Christian Initiation
2004 New York, New York
2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002
Convener 2004
David B. Batchelder (a parish minister at West Plano Presbyterian Church, Plano, Texas with a Doctor of Ministry degree in liturgy from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and is active in the liturgical renewal of the PC(USA) currently working to develop initiation rites for its Catechumenate Study Group)
Seminar Participants 2004
Seminar members: (in attendance) Timothy Fitzgerald, Lawrence E. Mick, John J. O’Brien, John Hill, Tony Sherman, Victoria Tufano, Mark W. Stamm, David Batchelder; Tom Rand, Anne Koester, Jerry Galipeau; Paul Turner, Alan Barthel, Margaret Bick, Jeffrey Truscott, Scott O’Brien, Nancy Swift, Gerald Austin, and Barbara Berry-Bailey
Seminar Report 2004
The work of the seminar was built upon papers and presentations that focus around continuing interest in mystagogy, issues related to the community that does the initiating and how it is affected, and the development of rites. In addition, the pressing concern among most Protestant churches on the question of open Communion has our study group interested in the relation between baptism and Eucharist.
Our work in 2004 included:
- samples of mystagogical preaching to be presented by David Batchelder, Margaret Bick and Tony Sherman;
- a paper by Tom Rand, “Mystagogy and Galatians: Rediscovering Community in a Disintegrating Church”;
- a paper by John O’Brien related to the work of Thomas Berry;
- a paper by Mark Stamm about open Communion along with ritual strategies for addressing it;
- Presbyterian Church (USA) Initiation Rites: early drafts and reflections by David Batchelder and Alan Barthel;
- a discussion prepared by Jerry Galipeau with leaders in the Office for the Catechumenate for the Archdiocese of Newark for our study group to learn how they deal with issues of combined rites with the baptized and unbaptized;
- further reflection by Vicki Tufano on the “white suburban overlay” which is reflected in some of the Roman rites of initiation and has become a point of discussion for various ethnic groups seeking to use them;
- a paper by Larry Mick, “Living Wet: Life After Baptism.”
Looking ahead to 2005, we have tentatively outlined the following for our work next year:
- progress report and reflection on additional drafts of Presbyterian Church (USA) Initiation Rites –– David Batchelder and Alan Barthel;
- the identity of the “family” and baptism—Alan Barthel;
- re-examination of exclusive paschal baptism and its implications for what baptism means—Paul Turner;
- the relationship of liturgy to grace with attention to preparing for Christian Initiation—Anne Koester;
- mystagogical sermons for 2005—Scott O’Brien
- “Water, Water Everywhere—The Ethics of Water in the Pastoral Letters on the Environment by the US and Canadian Catholic Bishops and the Concerns of the World Watch Essays on Water”—John O’Brien;
- an exploration of the question: “If not in combination with the unbaptized, when do we celebrate rites with the baptized?”—Margaret Bick;
- an exploration of the custom with Catholics of giving people blessings at Communion time. This includes children who cannot receive Communion as well as members of other Christian communities or the non-baptized—Tony Sherman.