040516

Reese Kada Adams

daughter of

Derrick & Kamara Adams

Emma Elizabeth Carleton

daughter of

Kevin & Cheryl Carleton

Jane Clarke, CARLETON: Devon, Kevin, Cheryl, Emma, Jenny Wheeler, GERHARDT: Dave, Myra, Kira, Breanne, Joy Biko,

ANNOUNCEMENT: The ministry of Westminster was extended into the community as James & Jane performed the marriage ceremony for Paul Mehrer and Bertha Eliasson on May 12^th. Congratulations to the newlyweds.

In baptism we symbolize and celebrate the grace and love of God for a particular individual and, at the same time, for all people of every age, baptized or not. The act of baptism does not confer that love. It acknowledges God's love in sacramental celebration.

All who make the promises of baptism, such as parents and congregation, renew their commitment to that love and its expression in their lives. Through baptism, a particular identity is proclaimed for baptized children as members of the body of Christ, the Christian Church. This places the child being baptized and all making baptismal promises within communities in relationship with God through the gift of Jesus Christ…communities in which all members are valued and contribute to the whole.

We, the congregation of baptized children, made promises together. We promised to share a journey of Christian life in partnership with children. What can we do to live up to those promises?

We are in this together as a shared action with God's loving spirit and with each other as children, youth, and adults.

• How can a congregation be an expression of God's loving presence to each other, to their community, and to the world?

Every baptism connects a congregation with children through a partnership. This partnership is one of mutuality and profound respect for each other's needs and gifts. Baptism is not something we do to children… it is a commitment to share a journey in the life of faith with them.

Every baptism connects a congregation with families through a partnership. This partnership is one of support for the ministry of the family in living up to the promise of sharing the Christian faith journey with their child or children.

• How do we connect the faith that is nurtured in church with our homes and places of daily life?

With every baptism, a congregation has an opportunity to refocus energy on support for families so that they are equipped for the task of growing in faith together with their children. A focus on the home and life beyond the walls of the church can clarify and enhance the life that is within. By honouring the gifts and needs of children and their families, congregations can reshape aspects of church life to express this mission.

Some of the things we seek to do here at Westminster include the constant re-evaluation of our building use with an effort to • Create a safe and welcoming environment for children and families; you may wish to take a tour of the church from a child's point of view. And ask yourself on your tour if the rooms are inviting and the spaces welcoming to little people?

WE have worked to reshape our view of the nursery and our toddler care by offering a clean and safe place for the very young and a space with an audio speaker so that parents may share in worship and learning with their children together during the worship service as part of their personal family celebration, and their sharing in the community of faith.

We try to include children's experiences, leadership, needs, and gifts in worship throughout the church year.

We have a program of follow-up that contacts baptism families in the weeks, months and years after a baptism to share information, communicate needs, celebrate milestones such as birthdays, and offer invitations to events.

We try to honour the need to hold all ages events like the upcoming church picnic, worldwide communion, Camp Sunday’s like the one just past and others.

And, as we did again today by inviting the children to gather and share in the baptismal celebration we seek to involve children in the congregation as "Friends in Faith" with the newly baptized children thus children actively participate in the sacrament of baptism.

As a congregation we need to continually ask ourselves how we will live into the promises of support to each baptismal family? As parents and as a faith community we need to ask how we will honour the partnership with children to live Christian lives that we profess and proclaim?

An 8 year old, in conversation about the church said, “I would like it if adults treated children with respect, the same as they expect from us. Sometimes adults act as if we are not there. It would be nice if we could help make decisions and help do things in the church.” An 8 year old, from A Place for You (Toronto:The United Church of Canada, 1989).

Parents are very much included in the wrestling for shalom that we all engage. Living up to the promises of baptism means being open to spiritual growth and life transformation. You parents are the primary source of a child’s learning and growing in Christian life. Your faith begins this journey. Your openness to the wonder of God’s spirit in your child creates mutuality in a shared venture. Everyone has something to learn and to teach!

So today I encourage you parents who present your children and those who already have or may be thinking about doing so to:

• Add a devotional moment to family celebrations, such as a prayer or reading.

• Include members of your extended family/ or those you have chosen to name as godparents to share celebrations and offer prayers and insights.

• Create space for the spirit with a special place in a child's room and with special actions, such as sharing a wonder walk for respecting God's creation.

• Be alert to treasure and build on serendipity moments of celebrating God by honouring the perspective of your child's wisdom, experience, and questions.

• Share wonder at the big questions of God and life together without worrying about answers.

• Worship and learn together through regular contact with the faith community in celebrating God's presence.

• Give and share for the community and wider world through the example of church offerings and stewardship and through family projects for caring, peace, and justice making.

• Make and treasure time for learning opportunities, such as family retreats or simply being available to some of the congregational events that exist for you.

• and most of all, Communicate with your child at special times and in ongoing ways… share your hopes for growing together in God's love which you may do by writing keepsake letters to your child, saying prayers together, reading a children's Bible, or exploring a faith book.

And parents, consider how you will stay in touch with the congregation that made promises to support you and your child in the life of faith?

A little girl told her friend: "That's my church! We go there every Christmas Eve!" As correct as she is, there are many more opportunities to share the wider life of faith with a congregation than the one or two high festivals of the year…plan which opportunities you can share in and make it your family’s commitment…the reward won’t be wasted on your children…they will remember and cherish such times.

There is so much that could be shared about the family faith journey but today it is my hope only to remind you or to whet your appetite for the things that matter and last in your children’s life…we live in dangerous and precarious times for families and the things we do together as a faith community can have a truly spiritual effect on the lives of our families and help provide the cocoon of love that we seek to embrace for all persons.

Sacrament of Baptism