A step toward Christian unity?
The Christian Century (via Religion News Service) reports:
BALTIMORE (RNS) The U.S. Roman Catholic bishops on Tuesday (Nov. 16) approved a mutual agreement with four Reformed Protestant denominations to recognize each other's baptisms as valid, a pact that was six years in the making.
Gathered here for their annual fall meeting, the bishops voted 204-11 to approve the baptism agreement with the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Reformed Church in America, the Christian Reformed Church, and the United Church of Christ.
Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Atlanta, chairman of the ecumenical and interfaith committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, called the agreement a "milestone on the ecumenical journey."
"Together with our Reformed brothers and sisters," Gregory said in a statement, "we Catholic bishops can once again affirm baptism as the basis of the real, even if incomplete, unity we share in Christ."
The Roman Catholic Church has recognized the validity of most Christian denomination's baptisms since the groundbreaking Second Vatican Council in the mid-1960s. In 2002, however, concerns arose over practices by Reformed Christians such as baptism by sprinkling and substituting different names for the Holy Trinity, according to the Catholic bishops.
The Presbyterian Church (USA) has already voted to adopt the agreement. Votes by the Reformed Church in America, the Christian Reformed Church, and the United Church of Christ are expected in the near future.
The United Church of Christ Book of Worship - which gives guidance to those leading worship - uses these words for Baptism:
I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
This language would seem to conform to the spirit of the agreement under consideration.
However, it is not the language that I have used in performing baptisms. A sample liturgy for baptism that I use can be found here (PDF). In short, I use these words:
I baptize you with faith in the living God, Source, Servant and Guide.
How are those terms defined? Through questions asked (either of the parents in the case of an infant baptism or of the one being baptized, if they are old enough to understand the questions) in a part of the service known as the Affirmation of Faith:
Do you believe in God the Source, the fountain of life?
All: I believe in God.
Do you believe in Christ the Servant, embodied in Jesus of Nazareth and in the church?
All: I believe in Christ.
Do you believe in the Spirit the Guide, the liberating wellspring of life?
All: I believe in the Spirit.
No authority of the United Church of Christ may require that I use a particular liturgy. However, the church's website notes:
The Book of Worship of the United Church of Christ provides an Order for Baptism and orders for Affirmation of Baptism. The recognition of our baptism by the ecumenical church is important to us, and the Book of Worship encourages the use of language recognized in most Christian churches: "I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit." Feminine images for God may surround these words to enrich understandings and offer balance.
None-the-less, there is no authority that can compel any clergy in the United Church of Christ to use a particular liturgy. As a minister the United Church of Christ, however, I am more than open to dialog over the sacrament of baptism and the use of a common language that is inclusive. I value unity where possible and hope that these discussions underway move us closer toward such unity. At the same time, I value diversity and believe that liturgical practices should be expansive and not limited so that the unity of our faith can be expressed within diverse settings and contexts.
