Baptismal Ministry

 

At Immanuel, we strongly believe in the ministry of all the baptized. We believe that every individual is called by God to be an agent of God's compassion to the world. We believe that God endowed each of us with unique skills and talents to be used in fulfilling this call to serve others. We believe that Baptism celebrates this special relationship that each person is called to have with God. We believe all the baptized are empowered to use his or her abilities in Christ's name.

 

Therefore, we believe every individual is a minister at Immanuel. Every individual is called and empowered to serve as God's agent. Our members serve as parents, school teachers, truck drivers, counselors, nurses, secretaries, and factory workers. In their everyday lives, each member of the parish is called to proclaim the good news that all are reconciled to God in Christ.

 

In essence, all of our everyday is ministry, life is ministry, if we let it be so. In our baptism, we entered into a covenant with God: a living promise with a loving, trustworthy "other", and we vowed to pray, to resist evil, to proclaim the Good News, to seek Christ in all persons and to strive for justice and peace.

 

When we listen to a co-worker who is troubled, we are listening with the ears of Christ. When we compete in the Special Olympics, we run with the feet of Christ. When we catch the eye of a student who has been struggling with a math problem and give an encouraging smile, we are seeing with the eyes of Christ. When we tell our children or grandchildren they are loved, we are speaking with the voice of Christ. It is imperative that we understand that wherever we are in the world, we are doing the ministry of Christ.

 

Thus at Immanuel we have moved away from the traditional model of ministry: one priest and one congregation. We have moved into a new way of being together. This continues to be a life-giving journey. More and more of the ministry that happens at Immanuel does so because of the people, not just the priest. Join us in ministry toward a new creation!