Pathways to the Waters of Grace: A Guide for a Church's Ministry with Parents Seeking Baptism for Their Children

What if the church took with utmost seriousness that baptism is the gift of a new identity taking a lifetime to grow into? And, what if that identity includes God's call to a way of life made visible in how Jesus lived his? This book is a response to these questions in relationship to the church's practice of baptizing children. This book's underlying premise is that how the church helps parents prepare for baptism is vital to how the whole family lives its baptismal identity throughout life, as well as to the renewal of churches themselves. In the last several decades, institutionalized Christianity has found itself renegotiating its relationship with a culture that often has churches on the defensive for practices that are little changed from an era now past and insufficient as a witness to life as Christ's disciple. This book urges a reconsideration of what churches offer parents seeking baptism for a child, offering a transformed vision of such a ministry as well as a practical guide for putting it in place in the life of churches. Pastors, educators, and leaders will find a pathway to follow that promises to be life changing for all involved.

David B. Batchelder, pastor of West Plano Presbyterian Church, Plano, Texas, is active in the renewal of worship in the Church with particular attention to its sacramental practice. In addition to numerous articles on all matters pertaining to worship, he is the author of All Through the Day, All Through the Year: Family Prayers & Celebrations.

Ronald Byars is Professor Emeritus of Preaching and Worship at Union Presbyterian Seminary, Richmond, Virginia, where he taught following many years in pastoral ministry in both Michigan and Kentucky. In addition to Christian Worship (2000), his most recent book is The Sacraments in Biblical Perspective (2011). He lives in Lexington, Kentucky.