How is baptism connected to Christian life? Writing
in Liturgy 30, no. 1, Meyers explore
this question by offering a detailed look at each of the three parts of the
Apostle’s Creed. Her assessment helps make clear that baptismal affirmations
are at the heart of Christian witness.
At a time when some Christian churches have sought to
bypass the ancient understanding of baptism as the sacrament by which
individuals are initiated into the body of Christ and then admitted to the
communion table, Meyers’ work may help re-tool our sacramental perspectives.
According to the Gospel of Matthew, the risen Jesus
commissioned his apostles to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them
to obey everything I have commanded you” (Mt 28:19–20). Baptism
is not merely a ritual act of administration of water in the triune name. It
requires as well a way of life conducted in obedience to Jesus’ teaching. The
book of Acts also makes this clear. On the day of Pentecost, after the Holy
Spirit had descended on the apostles, Peter preached a powerful sermon that
resulted in the conversion and baptism of three thousand people. These new
believers “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42).
As Christianity spread through
the ancient world, conversion meant both a change in belief and a change in
behavior. Gradually, creeds summarized Christian faith as associated, in
particular, with baptism. In the final weeks of preparation for baptism, a
bishop or catechist taught the creed to candidates preparing for baptism, and
the candidates were then required to recite the creed as a symbol of their belief.
Some baptismal rites used an interrogatory form of a creed focused on core
tenets of Christian belief . . . The responses to these questions were not an
abstract statement of Christian doctrine, but an expression of a living faith
that provided the foundation for a life of discipleship.
Meyers, then, examines each of the three affirmations––belief
in God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit––for the ways in which the
creedal acclamations shape the baptized life. Here is an example regarding the
first article of creedal faith:
Christians are called to care
for all God's creation, living and nonliving. Too often, the biblical
injunction to subdue the earth and have dominion over every living thing (Gen
1:28) has been used as a license to misuse creation, to exploit and pollute the
natural world. But when we recognize creation as God's handiwork, a reflection
of God's great love, our attitude can shift to one of ecological responsibility
and justice. . . .
God who created all that is and who sends the Son and
sends the Spirit also sends us to share in God's new creation and to seek the
restoration of all creation to God.
. . . Baptismal faith is trinitarian faith, belief in God who created
heaven and earth, in Jesus sent by God as the embodiment of God's love for the
world, and in the Holy Spirit sent by God as the animating force for the people
of God. United with Christ in his death and resurrection and filled with the
gifts of the Holy Spirit, those who are baptized walk in newness of life, a
pattern of life consistent with God's self-giving love and merciful justice. A
trinitarian baptismal faith issues in baptismal living, daily dying to sin and
rising to new life, being conformed ever more fully to Christ. Through
baptismal living, embodying God's love, Christians grow into the full stature
of Christ (Eph 4:13). Baptismal living thus deepens baptismal faith.
May Prof. Meyers’ fine baptismal thinking feed the
church with affirmations of faith that arise from all baptismal waters.
Ruth A. Meyers, “Baptismal Faith, Baptismal Living," Liturgy 30, no. 1 (2015): 18-23.
No comments:
Post a Comment