Lesson seven - pages 14/15 Anna's baptism

Aim for the book

To explore real and visionary journeys encountered in life.

Learning objectives

• To know people of all ages become Christians by being baptized.
• To be able to identify the symbols of Baptism as water and the sign of the cross.
• To understand that promises are made on behalf of the child by parents and godparents.

Background

Baptism is a major Christian rite. The example for Christians is Jesus' baptism at the hands of John the Baptist. Some Christians practise adult baptism, others baptize babies. Some baptize in a font, some in a baptistery, others in the running waters of a stream or river. But what is significant is entry into the Christian community. The symbolism is the washing away of sin, the death of separation from God and the birth into a new life - the Christian life. It is a form of resurrection - the moving from a life without God into a life within the kingdom.

Bible reference

Luke 3.21, Matthew 3.13-17

Key words

• Baptism
• Promise
• Water
• Cross

Extra notes

The word baptize and christen are interchangeable and refer to the ceremony that admits people into the Christian Church. Jesus was baptized by his cousin, John, in the River Jordan. The way people are baptized varies considerably. Some Christians believe that babies should be baptized soon after birth, while others consider it important that the decision is taken when maturity is reached, and they are able to make the promises for themselves. However, there are common elements in all baptisms. The use of water is a sign of washing away sins, and the sign of the cross indicates a belonging to Jesus and the desire to follow his example. In some traditions holy oil is used and candles are lit.

Activity one - act it out

• You will need
  A bowl with water in it.
  A doll.
  A large shell.
  A white shawl.
  The picture of Anna's baptism.
  Art materials.
• Start
  Assemble the artefacts and the picture of Anna's Baptism ready for the children to look at. Ask the children to describe what they see. Explain that we all belong to groups of people (such as: family, class, school, perhaps Beavers or Rainbows), and that there is often a ceremony to mark the occasion when we join. Baptism is the way Christians mark joining the worldwide family of the church.
• Develop
  Choose the baby's 'parents' and' godparents' from the class, telling the children that godparents are special friends who - with the parents - are there to look after the spiritual as well as the physical well-being of the baby. Ask the children to select a suitable name for the doll.
  Tell the class that the 'parents' and 'godparents' are going to make promises for the 'baby' because the baby cannot do this for herself.
  'Baptize' the doll by making the sign of the cross on the forehead, and then pouring water onto its head by scooping the water up from the bowl with the shell. Tell the children that the priest would say these words when the baby was being baptized:
  'I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.'
• End
  Explain to the children that there are many different Christian traditions of baptising people. Some Christians get baptized when they are grown up. Some Christians go completely under the water at their baptism ceremony.
  The children could design a card incorporating a symbol of Baptism for the newly baptized baby or draw the present that they would give to the baby.
• Assessment opportunities
  Can the children identify that the Christian symbols of Baptism are the sign of the cross and water?

Activity two - promising and belonging

• You will need
  Beaver and/or Rainbow Certificate.
  The words of the promise that Beavers and Rainbows make when they join these groups.
• Start
  Show the children examples of the Beavers' and Rainbows' Certificate. Ask if any children in the class are members and remember their initiation ceremony, or perhaps that of a sibling.
  What do these promises mean when they are said?
  Why do we have them?
  Did they have to learn by heart the words to say?
  Can they remember them?
• Develop
  Relate these promises to more general promises that the children might make at school or at home such as a promise to do homework or tidy up their bedroom.
  Link up the idea of keeping the Beaver/Rainbow promises to indicate membership of a particular community.
  Christians also make promises, but if the person is still a baby, then promises are made by the baby's special friends (godparents) on their behalf.
  Are some promises hard to keep?
• End
  Encourage the children to draw or write a promise about home or school. Decorate it to make it very special, perhaps with a decorated border.

Activity three - water for washing

• You will need
  A variety of interesting containers with water in them (e.g. a vase, a small dish, a bottle).
  Drawing materials.
• Start
  Pour some of the water from one container to another, noticing the sound it makes.
  Sprinkle it lightly on faces and hands to get the feeling.
• Develop
  Encourage the children to think of how water helps us, for example washing, drinking and playing.
  Think about the number of different occasions when they use water during the day: for cleaning teeth, flushing the toilet, showering and so on.
  Stress the importance of water in our lives, and how we take it for granted. Water is a matter of life and death, especially in a drought or flood.
  Look at the picture of Anna's Baptism and notice that she is being 'washed'. Emphasize that the water is a symbol for making Anna pure. In Christian terms this might be likened to 'getting the baby ready' to become a Christian.
• End
  Divide a sheet of A4 paper up in to four segments and have the children draw a picture of water being used in ways that are helpful to them, to show just how important it is in their daily lives.

Web site links

http://www.painsley.org.uk/re/GCSE/RevBook/baptism.html

A brief explanation for GCSE students (but equally relevant for younger children and for teachers) on this initiation rite.

Activity checklist

Activity one - act it out

A bowl with water in it.
A doll.
A large shell.
A white shawl.
The picture of Anna's baptism.
Art materials.

Activity two - promising and belonging

Beaver and/or Rainbow Certificate.
The words of the promise that Beavers and Rainbows make when they join these groups.

Activity three - water for washing

A variety of interesting containers with water in them (e.g. a vase, a small dish, a bottle).

Drawing materials.

© Graham Owen