Baptism - Christening - Dedication - Blessing Ceremonies
Baptism is a sacrament in most Christian denominations. In many it is reuqired of a candidate for church membership.
John the Baptist baptized Jesus himself in the River Jordan. The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove as He emerged from the water and the voice of God the Father spoke from heaven declaring Jesus to be ‘my well-beloved son’.
According to the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus commanded his disciples to baptize believers. The rite of baptism has been exercised ever since including today.
Various baptismal rites were developed in the early Church, all designed to bring some or all of the body into contact with the baptismal waters. In earlier times most involved immersion.
As time went on, baptism of infants became the custom with many. This is frequently called a Christening. It usually involves sprinkling the child with water rather than full immersion. In times of high infant mortality, the Christening was done within days of birth — often while mother was still recuperating in bed at home.
Today, however, and with much lower infant mortality, a child is often baptized at a much older age - 6 months, 9 months, 12 months or more. The Greek culture, for instance, typically baptizes around age 2-3. And in many locations it’s simply a matter of having to wait to get a date on the church schedule.
Many believe that a child cannot go to heaven if not baptized, though this is not supposed in the Scriptures. However, Baptism is cleary described as an act of obedience for the true believer, so it is understandable how many see it as required for salvation. Many passages in Acts teach that baptism must be preceded by faith and the confession and renunciation of sins. The water is the visible sign of God’s grace washing the sins away.
The many churches who require the candidate to be of an age of understanding prior to baptism often exercise the tradition of the family presenting the child to God - a dedication. This is a beautiful time where the family and friends get together to ask God’s blessing and guidance in raising the child to honor Him. Some choose to use traditional Christening gowns for this dedication - or blessing - ceremony. However, less formal attire is frequently chosen as well.
Many Hispanic cultures exercise the tradition of the Presentation - presenting the child go God. This is very similar to a Dedication and is a very important day for both the child and family. The Presentation is often done around the age of 3.
