BAPTISM
We practice both infant christening and adult baptism here.
We believe baptism can happen at any age, and that in baptism God says that this person (infant, child, youth or adult) is “my beloved child in whom I am well pleased.” The sacrament of baptism is an outward and visible sign of the grace of God. Through the sacrament of baptism we declare that the love of God comes to us in different ways, but always with the same assurance.
The baptism of an infant reminds us that the love of God comes to us before we are even aware of it. The baptism of a child reminds us that God’s love does not depend on our understanding. The baptism of a youth or adult reminds of us of our own commitment to affirm publicly our love for God and our desire to be marked as one of God’s own. Regardless of when baptism is performed, it is a sign that the love of God comes into our lives freely. It becomes real as we learn to see the world with eyes of faith and experience life together in a community of faith.
As an original Christian Connexion church, EFCCC practised credo-baptism (adults by immersion) from the 1830's through the 1940's. In fact, the very first infant that was sprinkled in the church still lives nearby!
There are few symbols in Scripture as rich and enduring as water. Long before it became associated with Christian baptism, water stood at the center of the biblical imagination as both a source of life and an instrument of judgment. The waters of creation were parted by the command of God. The floodwaters of Noah swept away a corrupt world while preserving the promise of a new beginning. The waters of the Red Sea marked the end of Israel's slavery and the beginning of its journey toward covenant freedom.
Again and again, water appears in the biblical story as the place where one reality ends and another begins.
What brokenness might you leave in the water, and more importantly, Who will break forth in grace?