This past Sunday we were able to celebrate the sacrament of Baptism together. When the service began, I could already feel the energy in the room. The families and godparents sitting in the front rows. The choristers joining the choir for their debut after practicing for a few weeks with Jeremy. A full church singing “We Know that Christ is Raised” together for the processional. During the Baptismal liturgy, all of the kids came up to sit at the front. When it was Katherine’s to be baptized, she stepped up on the stool and then I heard from the kids sitting up front, “Go Kate! You got this Kate!”, as the water was being poured over her head.
In all the baptisms I have been at, I had never heard this before. The kids who had already been baptized cheering on the newly baptized. There was something so sacred to have a literal cheering on and rooting for someone who was experiencing a formative and sacramental moment in the life of our church.
I hope this image can be one that we carry forward with us as we enter this fall season. We get to be people who root for each other — through all the moments of life. I don’t know about you, but knowing that I have a community supporting me makes a world of a difference and gifts me with the courage to embark on the things God is calling me to. Let’s be that for each other, like those kids sitting up front cheering Kate on.
Blessings,
Janelle Hiroshige
