Faith in Progress

This past Sunday I had the great joy of baptizing my daughter into the Church.  As a priest, one of my favorite things to do is baptize people.  It is wonderful no matter what -- whether they are sweet babies wearing their long gowns, or nervous children who aren't entirely comfortable in front of the crowd, or adults who are really stepping out on a limb and making a life change.  I love the hopeful parents and the support of their friends and family.  I love the prayers we say just for that person, thinking about their future with God.  I love hearing the water splashing during the prayers over the water.  The reminder of all the ways water has played an important role in our history as people of God, from creation to the escape from Egypt to Jesus' baptism and now to this baptism right here and now.  But my very favorite part is the line that goes with the anointing with oil - "You are sealed with the Holy Spirit and marked as Christ's own forever...

Epiphany 6, Year A February 13, 2011 Deuteronomy 30:15-20 The other day my son was frustrated about something and hauled out and hit my daughter. This was not a first offense, and so all of us know the well-established consequence for this kind of action. I grabbed Dylan’s hand and told him he was heading to Time Out. As usual, he resisted physically, but this time he also said, “I’m in charge of me and I say no time out!” As I carried him to time out, I told him that in a way he is right – he is in charge of the choices that he makes. But once he makes his choices, he has to deal with the consequences. And the consequence of hitting your sister is a time out. To me, as a parent, it seems so simple – so black and white. Good behavior is rewarded, bad behavior is punished. The choice between the two seems so obvious that sometimes it bewilders me that he makes the choices he makes. Who was it that defined insanity as doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results?...