Baptism

Today (for those reading this live this was actually a few months ago, but I am going to play with the 'post time' so it looks like we were all upons the blogging) was Matthew's baptism. Baptism is one of those rites of passage that the church does so well. Many people who don't have strong faith background still feel like this is an important thing to do. It is also one of the last things that is the church's alone: Marriage is done by the state, but only the church does baptism. Different traditions have different meanings and understandings of baptism. In ours, as in much of what the United Church does, there is less magic and more mystery. We don't believe that Matthew is now marked in any way, we don't believe that he now has divine protection of some sort. In fact we don't believe that what we did has any impact on Matthew at all. As Russell so profoundly put it: He breathes, therefore he is loved by God. Matthew is good, it is the rest of us that need some work. Baptism is about the community that surrounds Matthew. We use symbols and metaphor to try to articulate and understand that which we cannot fully understand. It is a chance for us, as parents, to name our faith and promise to raise Matthew so that he has a chance to know that part of life too. It is also a chance for the community to promise their support to us, which is always kinda nice. So Matthew is all baptized up now. Another milestone passed. Here are some pics from the day. We were thrilled to have family join us - Dave, Tricia and the kids from Regina and both sets of parents/grandparents, and Derek and Luanne. All the rels, as it were.


Russell Baptizing Matthew


The Grandparents


Uncles, Aunts and Cousins