It was Sabbath afternoon, the weather was good. The sun pleasant, birds sang in expectation of something grand. As people sat on the benches around the pool, trees swerved easily to the cool wind that encapsulates the woods of Friedensau Adventist University, Germany. This Sabbath afternoon atmosphere felt heavenly as representatives of five churches came to experience and celebrate seven of their members symbolizing their decision to follow Jesus through baptism. In what seemed like a regional meeting of the congregations of Friedensau, Burg, Gera, Lubeck and Magdeburg (Berlin-Central German Conference), members beamed with joy as they waited the start of the service of baptism.
The service began with greetings from the presiding pastor, a song and then the baptismal were introduced. The baptismal “seven” came up front dressed in white. Interestingly, they somehow knew each other or were friends with each other as the case may be. So they introduced themselves in turns. This was done with short stories of friendship and faith testimonies narrated by each person about the other (a friend). Also, the reason why someone decided to get baptized was hinted during this time. Listening to the testimonies and faith experiences from these youngsters showed the journey they went through to make a decision that will mark their followership of Jesus by the ritual of baptism.
The liturgy continued with a baptismal sermonette from Romans 6:3, 4 and the taking of baptismal vows by the candidates. The baptismal vows were reverberated in a song. The song, “This I believe (The Creed),” was chosen by the youngsters as a means to express their confessions of faith. It was after this that a dedicatory prayer was made followed by the ritual of baptism. One note to make here is the fact that each candidate was given a Bible text before they got baptized. These texts were chosen by their baptismal instructor. Obviously, this evidences a familial connection/ relationship that existed between the baptismal candidate and their instructor. Then there were “Amens” and clapping of hands as the seven candidates were dipped into the baptismal pool by pastors Michel Schwindt and Dittmar Dost.
In the meantime, an elderly person in the community gave a testimony of his faith and used the time to encourage the new born Christians in their Christian journey.
After the baptism, the congregation sang songs of joy and praises to God, joining the heavenly choir in praising God for the attestation of faith by these youngsters. Some of the songs like “In Christ Alone” were requested by those who had just being baptized. The liturgy was official closed with the Lord’s Prayer popularly sung by Adventists in Germany. As the congregation held hands in the process of singing, one may have wished that the atmosphere of joyful worship continued. Indeed, this celebration of faith continued until the evening. After the presentation of their baptismal certificates and gifts by their respective churches, the celebrants and their church members sat to eat and chat at table. In the end, one cannot but note that the celebration of baptism is not just another celebration but one of the most essential celebrations of the Adventist community.
