The Baptismal work of supporting our children

The Rev. Gina Jenkins

Mtr. Gina is the Chaplain for St. Paul's Episcopal School, and also directs the youth and children's ministries for St. Paul's Episcopal Church

​I wonder how many baptisms of infants and children you have witnessed in your lifetime? Do you ever wonder where those children are now? Many are still among us, sitting in the pews. Some may be all grown up while others are still young children. Our Baptismal Covenant proclaimed at all Baptisms is not just between the candidate and God. The sacrament of Baptism is for the whole congregation! Our Book of Common Prayers makes that clear on page 303 when it asks everyone present, “Will you who witness these vows do all in your power to support these persons in their life in Christ?” I am sure you respond to that question each time with a resounding, “We will.”

​Our St. Paul’s community has been working on doing just that: supporting all persons in their life in Christ.

"Will you who witness these vows do all in your power to support these persons in their life in Christ?" I am sure you respond to that question each tme with a resounding "We will."

Last year many gathered in our parish hall to determine what we want to provide for our children. The overwhelming responses were the following:

• We want children to know that they are loved by God and the church community.
• We want children to feel safe and cared for
• We want the children to have a relationship with God through prayer and through the stories in the Bible.

We are in the process of cultivating these wishes through two important programs: Children’s Chapel and Godly Play.
 
We seek to nurture in every child a desire for God and the capacity to know God as real, gracious, and accessible. In Godly Play, all the senses and the imagination of  children are engaged to help them experience God’s presence and learn God’s story. Children are deeply spiritual beings that seek a language for their spirituality, so we teach them through sacred stories. As a Christian family, we all need to learn how our stories are intricately connected to these sacred stories.

What is at stake for our children in worship and faith formation?

When we proclaim to our children the familiar words of Jesus from John’s gospel, “I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me,” we aren’t just reciting a bit of Scripture. We are not just giving them words. We are giving voice and expression to the stirrings of their young hearts and minds. They already know God. What they need is the name of God. What we try to do in Christian formation and in our worship is to help them discover God’s name.

God creates. God is light. God is love. God forgives. God is the Good Shepherd. God feels. God is breath. God suffers. God calls us into relationship. It is a process of inviting them, helping them, to fall in love with God.​

God creates. God is light. God is love. God forgives. God is the Good Shepherd. God feels. God is breath. God suffers. God calls us into relationship. It is a process of inviting them, helping them, to fall in love with God.

As Christians – children, youth, and adults – we recognize this love in expressions of joy and justice, forgiveness and grace, hospitality, and compassion. And Love is so very close to children, who are themselves so rich in love. Only by honoring and nurturing that love relationship with God can we truly guide our children into a more mature commitment of faith: to live with grace and peace with others, all made in God’s own image.

Why teach children in our chapel?

The chapel is considered sacred space, and we want our children to experience the sacred in a space they feel belongs to them, too. As children are met at the threshold of the chapel door, they are personally greeted and welcomed into a sacred circle. The children recognize that this space is different. It is not a classroom with whiteboards, screens, and posters on the walls. They notice the holy and are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. The space is designed to encircle them with sacred stories about God and the people of God and their journey together.

What does the Godly Play Space in the chapel communicate to our St. Paul’s Church families?

Our hope is that this space lets our families know that they are welcome. Their children are welcome. We want them to see that we put intentional time, effort, care, and love into supporting these persons in their life in Christ.

But, if you really want to know what the Godly Play space communicates to our children ask them. Ask their parents. I am sure they can tell you wonderful stories that will connect us all to each other as a body of Christ.

An invitation to you:

You are invited to enter the chapel, and to recognize that when you walk through the Godly Play space you are literally walking through the Bible. You are coming close to the holy. Take some time to sit in the chapel and feel the presence of our children while surrounded by the communion of saints and the God who is Love. You could also sit in with the children on a Godly Play story during the 9:00 AM Sunday school hour beginning Sept. 10 and have a first-hand encounter with the Good Shepherd.