I attended a little girl's baptism this weekend. She's about 9 months old and was actively involved. Splashing her hand in the font, reaching out for the candle and baptismal certificate, she showed no fear of this wet ritual. I'm afraid I shed a few tears as her parents and the congregation promised to raise her in safety. Can we really make such promises?
I also cried a few tears when I heard that Pope Francis had died. He lived to be 88. He, remarkably, after several weeks of serious illness, went out in the pope-mobile to meet the people who had attended his Easter service on the day before he died. As a non-catholic, I have no views on his effectiveness as a religious leader but I was heartened by his radical change in Vatican policy in December 2023 of formally allowing priests to bless same-sex couples. Not the full step but a big one.
There's a temptation to look back at the 1930's and find parallels to our current time..Let's resist that and, instead, remember how much territory has been covered in the past 88 years. And let's keep our promises to the children born now to improve our climate, to reduce poverty, and to eliminate diseases that threaten them.
