Baptisms: The US vs Brazil

Getting things going with a little worship and explanation of what's going to happen today.

Brad, Carolyn and Pastor Fabio ( a pastor from Curitiba who is helping us on Thursday Nights) as they pray for the day and for the baptisms that are about to take place.

This is the 10 people who were baptized. What an amazing day!

Brad explaining to everyone how blessed he was to be able to
baptize 3 of his children and to see them follow after Jesus.

Everyone gathering around and participating in the baptismal service.

My nephew, Boaz, right before he was baptized.

Leondro, the first person MJ and I have personally been able to see come to
 Christ, be baptized and be discipled here on the mountain. What an honor.

My nephew, Zion,  as he came out of the water.  

                            

                                                   Brad giving Zion a hug after he was baptized.

                            

                        My niece, Bradlyn, after she was baptized- heading to shore.

People eating and fellowshipping after the baptismal service

My precious little niece, Jubi

Maryssa and a couple of the boys from the mountain jumping into the water after the baptismal service and lunch

Matthew doing "a cannonball" after everyone else jumped in first.

Some of the people sitting around after lunch watching some of the kids swim.

Me and Me Lady (MJ).

Some of the kids from the mountain along with 3 of my nephews and Matthew.

Some of the boys that came from Curitiba.
They were all looking at the horses that were inside the fence. City folks, ha! jk: )

Now when I say, “Baptisms: The US vs Brazil” I’m not meaning it like they (the US and Brazil) are pitted against each other in some type of UFC cage match with a portable baptismal tank in the middle or something like that. I’m talking about the way we baptize people in the US compared to how most churches do it here in Brazil. Now I’ve only been to a couple of brazilian baptismal services, but it seems like they’re all pretty similar.

Here, let me show you the differences I’ve noticed between the two. And this is just my own personal observation (actually I have several observations but I’ll only share a few). And I’m in no way saying one is better or more biblically correct than the other. I’m just talking about how I feel (personally) about the two and the differences I see. So here we go:

__________________________________________________

The US- In the US when we baptized people (at least in the churches I was in) it was either during a Sunday night or a Wednesday night service (usually at the end) and it happened about once every quarter. 

Brazil- In Brazil they baptize people during the day because it’s usually outside and nobody’s crazy enough to get in the water at night. And it’s the main part of the service rather than a add-on at the end. It also happens about once a quarter.

__________________________________________________

The US- The water is just the right temperature ( I know this, because I was the one who filled up the baptismal tank for years at our church) and it was very clean.

Brazil- The water is whatever temperature it is outside (because it’s almost always in a lake, stream, pond, pool, etc.) and it’s not usually very clean.

__________________________________________________

The US- Everyone who’s attending the service sits comfortably in their pew (or theater chair) and observes (from a distance) in a climate controlled sanctuary as everyone is baptized. Some polite clapping usually takes place (occasional there's some type of emotional applause) as each person is dunked and comes-up out of the water.

Brazil- Everyone who’s attending the service is either seated (on the ground) on the banks of the lake, pond, stream, or pool. Some people even stand along the rim of whatever body of water they’re at. They’re right up-on-top of the action. And there’s no polite ‘golf claps’ as each person rises out of the water either. No. Everyone claps and cheers enthusiastically. It’s really a joyous occasion and the person being baptized  feels legitimately celebrated for what they’ve decided to do.

__________________________________________________

The US- After service everyone just goes home. 

Brazil- After service everyone sticks around for hours and ‘parties’ with food and fellowship. They really blow it out. 

__________________________________________________

OK. These are just a few of the differences I’ve noticed. So personally, if I was going to decide which way I’d prefer?... I’d have to go with the brazilian way. Because the thing that sticks out the most to me (and I know that in some US churches it’s different) is the fact that, here in Brazil, baptism isn’t treated like some type of punch-list item that’s checked off just because it’s time to baptize again or something that you do to look good to everybody who asks how many people you’ve baptized this year. No. It’s something that’s really celebrated. It’s a big deal. They don’t treat it lightly. I mean, just imagine a big party where they literally kill the fatted calf (or sheep, thanks Brad) and cook for hours and they play and have fun and laugh and really celebrate the fact that someone just got baptized. That’s what they do here and I really like it. 

But if you think about it, it is a big deal. For someone to publicly make the profession that they are dying to themselves and raising to life in Christ... it’s huge. I think that one of the problems could be that we (as US pastors and church attenders) get so used to the fact that people are getting baptized that we become desensitized to what’s actually taking place. It’s kind of like we forget to celebrate because we’ve seen it soooo many times before. 

As I’m sitting here writing this it just hit me... maybe that’s why a lot of people who get baptized (usually at a young age) get baptized again (the infamous baptismal do-over). Because their baptism was forgettable rather than something to remember. Maybe if it was a big deal and celebrated people wouldn’t feel like they had to do it again. 

Maybe (if when someone in the US get’s baptized) if there was more of a celebration that took place, that people would know beyond a shadow of doubt that something spiritual truly happened. And, maybe that way, they’d never forget what it was like the day that all their friends and family stood around the water as they made one of the most important statements anyone could ever make. I don’t know, just a thought.

Yesterday I was able to be a part of one of these baptismal services and it was awesome. The feeling in the air as people stood around the murky cold water was amazing. Smoke filled the air as meat had been on the grill for hours. And the people were crowded around the edge of the water with such anticipation. It was like they were there to witness something they’d never seen before and they were excited as they pressed-in close to the water. There definitely wasn’t a “been there-done that” feeling to it at all. They were ready to celebrate with their friends and family. 

And then after it was over everyone stayed and ate together. There was laughter and celebration that lasted for hours. It definitely wasn’t forgettable. It was something to remember. If the Lord ever calls us back to the US to start a church, that’s the way I’d like to do it too. As a Celebration. So don’t let me forget: )

Passionately Following Jesus,

Jim

PS- the pictures up top are only a few of the people who were baptized yesterday. There were 10 people in all, that were baptized, and it was such a blessing to be able to see them as they made this profession of faith. This was one of those days where all the junk we have to wade through to be here became a little easier and totally worth it. Thanks to everyone that supports us. You're the ones that made it possible for us to participate in this amazing event.