"Accidental Catechism"

Dear WRC,

It’s hard to believe that at the end of this month it will have been 6 years since we gathered and baptized Owen and Hannah. It’s very likely that no one noticed that morning, but I actually made one small mistake when baptizing Owen. After baptizing someone in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Pastor is invited to make the sign of the cross on their forehead. In my joy and balancing everything else at the moment, I completely forgot. I realized it in time to make the sign of the cross on Hannah’s forehead moments later, but Owen missed that small part of the sacrament.

Now, according to our best theologians, that little mistake doesn’t make an ounce of difference. It isn’t mandatory, it isn’t part of the formal baptism, and as far back as the Donatist Controversy in the 4th century it was settled that the efficacy of the sacraments was rooted in God’s work, not the worthiness of the pastor (thank God!). But as a new parent, I wasn’t quite as sure. I knew better, but my heart was anxious—if Owen grew up to reject the faith, I would know the exact moment where things had gone wrong and whose fault it was.

Thankfully, my efforts to make up for that one small mistake have given us one of our best bedtime rituals. To cover over that one cross I missed, I began to make the sign of the cross on Owen and Hannah’s foreheads every night as I kissed them and said goodnight. When they were a little older and could talk, I began to ask them a question: “Why do I give you this cross every night?” inviting them to answer: “Because I belong to Jesus.”

Night after night we carried out this ritual. The sign of the cross, “because I belong to Jesus.” At some point they wanted to reciprocate and began to insist on also giving me a cross and making sure to remind me of that same good news: I, too, belong to Jesus.

The other night as Owen, half-asleep, poked me in the eye while muttering, “You belong to Jesus,” it struck me that this is actually the most important thing I want my kids to know. This ritual started as a way to appease my own anxiety but it is working into our bones the most important thing I could hope to pass on: They belong to Jesus.

I want this to be worn into their skulls. I want them to know it in their bones. I want it to be one of the deepest truths of their lives: They belong to Jesus. If they’re scared at school or trying to figure out how they fit in, I want them to remember that they belong to Jesus.  When they head off to college one day and step out into the unknown of new relationships and places and independence, I want them to remember that they belong to Jesus. When they’ve failed or messed up in a way that seems too big to come back from, I want them to remember that they belong to Jesus. When they’re fighting to breathe in a darkness that is swallowing them, I want them to know that they belong to Jesus.

And I want you to know that, too. It’s the best news I could ever possibly share with you. You belong to Jesus! He bought you at great cost, and he would do it again. He loves you; he desires you; you are his. You belong! There is nothing you did to earn this love. There is nothing you can do to exhaust it. You can’t run too far. You are not your own; you belong.

He marked you in your baptism. He set you apart as his own. Like a cattle brand that cross sets you apart and can’t be removed no matter how hard you scrub.

I don’t know what you’re dealing with this week. I don’t know what you’re celebrating or grieving. I don’t know the darkness that clouds around. But I do know this: you belong to Jesus. Don’t ever forget it.

 In Christ,

Pastor Andy