also states that in baptism we ìare adopted as a child of God.îÝ We could not disagree more.Ý We are children of God long before anything we, as humans, can do to effect that.Ý Thank God, we are not responsible for making that a reality.Ý What baptism is, is the initiation of one into the Body of Christ, the Church.Ý It is a public recognition that we are all children of God and that, by this act, the person being baptized chooses to live that out in the community called the Church, in this case Christian.

That is why it is so strange for someone to request a private baptism and why we will not perform them.Ý Baptism is a community event made effective by the communitiesí vows to welcome and to nurture the person being baptized.Ý This scenario is often played out in the Church;Ý an infant is baptized and then the parents and child disappear never to be seen again.Ý This type of response and action would seem to indicate the ìmagicî notion of baptism.Ý The thought being, that now that the child is baptized, he or she is safe and secure.Ý This totally misses the point of baptism as initiation into the Body of Christ.Ý

Baptism is the sacrament by which new Christians are bonded to Christ and Christís Church.Ý Since baptism means making a commitment to the on-going life of the church, we ask that parents seeking baptism for their children either be members of this parish or actively participating in parish life for at least three months prior to the rite.Ý We are convinced that parental involvement and modeling is critical in the faith development of the child; the meaning of baptism will be fully and authentically communicated to children as parents live out the promises of their own baptisms.

When does a Baptism take place?

The Book of Common Prayer assumes that Christian initiation or baptism will take place within the eucharist ìas the chief service on a Sunday or other feast.î (page 298).Ý Four feasts are ìespecially appropriateî (page 312):Ý The Easter Vigil, the Day of Pentecost, All Saintís Day or the Sunday following All Saintís Day, and the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord (the First Sunday after the Epiphany, usually in early January).Ý It is also appropriate for baptisms to take place on the feast of the patron saint of a local church.Ý For St. Jamesí this comes in late July and is also an appropriate Sunday for a baptism.Ý You can contact the church office to inquire as to the date of the next appropriate day for baptism.

Godparents or sponsors?

A common question regards whether or not a child needs godparents and an adult a sponsor.Ý We strongly advise that this be the case.Ý In the case of children we suggest that much thought, prayer, and discernment be undertaken when considering who to ask to be godparents.Ý Handled prayerfully and with care, this relationship will hopefully become quite significant to your child.Ý Godparents should be people not afraid to challenge the parents and people who are committed to their own faith, who will follow the life of this child forever.Ý It is not advisable to select godparents to ìthankî someone who has been good to the parents or simply because they are good friends.Ý The willingness and commitment to follow and spend time with the child should be the utmost concern.

Some tips for parents, godparents, and sponsors:

-Write a letter to your child or godchild in which you talk about your feelings and what baptism means to you.Ý Keep the letter in a safe place until you feel it is time for your child to read it.Ý Perhaps his or her confirmation or marriage would be a good time.

-Compose a family prayer or use a ritual from The Blessing Cup to be read just before or after the baptismal ceremony.

-Use the prayer or ritual above or some other each year on the baptismal anniversary.Ý You could also light the candle given to you on the baptismal day on the anniversary.

Especially for Godparents:

-Be someone special to your godchildónamely, yourself!Ý Let your own personality and character shine through, warts and all.Ý An honest and loving relationship with godchildren will help them to accept both their shortcomings and their wonderfulness.

-Help your godchild to stretch, and not to try to be safe all the time.Ý Jesus took risks; therefore, that is part of a Christianís life.Ý As Iíve heard it said, stand up for the hard right against the easy wrong!Ý For example, when prejudiced words come out of your godchildren, listen, reflect with them and consider together another viewpoint.

-Circle on your calendar from now on the baptismal anniversary of your godchild.Ý Others will remember the childís birthday; yours is a special relationship.Ý If the parents were given a baptismal candle, they can light it at the main meal on the anniversary-perhaps especially with your reminder!!!Ý Be sure you have something there if you canít be present yourself (such as a greeting card, letter, gift, or phone call, etc.)Ý You help ìgrowî a Christian by these annual observations.

-Keep in touch with the parents through the years.Ý You might make the difference in their patience and courage by being close but once removed.Ý You may be the person your godchild can turn to when the world, and even the parents, seem unfair.

-Be active in your faith as well so that your godchild has one more example.Ý Share with them the good things and the bad about your faith journey.Ý This kind of honesty will be very valuable to them as they walk their own journey.

-PRAY FOR THEM DAILY

The Service Itself

The service of Holy Baptism begins on page 299 of the Book of Common Prayer.Ý It is suggested that you look at this service and read through what will actually happen on that day.Ý You will find this to be helpful.Ý At St. Jamesí it is required that all to be baptized, their parents, godparents, and sponsors be present for baptismal training which will be scheduled sometime prior to the baptism itself.Ý It is also important that you let the Rector know as soon as possible once you have decided that you or your child would like to be baptized.Ý There is one small form to fill out which is included inside this brochure or can be obtained from the office at 926-6339.