Homecoming :
Stories of Living in God's Way
The Spiritual Practice of Baptism – Joanne Leong
When Amir and I first came upon the COTP community, I didn’t know what to expect. It was wonderful how welcoming everyone was. But the experience that first touched me was Phoebe Noonan’s baptism. It was this ritual, the practice of baptism, that made me realize that one way to live in God’s way was to stand before everyone and profess that you would like to be part of the community of faith and God.
When I first heard about Phoebe’s baptism, I thought it was strange that it would be part of the service. I had only attended baptisms that were not part of a regular service or mass and always thought of the practice as a private family affair. Well, before Phoebe’s baptism, I had only attended baptisms. I stood/sat there and watched. At Phoebe’s baptism, though, I felt like I was experiencing something and felt a part of the whole thing. I felt touched and connected. What I came to realize is that baptism is sort of like a profession of faith and in declaring that you or your child would like to be a follower of the Way, the community then responds by accepting you or your child open-heartedly.
This year has definitely been a time of professing that commitment to the community for myself, my daughter and my family as a whole. Not only was Kendall baptized, but Amir was reaffirmed in the Church and I went through my own evolution with the practice of baptism. I feel more connected to God every time a baby is walked around the congregation, where everyone channels their love, energy and good will. I felt touched as I went through my own baptism and everyone laid their hands on me or someone close to them to welcome me into the community. And this past Sunday, William Dalton was baptized. I’d like to think of my experience as circular at COTP. What first made me feel connected was Phoebe’s baptism and then, a couple years later, I was baptized at COTP. The connection and the community are constantly growing and my relationship with God is evolving.
