Having a de-baptism ceremony is a bit like trying to forget the gender with which you were born. It is merely a symbolic gesture by those who no longer want to be considered Christians. It is trying to do away with what they actually are whether they like it or not. Yet by blowing away their Christianity with a hairdryer they are having a ceremony rather like the baptism they profess was merely symbolic.  As their parents chose to have them baptised they are telling their parents that they don’t want their values for life. Yet these same people will have accepted food, clothing and education from their parents. They will have learnt their manners and morals from their parents. They will have been given a name by their parents. The one thing they refuse to accept is the fact that their parents had them baptised in the belief that the Christian way of life is a good one. Do they also choose to throw back in the faces of those parents everything else that was done for them and given to them?
There is no doubt but that thee are faults with religion and the religious. Living a truly Christian life though is surely the ideal. In a world full of materialism, greed and corruption they might do well to look at the innocence of a newly baptised child and see that its goodness is the real hope for the future.

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President Obama was elected on his platform of hope. He gave hope to minorities, hope to the poor and hope to the jobless. He gave hope that there would be a more equitable health system too not to mention hope that the environmental crisis would be tackled. He did not give hope to the unborn.
How can a father with two such beautiful little girls deny the right to life of others like them? How can he support those who support abortion? How can he support the rights of mothers and ignore the rights of their children? How, as a Christian, can he ignore Christ’s love for children when he said “Suffer little children to come unto me.”
He has decried the treatment of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay and said that prisoner will be tried fairly, yet the case of an innocent child is not heard. There are of course heartrending stories of women being raped and abused yet surely aborting the resultant child is punishing the victim instead of the perpetrator? Where is the justice in that?
As President it is his job to protect Americans all Americans. The unborn have the right to his protection too. Otherwise what hope is there for future Americans.

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There are few parents who remain unmoved when their child takes part in a nativity play. It is not only the story of Christmas that touches them but also the sheer innocence of young children. That same innocence is shown on their First Holy Communion day and there are often tears in the eyes of parents as they watch their child walk down from the altar their tiny hands clasped in prayer.
What a shame  those self same adults do not heed the words of Jesus in the gospel when He said “Who so shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a milestone were hanged around his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.” Yet these same loving adults do offend those little ones every day when they use bad language or leave tabloids around the house for the children to see. They do offend these little ones when they let them watch unsuitable programmes on television or have them mix in unsuitable company.
Children have to live in the real world is often the defence of such parents but ignorance and innocence are different things. They can protect their children by explaining that there are others who do not know any better than to use bad language because their parents did not explain it to them. They can show that in their own homes there are different and higher standards. It isn’t easy but then following Christ has never been easy. Most people will lay down their lives to protect their children. In times of war men often do. What are you prepared to do to protect your child’s innocence?

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The news of an impending baby is greeted in many different ways. For some poor people there is consternation as they worry about another mouth to feed. For others there is delight the prospect of a son to inherit the family farm. Yet more worry about the baby’s health especially if there is an inherited genetic problem in the family. For most people though there is a mixture of delight, excitement and a little apprehension thrown in for good measure.
Whatever about planned parenthood there is plenty of work to be done when you know the baby is on the way. Will the mother continue working? What colour will you paint the nursery and what sort of buggy or car restraint will you buy?  Then there is the whole question of what will the baby be named?
Christians baptise their children of course and often a parent or a Godparent will give a Christening or baptismal speech… Jews on the other hand will have a Brit Milah ceremony at which the baby will be named.  Others don’t bother with any ceremony and simply call the child after its father or its grandmother or even a famous film or sporting star. Some of the names given will be so odd or embarrassing that, once the children have grown, they will change it by deed poll.
Whether you have a baby shower or not a baby is usually welcomed for what they are.
When you look at their tiny hands, their wide eyed gaze and feel their soft, soft skin you know every baby born is simply another miracle.

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Confirmation day and first Holy Communion days are very important milestones in the life of a child and in that of his or her family. They are often days when grandparents and distant relative travel for a family re-union. Not everybody thinks of giving a speech and a toast but it is a lovely idea to say something to commemorate the special day in the family history. The speech can touch on the child’s growing years and on the importance of faith in his or her life. It can stress how important the child is to those who love him or her. It should be very personal with a touch of humour but, overall, with the message that he or she is very much loved. It should end with a toast for the future. Most of us remember those special days but how much nicer the memory would be if someone thought to speak about us and how special we were.

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The parishioner was worried. My parish priest is leaving for another parish and I have been asked to present him with a gift and to give a little speech. I have no idea what I should say. Can you help? he asked.. It appeared that this priest had a wonderful gift for getting things done. He had single-handedly raised the finances for a parish hall and a new school. He had organised rotas of parishioners to run all the different activities in the parish and had taken an active part in all these activities himself. Moreover he had a wonderful sense of humour which endeared him to one and all.

I suggested that his speech might start by saying that Fr. John was used to having a captive audience for his sermons but tonight he has to listen to his parishioner speaking.

Then he could go on to say that there was nothing unusual in that because he had always listened to his parishioners and that the result was that he was leaving not only parishioners but very good friends. He could go on to mention some of the things he had done while in the parish and to mention how disappointed people were when they heard he was leaving. He should speak about where the priest was going and what he was going to do there while suggesting that it just wasn’t possible to do more than he had done in his current parish. He should finish by saying he would be greatly missed but that he had left a very worthwhile legacy behind. Finally he should wish him God Bless in the days to come. The parishioner said afterwards that the priest had asked him had he ever cobnsidered writing sermons?

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Has it ever occured to you that speaking in church is very different to giving an ordinary speech? If you are reading from the Bible the punctuation and language is totally different to that of our everyday use. So you have to practice reading aloud and you also need to check on those unfamiliar names of people and places. So ask the experts. If you are makign an appeal for a charity for instance, tell a story because that’s the best way to grab the attention of your audience and make them emphasise with the charity in question.Remember too that churches can be bigger than an ordinary hall and make sure the amplification system is working properly before you start.

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Have you ever noticed how many sayings we use from the Bible not only in sermons but in every day use? Like the seed “We fall by the wayside”. We are exhorted to “Love our neighbour” and to “Forgive those who injure us seven times seven”. We kill the “Fatted calf” when we are entertaining. We know that in our father’s house there are many mansions. And we all know that “The first shall be last and the last first.”

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