Rite of Baptism
Enzo Knox Van Bergen
Upper Room Inclusive Catholic Community
Albany, NY
January 24, 2016
WELCOME
Presider 1: It
is with great joy that we, The Upper Room Inclusive Catholic Community welcome
Kellie and T’Quomas Van Bergen, with their son Enzo Knox, to this celebration
of Baptism. Enzo was born on November 4, 2015 at 8:31 pm. His mother and father
and extended family welcomed him to this beautiful world on that special day.
Today, we formally welcome Enzo to the Christian Community through the
sacrament of Baptism.
Presider 2:
Let us pray. O Holy One, you continually remind us that you love your creation
by sending us brand new possibilities in the form of daughters and sons. May Enzo grow in his understanding of your
infinite love as he learns the meaning of faith through service. May he come to
appreciate his responsible place as co-creator of his life in You. Amen.
(pause)
Please join in singing our opening song: All Are Welcome
Opening Song: All Are Welcome
LITURGY OF THE WORD
Presider 1: The first reading is about the special place of each
person in God’s love. People sometimes say, when talking about a time
before someone was even conceived, that he or she was “no more than a
gleam in the parents’ eyes”. We find that same way of thinking, not
literally, but as a metaphor about how God holds us in love, in this passage
from Psalm 139 read by Paula Reynolds.
First Reading: Psalm 139
O Holy One, My
Beloved, you have searched me out and known me;
you know my sitting
down and my rising up;
you discern my
thoughts from afar.
You trace my journeys
and my resting places
and are acquainted
with all my ways.
For you yourself
created my inmost parts;
you knit me together
in my mother’s womb.
I will thank you
because I am marvelously made;
your works are
wonderful, and I know it well.
My body was not
hidden from you,
while I was being
made in secret
and woven from the
elements of the earth.
You beheld my limbs,
yet unfinished in the womb;
all of them were
written in your book;
they were fashioned
day by day,
when as yet there was
none of them.
How precious to me
are your creations, O Holy One!
Presider 2: Our
Second reading is from a letter written by the apostle Paul to the followers of
Jesus at Corinth and read by T'Quomas Van Bergen.
Dear Brothers and
sisters:
As a body is one, though it has many parts,
and all the parts of the body, though many,
As a body is one, though it has many parts,
and all the parts of the body, though many,
are one body, so also
Christ.
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,
whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,
and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.
Now the body is not a single part, but many.
You are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,
whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,
and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.
Now the body is not a single part, but many.
You are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.
These are the
inspired words of Paul, disciple of Jesus.
Alleluia: (Sung)
Presider 1: Our Third
reading is from the Gospel of Luke read by Andrea Lopez
Jesus came to
Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to
his custom
into the synagogue on the Sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Holy One is upon me,
and has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor,
to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Holy One.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
into the synagogue on the Sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Holy One is upon me,
and has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor,
to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Holy One.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
These are the
inspired words of Luke, disciple of Jesus.
SHARED HOMILY
BAPTISMAL RITE
Reception of the Child
Presider 2: I
invite Kellie, T’Quomas and Enzo to stand with Enzo’s Godparents Earl and Cathy.
Presider 1: (to the parents) Kellie and T’Quomas, what do you ask of this Christian Community?
Kellie and
T’Quomas: We ask that our son Enzo be welcomed into the Christian community
through the sacrament of Baptism.
Presider 2: By
asking for Baptism within the Christian community, you are promising to teach
Enzo to live justly, to love tenderly and to walk with integrity for all to see
and celebrate. You are promising to teach him about his brother, Jesus and his
message of love. Do you promise to do
this to the best of your ability?
Kellie and
T’Quomas: We do.
Presider 1: (to the godparents) Earl
and Cathy, do you promise to help Kellie and T’Quomas as they teach Enzo about the
Source of All Life and about Jesus, our brother?
Godparents: We
do.
Baptismal Ritual
Presider 1: In
our ritual today, we use many sacramental symbols and signs. We now begin the
baptismal ritual with a blessing of the water and the oil.
Kellie: O Holy
One, Source of all that is, we experience your grace through sacramental signs,
which tell us of your unseen presence.
T”Quomas: At
the dawn of creation, Your Spirit breathed on the waters making them the
wellspring of all holiness.
Godparent 1 (Earl):
The water of the Red Sea, through which our ancestors traveled, is a symbol of
our liberation from all that holds us captive. In the waters of the Jordan
River, our brother Jesus was baptized by his cousin, John, and anointed with
your Spirit.
Godparent 2
(Cathy): After the resurrection, the disciples of Jesus celebrated baptism
in water and the Spirit with those who answered Your call to holiness.
Kellie: From
age to age, oil has been used to anoint the priests, prophets, leaders and
visionaries.
Presider 2: (to all present) Please
extend your hands in blessing the water and oil .
O Holy One, you call
us to be co-creators of a world filled with blessing and abundance. As
co-creators with you, we bless this water and oil as a symbol of your grace
filled presence in our community. (pause)
Baptismal Promises
(Each person is
invited to light a candle and place it on the table by baptismal font.)
Presider 1: In
this part of the baptismal ritual, Kellie and T’Quomas make baptismal promises
for Enzo. I invite everyone to renew their baptismal promises and respond “I
do” to each of the following:
Do you promise to see
what is good for your sisters and brothers everywhere, rejecting injustice and
inequity, living with the freedom and responsibility of children of God?
All: I do.
Presider 2: Do you
promise to work for the realization of God’s vision of harmony and right
relations among all peoples, rejecting the idols of money, property, color, sex
and position?
All: I do.
Presider 1:
Do you promise to
seek peace and live in peace in one human family, rejecting prejudice and
half-heartedness in every form, and all barriers to unity?
All: I do.
Presider 2:
Do you promise to
cherish the universe, and this precious planet, working creatively to renew and
safeguard the elemental sacraments of air, earth, water and fire?
All: I do.
Presider 1:
Do you believe in
God, the Source of all life, in Jesus, our brother who loved and lived among us
so that all might live with abundant fullness; in the breath of God’s center,
the Spirit who continues the work of forgiveness and reconciliation, birthing
and blessing, challenge and hope, so that together we can continue the work of
creation?
All: I do.
Presider 2: Kellie,
T’Quomas, Cathie and Earl, please bring Enzo to the baptismal font.
Pouring of Water
Presider 1: (As T’Quomas pours water over Enzo’s head)
We baptize you, Enzo
-
in the
name of our God who is the Source of all life,
-
in the
name of our God revealed in our own humanity,
-
in the
name of our God whose Spirit invites and inspires us as co-creators. Amen.
Anointing with Oil
Presider 2: (As Kellie anoints Enzo’s forehead)
Enzo, you were
conceived in love and welcomed to life with love. We anoint you with this oil
in recognition that human love is sacred, that you are sacred.
Presentation of Stole
Presider 1: (as Earl places
stole on Enzo) Enzo, we present you with this stole. May it remind
you that you carry in the depths of your being the Spirit of Life and Love
itself.
Lighting Candle
Presider 2: (as Cathy
lights Enzo’s candle from the community’s candles) Enzo, may this candle remind
you of Jesus, who opened peoples’ minds and hearts to see the “light” of God’s
presence within them.
Presentation of Child
to Community
Presider 1: (Kellie and T’Quomas lift Enzo and present
him to the community) It is with
great joy that we welcome Enzo Knox Van Bergen to the Christian Community.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Presider 2: As we prepare for the sacred meal, we
bring to the table our blessings, cares, and concerns. (at conclusion) Presider: With love and gratitude we pray for these
concerns and those which remain unspoken.
Amen.
Presider 1: O Holy One, you have been called by many
names by many people in the centuries of our planet’s life. Yet, no name truly
defines you or describes you. We celebrate you as the marvelous, loving energy
of life who caused us and our world to be. We celebrate you as the Source of
light and life and love, and we celebrate your presence and all-ways care.
Presider 2:
Please join in praying the Eucharistic prayer together.
All: God beyond our
words, God of every simple truth, God of each and all of us, we gather to give
thanks. We open our awareness to the
goodness of all of creation, to remember our responsibility to serve.
We open this circle
to the memory of all those who have gone before us, and joined with all that is
alive, we lift up our lives and sing: Holy, Holy, Holy (Karen Drucker)
We thank you for our
brother, Jesus. He showed us so simply, so tenderly, how the world is in our
hands. He had nothing in this world but your love, companions on the journey,
and his very self. Together, that was more than enough, and that remains our
clarity in the midst of confusion: the miracle of healing, new hope,
nurturance, nourishment, liberation and life.
On the night before
he faced his own death and for the sake of living fully, Jesus sat at the Seder
supper with his companions and friends.
He reminded them of all that he taught them, and to fix that memory
clearly within them, he bent down and washed their feet.
Presider
1: Please extend your hands in blessing over these gifts
Presider 1 lifts the bread as community
prays the following:
Back at the table, Jesus took the Passover
Bread, spoke the grace, broke the bread and offered it to them saying,
Take and eat, this is my very self. (Pause)
Presider
2 lifts the wine as community prays the following:
Then he took the cup of blessing, spoke the
grace, and offered it to them saying:
Take and drink of the covenant
Made new again through my life
Poured out for you and for everyone, that
you might really be free. Whenever you remember me like this, I am among you.
(pause)
O Holy One, we are
grateful for the gift of your Spirit, always inviting us to be co-creators with
you. And like Jesus . . .
Standing where he
stood,
and for what he
stood,
and with whom he
stood,
we are united in your
Spirit,
and worship you with
our lives,
Amen!
Presider 1: Let us pray together the prayer of Jesus:
O Holy One, who is within, we celebrate your many names. Your
wisdom come. Your will be done, unfolding from the depths within us. Each day
you give us all that we need. You remind us of our limits, and we let go. You
support us in our power, and we act with courage. For you are the dwelling
place within us, the empowerment around us, and the celebration among us, now
and forever. Amen.
The Prayer of Jesus as interpreted by Miriam Therese Winter
Presider 2:
Please join in our prayer for the
breaking of the bread:
All: Loving God, You call us to live the Gospel
of peace and justice. We will live
justly.
Loving God, You call us to be Your presence in the world. We will love tenderly
Loving God, You call us to speak truth to power. We will walk with integrity in your presence.
Loving God, You call us to be Your presence in the world. We will love tenderly
Loving God, You call us to speak truth to power. We will walk with integrity in your presence.
Presider
1: Let us pray our communion
prayer together. (Presiders hold up bread and wine)
All: What we have heard with our ears, we will
live with our lives; as we share communion, we will become communion, both
Love’s nourishment and Love’s challenge.
Presider
2: Our Eucharistic celebration is all inclusive. You are one with the
Divine and nothing can separate you from God’s love. All are welcome to receive
at this friendship table.
Please
join in singing our communion song: We
Are Called
BLESSING
Presider
1: May we continue to be the face of God to each other. May we call each other to extravagant
generosity! May our light shine for all
to see, and may our name be a blessing in our time!
All: AMEN
Presider
1: Please join in our closing song, Forever Young, and then share a sign of
peace.
Closing
Song: Forever Young
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