Every Baptism is Special
06/07/15 04:53
Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte of Cambridge was baptized yesterday. The ceremony was private but hardly secret. Several thousand well wishers lined the street leading up to the Sandringham Church, as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge pushed the princess in a pram while Prince George walked alongside his father. The princess is now nine weeks old. She was baptized by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Of course the Queen herself was in attendance.
I enjoy very much the role of officiant in baptisms. I love to hold the precious children and witness the love and dedication of their families. I’m a huge fan of celebrating the gift of life in each child and making public the commitment of the entire community to the love, support and nurture of the child and parents and they live and grow together. When couples come to us seeking baptism of their child, our response is always, “Of course! We’d be honored! When is good for your family? We’re open every Sunday and there is room for a baptism in every service.”
There were, however, some accouterments present at the royal baptism that we usually don’t have in our services. For example, they used the Lily Font with its special pitcher to hold the water of baptism. The font, which has been used for other royal baptisms, isn’t exactly an item for everyday use. It normally is kept with the crown jewels in the Tower of London. We use our everyday font that has served our church since it was built in 1959 and continues to be a wonderful bowl to hold the waters of baptism.
Following the service, the duke and duchess hosted a tea at Sandringham House where guests were served slices of christening cake, which is a tier from their wedding cake. I don’t remember ever being served part of the wedding cake at a baptismal celebration, though occasionally we are served slices of a sheet cake from the Safeway bakery on baptismal Sundays.
Princess Charlotte had five godparents. We usually get by with two, or sometimes no specially designated godparents.
Different, too, is the water.
Like her big brother, Princess Charlotte was baptized with water that was flown in from the Jordan River. The Jordan, of course has special significance in the stories of our faith. It was the river that Moses was not allowed to cross. Joshua led the people across after four decades of wandering in the wilderness. It was in the Jordan River that Jesus was baptized by John.
The river, however, is rarely accurately depicted in songs, paintings and poems. It is a rather unimpressive, shallow and muddy stream. It is also a border between Jordan and Israel, complete with an area of no-man’s-land right in the middle. Water rights in the Mideast are hotly contested and the water of the Jordan is no exception. In addition to its religious uses, the water is critical for irrigation in a semi-arid region of the world.
There are lots of ways to get water from the Jordan. You can find it on eBay. It sells for $22.50 for 6.8 oz. with gift box and certificate and is eligible for Amazon Prime shipping.
Actually the Jordan River water that is sold commercially, and probably that used for the royal baptism bears little resemblance to the water flowing in the actual river. The water of the Jordan is polluted by sewage and industrial effluent. Those being baptized in the actual river ad advised not to swallow the water or let it get up their noses. The bottled Jordan River water that is exported for baptisms has been filtered and treated. Most of the bottled water is sterilized and given a blessing. Often is is diluted with water from other sources. After all, it comes from a river where water is already in short supply.
I am reminded of a conversation with a Benedictine nun a couple of decades ago. We spoke of the holy water that is used to remind worshipers of their baptism upon entering the sanctuary. “Not everyone knows is,” she told me, “but every drop of water is holy.” Of course that is what we believe. All water is made holy by God’s grace. It doesn’t have to be from some special source. It requires no special prayers or holy words. Every drop of rain that falls, every tear that is wept, every melting snowflake is holy. Water is a miracle that sustains all life.
It doesn’t take many powers of observation to see the differences between the baptism of the Princess of Cambridge and those of the precious little ones who are presented in our church. It also takes no special insight to see the similarities. Children, beloved by their parents and extended families, are presented in the church. Sacred vows are made as we all acknowledge that the gift of a child and the responsibility of its nurture is an awesome trust. We understand that parents and godparents need the full support of the wider community of the church. We celebrate new life and we commit ourselves to sharing love and support as a community in the wonderful process of growing together.
I’m not envious of Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. He might have had the honor of conducting the baptism of the princess, but I get to hold children who are ever bit as precious and I suspect that I get to conduct more baptisms than the archbishop. It is likely that I get to spend more time with the people I serve and that I get to watch the little ones grow up into adulthood. This spring we honored a young man at his high school graduation who I had baptized when he was an infant. I’ve been privileged to watch him grow up from infancy to adulthood. I continue to be in touch with his parents and grandparents. He is a man of faith and integrity.
It seems that water from Rapid Creek and Pactola is just as effective as water flown in from the Jordan. And the font of our church fosters at least as much faith as the one that lives among the crown jewels.
I enjoy very much the role of officiant in baptisms. I love to hold the precious children and witness the love and dedication of their families. I’m a huge fan of celebrating the gift of life in each child and making public the commitment of the entire community to the love, support and nurture of the child and parents and they live and grow together. When couples come to us seeking baptism of their child, our response is always, “Of course! We’d be honored! When is good for your family? We’re open every Sunday and there is room for a baptism in every service.”
There were, however, some accouterments present at the royal baptism that we usually don’t have in our services. For example, they used the Lily Font with its special pitcher to hold the water of baptism. The font, which has been used for other royal baptisms, isn’t exactly an item for everyday use. It normally is kept with the crown jewels in the Tower of London. We use our everyday font that has served our church since it was built in 1959 and continues to be a wonderful bowl to hold the waters of baptism.
Following the service, the duke and duchess hosted a tea at Sandringham House where guests were served slices of christening cake, which is a tier from their wedding cake. I don’t remember ever being served part of the wedding cake at a baptismal celebration, though occasionally we are served slices of a sheet cake from the Safeway bakery on baptismal Sundays.
Princess Charlotte had five godparents. We usually get by with two, or sometimes no specially designated godparents.
Different, too, is the water.
Like her big brother, Princess Charlotte was baptized with water that was flown in from the Jordan River. The Jordan, of course has special significance in the stories of our faith. It was the river that Moses was not allowed to cross. Joshua led the people across after four decades of wandering in the wilderness. It was in the Jordan River that Jesus was baptized by John.
The river, however, is rarely accurately depicted in songs, paintings and poems. It is a rather unimpressive, shallow and muddy stream. It is also a border between Jordan and Israel, complete with an area of no-man’s-land right in the middle. Water rights in the Mideast are hotly contested and the water of the Jordan is no exception. In addition to its religious uses, the water is critical for irrigation in a semi-arid region of the world.
There are lots of ways to get water from the Jordan. You can find it on eBay. It sells for $22.50 for 6.8 oz. with gift box and certificate and is eligible for Amazon Prime shipping.
Actually the Jordan River water that is sold commercially, and probably that used for the royal baptism bears little resemblance to the water flowing in the actual river. The water of the Jordan is polluted by sewage and industrial effluent. Those being baptized in the actual river ad advised not to swallow the water or let it get up their noses. The bottled Jordan River water that is exported for baptisms has been filtered and treated. Most of the bottled water is sterilized and given a blessing. Often is is diluted with water from other sources. After all, it comes from a river where water is already in short supply.
I am reminded of a conversation with a Benedictine nun a couple of decades ago. We spoke of the holy water that is used to remind worshipers of their baptism upon entering the sanctuary. “Not everyone knows is,” she told me, “but every drop of water is holy.” Of course that is what we believe. All water is made holy by God’s grace. It doesn’t have to be from some special source. It requires no special prayers or holy words. Every drop of rain that falls, every tear that is wept, every melting snowflake is holy. Water is a miracle that sustains all life.
It doesn’t take many powers of observation to see the differences between the baptism of the Princess of Cambridge and those of the precious little ones who are presented in our church. It also takes no special insight to see the similarities. Children, beloved by their parents and extended families, are presented in the church. Sacred vows are made as we all acknowledge that the gift of a child and the responsibility of its nurture is an awesome trust. We understand that parents and godparents need the full support of the wider community of the church. We celebrate new life and we commit ourselves to sharing love and support as a community in the wonderful process of growing together.
I’m not envious of Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. He might have had the honor of conducting the baptism of the princess, but I get to hold children who are ever bit as precious and I suspect that I get to conduct more baptisms than the archbishop. It is likely that I get to spend more time with the people I serve and that I get to watch the little ones grow up into adulthood. This spring we honored a young man at his high school graduation who I had baptized when he was an infant. I’ve been privileged to watch him grow up from infancy to adulthood. I continue to be in touch with his parents and grandparents. He is a man of faith and integrity.
It seems that water from Rapid Creek and Pactola is just as effective as water flown in from the Jordan. And the font of our church fosters at least as much faith as the one that lives among the crown jewels.