A sacred ritual and the march of time

 

 

Pastor Steve baptized a baby girl at the start of our worship service this morning, and the congregation welcomed her in to the Christian community.

I always enjoy watching a baptism being performed. I find a sense of peace and joy in witnessing a simple, but enduring tradition that binds families and generations. The ritual is one of those symbolic threads that winds its way through time and across centuries.

Time and its passing is what I was thinking about as I watched today’s service. I was moved by the memories of my daughter’s baptism in January of 1996. Family members, immediate and extended, joined us in celebrating Meg’s baptism. Aunts, grandmothers, uncles, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews, cousins, and many close friends crowded into our small house for the special occasion.

Meg is completing her final year at college and will graduate in May. I thought about that and the many other special dates that marked Meg’s journey from childhood to adulthood. Once again I was humbled my time’s swift passing and awed by the many blessings I have witnessed through my daughter. And life is good.




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