August 10, 2006

Living Water

Baptism21A couple weeks ago I baptized my nephew at his home church in Chicago.  Per his parents' request, we used freshly imported water from Lake Michigan.  Let's just say that we certainly followed the ancient advice to use "living" water.   

His parents were eager to do this because their families -- on both sides -- have deep connections to the "Big Lake" as home. In the service, I pointed to the appropriateness of the link the water made between family initiation and initiation into the larger family of God. 

But more than that, I suggested that using water from this natural resource -- so dominant and precious to us in the midwest -- highlights the deep connection between the grace of God offered in baptism and the responsibility we gratefully take on as Christ's disciples to care for the world in which that grace is manifest.  It says something damning to us if the water in our backyard streams, or rivers, or lakes is so polluted that we cannot in good common sense bathe in it, or in good conscience call it "living" water.  Perhaps my nephew Samuel will grow up, in service to Jesus, to be a biologist who concerns himself with the health of Lakes Michigan, Superior, Huron, Ontario, and Erie. 

I was thinking about all of this yesterday as I visited a local Children's Sculpture Garden and watched my own children play in a large reproduction of the Great Lakes.

Great_lakesAs I splashed my head with the cool, clear water (it was a hot day), I thought to myself: "What a great place to have a baptism service!"  There is easily room around the perimeter of the scultpure for an average-sized congregation  -- maybe 100 people.  (In the real world we call this the "fourth coast," and it is home to about 30 million, or 1/10 the US population). 

A pastor could dunk the one to be baptized down in that corner by Lake Erie, where there are three bubbling fountains.  Then invite each member of the congregation to put his or her hand in the water, get wet, and remember, in a genuinely aquatic, tactile way, the promises God makes to us, and the responsibilities of our promises in response.

Aug 10, 2006 2:27:00 PM | Alt, Ritual

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Lament in the Interrogative Mood We have written before (here, here, and here) about incorporating lament into worship. Most often such prayers are corporate rather than individual. The harsh language of the Psalmic lament is difficult for most individuals to appropriate in their own devotional lives. We have somehow learned that asking questions of God is irreverent, especially if those questions have a rebuking tone. But the Psalms teach us that such questions are a central part of a relationship with God, and Scripture as a whole teaches us that God can probably handle our mild rants once in a while. One interesting way to encourage folks to pray prayers of lament (whether publically or privately) is to prompt the prayers with an interrogative word, like "why" or "where" or "when" or "how long." (The phrase "how long", in fact, is used over 20 times in the Psalms alone.) This way, our prayers for peace in the Middle East, for example, are not merely petitions for wise leadership; they become expressions of our own helplessness: "When, O Lord, will your children in the Middle East stop firing rockets at one another?" After the jump is a short devotional service based on this idea. It embeds the prayer of lament within both a sung Kyrie and a concluding Alleluia. It also contextualizes the prayer -- both the lament and the declaration of God's ultimate sovereignty -- as continuous with the "words of the faithful in all times and places." Art courtesy Mary Ann Bartley The Lord be with you. And also with you. One: The reign of God is coming. All: We wait, we hope, we believe. One: The reign of God is here. All: We see the signs: in the street in our homes among the nations. One: The reign of God is coming. All: We cry out in longing for the day of the fulfillment is not yet here. Sing: Kyrie eleison * * * * * Hear the words of the faithful in all times and places: How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I bear pain in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Consider and answer me, O Lord my God! Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death, and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”; my foes will rejoice because I am shaken. (Psalm 13: 1-4) * * * * * Prayers of lament, offered freely. You may wish to begin prayers with why, where, or how long. Sing: Kyrie eleison * * * * * Hear the words of the faithful in all times and places: But I trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me. (Psalm 13: 5-6) Sing: Alleluia
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Living Wet Ron’s story about baptizing his nephew and the connections of baptism to our care for creation show how multifaceted the layers of this sacrament are. All of life, for those of us born of water and the Spirit, is wet. In other words, every moment of each day is grounded in baptism. Even if we are not following the will of God, those moments are redeemed in God’s grace, which is one aspect of baptism (cleansing from or forgiveness of sin). This is why confession or at least a reflection on how we “missed the mark” or sinned is a part of the compline prayer. The ancient “compline” prayer, or prayer at the close of the day shapes our sleeping and rising in the death and resurrection of Christ. This image is one of baptismal life; continually dying (repenting and turning from ways that separate us from Christ) and rising to new life each day. Throughout the worship service there are several moments each Sunday where we can engage water in ways that help us understand and live more deeply into our baptism. Here are a few examples: During the gathering of the people you can pour water into the font or baptismal pool with words that accentuate our inclusion into the family of God such as: You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you m ay proclaim the mighty acts of the One who called you out of darkness into God’s marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9) After confession, you may pour or splash water while you while declaring God’s grace and forgiveness. Any words of forgiveness and grace accentuate baptism. However, you may use words that are more explicit: Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:3,4) Know that you are forgiven and be at peace, walking in the light of Christ, loving God with all your being and loving your neighbor as yourself. Calling for the offering is a great place to remind people of the promises they have made at baptism. We promise to follow Christ, obey his word, love God and one another and live our lives in ways that show Christ’s love in this world. Our best offering is the way we live. While money is important, how we make that money and our priorities in the way we spend money are also part of living into our baptism. The way we live each minute of the day is our best and most important offering, even more important that anything that has to do with money. Too often the offering seems to revolve around money, especially when we process plates of money down the aisle...

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