“As a church, we are a community of those whom God’s Spirit calls to turn from sin, acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord, receive baptism upon confession of faith, and follow Christ in life.” This is about Jesus being both Lord and Saviour in our lives. It is about the word and deed. It is about worship and action. It is about believing, and then acting as if you believe. Both are activities that have been part of the Christian journey since the beginning. Paul, the early church leaders, did not separate them. Neither did Jesus. It is either side of one piece of paper,
Anabaptists have always been about baptism. It got us killed in Europe in the 16th century. That no longer happens. To acknowledge Jesus in a public way is what we must do. And we do that by baptizing people. Mostly, we are not a ritual people, but baptism is important.
In this conviction it does not say how we are to be baptized. This issue is contentious in the Mennonite world. Some baptize by sprinkling, some pouring and others immerse. People in the Mennonite World Conference are divided on how to do it. So, the pattern of the water used is not in here. In North America, There has been a pattern of young people not being baptized. They might want to be immersed but they are not sure of membership. So, some people are waiting until their twenties to take the plunge. What do you think ?
Have you thought about going to the MWC Assembly in July 2022 in Indonesia. Why not ? Why ?
Peace and grace
Fred Soaring like Vultures lifted up by unseen Hands Trust, silent enters my fears Monica Pieper Landoni 2021
